zombie look.”
“So versatile,” Stella joked. “I could even wear it to the grocery store.”
She was assessing her reflection when the bell over the door sounded with a ding, and Alice and Natalie walked in.
“Great minds think alike,” Alice said, greeting them with smiles and hugs.
“You mean, great minds who left all their costume planning to the last minute?” Stella joked.
“That too.” Alice laughed. “Are you wearing that tonight for the ball? You look amazing!”
“I hear you’re dragging Aidan along, too,” Natalie added with a smirk. “Good for you. His brothers have been bugging him all week, but he swore that Halloween wasn’t his style.”
“I guess someone changed his mind.” Alice said, grinning. “Aunt June has an award running for the hottest guy of the night, she’s all excited about having a new dark horse contender.”
Stella looked back and forth between them. “Does everyone know about our date?” she asked, feeling a lurch of self-consciousness.
“Yes!” the other women all chorused. They laughed.
“Come on, you can’t be surprised,” Mac said, over by the costume jewelry. “You know the gossip mill in this town works overtime.”
“And the Kinsella family phone tree works even faster,” Natalie added, moving to the rack of elaborate hats.
But Stella didn’t know how to feel, knowing that the whole town was abuzz with her private romantic life. After arriving in Sweetbriar Cove under such a cloud of scandal fifteen years ago, she’d worked overtime keeping her affairs out of view – and over the county line. And it had worked. Aside from her close friends, nobody had been any the wiser about her failed relationships. This was the first time she’d been the one making headlines, instead of just speculating over someone else’s life, safely observing from the sidelines.
“Don’t worry, you get used to it.” Natalie said, with a sympathetic smile. “When I first started dating Luke, I felt like I was under a microscope, but it’s only because they all care. We’re rooting for you guys.”
“You are?” Stella asked, still processing.
“Yup!” Alice piped up. “We took a vote.”
Stella smiled. There was really nothing else for it. Because if people hadn’t heard there was something between her and Aidan, she was guessing that showing up with him to the ball tonight would be a pretty big hint.
The least she could do was make sure she looked good.
“I think I’m taking the dress,” she decided.
“And I think I need this fake parrot in my life!” Mackenzie said, from a dusty corner of junk. Stella laughed, moving over to look at accessories.
Alice went with her. “Before I forget, I got another call from the trust lawyers in Boston.”
Stella tensed. “What did they want?”
“Just the annual report,” Alice said, reassuring. “But we should make an appointment for you to come by my office, and go through everything.”
“I’ve told you, I don’t want anything to do with it,” Stella said.
“Unfortunately, you don’t get a choice.” Alice told her. “It’s for Matty. So, the Boston lawyers are legally obligated to send it to me, and I’m legally obligated to update you.”
Stella sighed. “OK, I’ll figure something out next week.”
She rejoined Mackenzie, who gave her a questioning look. “Everything OK?”
Stella nodded. “Family business.”
Because while she might have decided to cut her parents out for good, they had other ideas. They’d set up a trust in Matty’s name years ago, and stashed a ridiculous amount of money there every year. They claimed it was for his education and expenses, but Stella knew, they were just trying to buy their way back into her good graces – and she refused to play ball. Maybe she was being stubborn, but after the way they’d behaved, she couldn’t imagine accepting a single penny from them.
She knew all too well, her parents’ gifts always came with strings attached.
“I think I’m all set,” she announced, pushing the unwelcome thoughts aside. “What about you?”
“I’m going full Jack Sparrow,” Mackenzie announced. “So I can bring my new feathered friend.”
Stella smiled. “I can’t wait. See you all tonight!”
Stella finished up her shopping and headed home. The house seemed empty when she got back, but she knew, she needed to get used to the silence. When Matty left for college… Well, she was pretty sure she’d be a blubbering wreck, waving him goodbye. But that was still years away, and today, she was going to savor the peace: Running a luxurious bubble bath and relaxing back in the suds with a fancy facemask on, and one thing on her mind.
Aidan.
She shivered, remembering the heat that