As Charlotte wandered through the house, taking food in and out of the kitchen, more and more of the Wilson clan arrived.
Her sister was the last to show up, and when their eyes met from across the room, Savannah gave her sister a withering look that included narrowed eyes and pursed lips. Charlotte turned her back on her and returned her attention to her mom’s cousins, Zoe and Zac.
I’m not the enemy here, Sav. I’m trying to help you grow up. Someday, you’ll see that, and you’ll see I’m trying to help you reach your full potential.
Otherwise, Charlotte had no idea how her sister was going to continue to zip through life, never stopping long enough for it to matter.
Chapter Two
She tied the curtain up and took a step back. Then, she took the pin out of her mouth and stuck it to the fabric in an attempt to keep the shawl in place. While she knew the mannequin in front of her didn’t do the character justice, it was the best she could do on short notice.
With most of the kids gone for the summer, Charlotte was left to improvise.
It was how she found herself spending the better part of a Sunday alone in the auditorium, nibbling on her leftover chicken panini and humming the songs to herself. She’d been in here hundreds of times; it was one of her favorite places to go to at school, but she couldn’t deny how empty it felt. How heavy the air was without anyone else there.
Sometimes, Charlotte could swear ghosts and memories were lingering around every corner, the kind she wanted to avoid. Over the past few days, she’d been going over her discussion with Savannah, but she kept coming to the same conclusion.
She was hard on her sister—harderthan she should be.
But what choice did she have?
Charlotte didn’t want her sister to settle, not in a career she didn’t want, and definitely not when it came to her life. But she also didn’t want Savannah to blink and find that her entire life had gone by while she was too busy chasing a mirage. Ever since they were little, Charlotte had kept an eye on Savannah, taking great pride in her accomplishments.
It kept her from dwelling too much on how her own life turned out.
Savannah was right that Charlotte had taken the easy out, but after her father’s passing, she didn’t know what to do with herself. Like Savannah, she’d spent a while floating from one project to the next, from one interest to the next, and in the end, it was teaching that made her feel grounded and kept her from floating away altogether.
Teaching had given her life purpose, meaning, and order during a time when she desperately needed it. Granted, it wasn’t the kind of life she’d envisioned for herself growing up, but now that she was knee-deep in it, she couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Or being anywhere else.
Still, now and again, Charlotte did find herself wondering how different her life would’ve been if she hadn’t clung to the first thing that made sense.
Would she have been as fearless as Savannah?
Would she have created a whole new life for herself outside of Falmouth?
Sighing, Charlotte realized she’d been holding her script in a vicelike grip against her chest. Slowly, she pulled it away and tossed it onto an empty chair. The low thudding sound echoed back to her as she fished her phone out of her pocket and scrolled through her contacts. When she reached her sister’s number, she paused and took a deep, steadying breath.
Savannah knows you love her. She knows you want what’s best for her. So what if the two of you don’t see eye to eye?
Savannah answered on the sixth ring, her tone clipped and measured. “What?”
Charlotte sighed. “Are you still mad at me?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Am I still dragging you along for the ride? I thought my schtick was getting old.”
Charlotte winced and curled her free hand into a fist. “Sav, I—”
“You what? Want to lecture me some more about how I’m wasting my time and my life just because I want to be sure this is what I’m going to commit to? Yeah, I get it already, Char. You think I’m a loser.”
No, no, no. It’s not true, Sav. Come on.
But she understood why her sister thought that way. Growing up, Savannah had always been the first to cry, the first to get worked up over things, and even now, that hadn’t changed. As much as Charlotte hated to admit it, she’d known exactly the kind of effect her words were going to have.
But at the moment, she hadn’t cared, at least not enough to stop herself.
Charlotte grimaced. “I didn’t mean it like that, Sav. I just meant that—you know what I mean. You’ve got so much potential, and I don’t want to see you waste it—”
“You know, I’m getting a little tired of you trying to sound like Dad.”
