She sat at her desk with the opening just days away, wondering if anyone would even show up for it. Would all the seats be empty in a collaborative effort to show her how angry they were for keeping her true identity a secret?
But she’d been trying to help the town. Get the theater back up and running. But now she just felt alone and misunderstood, with no chance to ever feel like a real part of the town. And if the opening failed? The theater failed? Then what was she going to do? Disappointment and despair clung to her every move, her every decision.
She looked up in surprise as Miss Eleanor strode into the room. “Here.” Miss Eleanor dropped some papers on her desk. “I’m making an offer on the theater.”
“Why?” She glanced down at the papers and frowned, confused. “But why would you think I was selling the theater?”
“Selling it to Cliff. He made an offer didn’t he?”
“Yes, but?—”
Miss Eleanor cut her off with a wave of her hand. “I want it to stay a theater. Not get torn down for some monstrosity that Cliff would build, or turned into some ill-conceived place he thinks the town needs, but we don’t.” Miss Eleanor shook her head. “I thought better of you, Miss Duran. Thought you realized the historical significance of the theater for this town. I thought… Well, I was wrong. And if my offer isn’t more than Cliff’s, I can come up with some more money. But I’m hoping you’ll accept this. For the good of the town.”
She rose from her desk and walked slowly around it to stand in front of Miss Eleanor. “I don’t won’t your offer, don’t accept it.”
“Have you already sold it to Cliff?” A brief look of panic, quickly hidden, darted across the woman’s face.
“No. I haven’t sold it to Cliff. And I’m not selling it to you. I’m not selling it to anyone.”
Miss Eleanor’s eyes narrowed. “You aren’t?”
“No, I love this theater. I want it to be a success. I’d planned on staying here and managing it, but I’m not certain that’s a viable plan anymore.”
“Because?”
“Because it’s obvious that no one in the town trusts me. It was hard enough to try and feel like I might—just might—begin to feel like part of the town. But now? People either stare at me or glare at me. And neither one is very welcoming.”
“You did keep your true identity a secret from all of us.”
She shifted uncomfortably under the woman’s piercing gaze. She could no more tell Miss Eleanor the whole truth than she could tell Gavin. “I… I had my reasons,” she said weakly.
Miss Eleanor gave her a long glance. “I see. Well, I assume they were good reasons?”
She hesitated. Were they good reasons? She knew they were. But just saying she’d grown tired of her fame, of Broadway, sounded lame even to her own ears. “They were. They are.” She hoped she sounded confident.
Miss Eleanor paused and looked at her closely for a long moment before nodding once. “Then, okay. A woman is allowed to keep parts of her past a secret if she wishes.”
Tori had the distinct feeling that Miss Eleanor was talking about herself as much as she was talking about Tori’s choice to keep Victoria Duran a secret.
For a moment, she felt a brief bonding with the woman, so she decided to confess her fears. “I’m afraid we’ll have our big grand opening and the seats will be empty. Or just a few people scattered around. If the opening fails, I’m afraid the theater just won’t make it. I tried so hard, and all this work might have been for nothing.”
“Hmph. Not if I can help it.” Miss Eleanor shook her head. “And I think you should stand your ground. Stay here if you want. Or go if you need to. I’m just ashamed I acted like an idiot after seeing that article. That I didn’t just come here and ask you to explain. Not that you had to give me the exact reason. Just assure me there was a good reason.”
And just like that, Miss Eleanor was the first person in Magnolia to show her some grace. A weight lifted off her shoulders, and she felt like she could finally take a breath.
Miss Eleanor took Tori’s hands in her own wrinkled ones and squeezed them. “I’ll be here at the opening, front row, and so will a good crowd if I have anything to do with it.”
A flutter of hope began to grow in her, easing the knot of anxiety that had been with her constantly over the last few weeks.
“But I will say one thing. I do think you need to talk to Gavin. He was surprised to hear the truth… and a bit hurt, I think. Hurt that you didn’t at least share with him.”
“He won’t talk to me. Won’t take my calls. Jonny always says he’s gone when I stop by The Bike Shop.”
“He’s as big a fool as I am. We both should have known you had a good reason for keeping your past a secret. People in a small town often think we should know each other’s business. But you know what? We shouldn’t. People should be able to have some secrets. Especially if they don’t hurt anyone.”
Acceptance. She had one person in town on her side.
“And the people in town will come around. Or at least most of them will. They’ll move on to some other bit of gossip.”
