Meet Me at Sunset (Evening Island) - Olivia Miles Page 0,10

Something outside the confines of her home. Something that brought her around other adults. Something that made her think. Something that made her feel rewarded for her efforts. Something that was more than just being a good, dutiful wife, mother. Daughter.

Evan’s eyebrows rose so far up his forehead that she wasn’t entirely sure how he felt by that. But then he gave a little smile. “You want to stay home with the kids. That’s what you want to do.”

“That’s what I wanted,” she said. “Now I think I need something for myself.”

“And who will watch the kids?” He stared at her. “When I got the promotion, we discussed this. My travel schedule is crazy, and working in the city was too far of a commute for you to get back to the girls. And you wanted to stay home, Hope.”

It was true, she did. She wanted to be the perfect mother. She just hadn’t realized how much it would take out of her. That it would be so…unbalanced.

“Look, I put fresh towels out. In the kitchen. Did you notice?”

Now Hope had to count to ten, like she did when Victoria decided five minutes after a movie had started that she needed to use the bathroom instead of five minutes earlier, when Hope suggested she try.

“Can we talk about this when I get back?” Evan looked weary. “I have an early flight and I still haven’t packed for my trip.”

Trip. When was the last time that Hope had taken a trip? And Gran’s funeral didn’t count. They didn’t take vacations. Evan couldn’t get away from the office, and she had convinced herself it would be too challenging with the girls anyway. But now she thought of a change of scenery, of sand between her toes. And Gemma on her way—today—to Evening Island, to be with Ellie. It was going to be a reunion at their summer place, just the women, like it always was, after all these years.

“I’m taking the girls to the lake house,” she announced. Ever since she’d suggested that Gemma go to Evening Island, she couldn’t stop thinking of it. It was the one place she could escape, the pressure, the expectation, the feelings of restlessness and guilt and confusion that filled her days more and more. She needed to clear her head and think about what she really wanted. And she wanted to be around her sisters. She wanted to feel the way she did the last time they’d all been there together, when she was still in college, and her entire future was still wide and open.

“Your grandmother’s house?” His brows pinched. He’d never been. She’d never pushed for it. She’d let it go, somehow, years back, when their lives merged. “When?”

She shrugged. “I’ll drive up tomorrow.”

“And when will you be back?” he asked.

She paused. “I don’t know,” she replied honestly.

He stared at her, and for the first time, she saw something close to fear in his eyes. “Well, you’ll be back by the time I return from my business trip. We have our company outing with the firm coming up,” he reminded her.

“I know,” she replied. It was in her calendar, along with every other social event, school event, neighborhood event, and appointment. If it wasn’t another birthday then it was a Saturday barbeque, another opportunity for the women on the block to show off their newest furniture. Her mother would have relished in it. Hope, she had come to realize, did not.

“So you have to be back in time for that,” he said, seeming to relax a little.

“Actually,” she said slowly, letting a thought take hold. She pictured her calendar, filled with obligations, and imagined skipping each and every one, and not even caring about the social consequences. She wouldn’t (gasp!) even make a polite excuse. She wasn’t going. That was all. She was not going to attend any more events that she did not want to attend. “The spouses don’t all attend. I don’t have to be back for that. And I’m not sure I will.”

She lifted her chin, feeling the thrill of rebellion. Hope had always been a good girl. She opened the door to guests at her parents’ annual New Year’s Eve party, she smiled and remembered names. She knew every one of Evan’s colleagues. She stood at his side. She did everything she was supposed to do.

Until now.

“Okay, okay, you’ve made your point now,” he said, pushing back his chair to stand. “I’m sorry. I should have helped more with