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Because whether he wanted to or not, he would. He was here now. Back in his hometown. Where everyone thought they knew him.

The worst part was...there was an ache in his chest when he thought of that parade. A deep impossible need. He wanted to be their hero again.

Life had been so much better when he was the hero.

Everyone thought he was a hero because he’d been a soldier.

Because he’d played a good game of football. But they didn’t know him.

Sometimes he worried that he wasn’t the good guy anymore.

Sometimes he thought he might be the bad guy.

CHAPTER FIVE

RORYSTOPPEDWHENshe and her sisters got to the main street of town. They had parked up at the other end and were walking to the grocery store, enjoying the warm early afternoon air that was going to turn heavy and hot by the time four o’clock rolled around.

They might own their own farm store, but they still had to eat processed foods. They weren’t animals.

There was a banner stretched over the road.

“Theyarehaving a parade.”

“I told you they were,” said Fia.

“I sort of didn’t... I mean I said it, I knew it. But...”

She kept thinking about Gideon as he had been last night. He’d said he didn’t want this. He’d been...so dark. So angry. It was such a contrast to who he’d been before.

There was a time when she’d thought she’d known him.

When she’d chattered to him while he drove her and Lydia to school. When he’d been in high school and they were in middle school, he’d taken her every day. And she still couldn’t quite tell if he even really remembered who she was. The first time it hadn’t seemed like he did.

Last night, it seemed like maybe he did know her. But he didn’t seem happy to see her.

He was entirely different to the person he’d been back then.

The man he was now...

Maybe he wouldn’t come to town. She had to trust Lydia to know what was best for her brother. Except... Lydia didn’t know him now, either.

He was wounded. Deep. Even if there weren’t scars that she could see on his body.

She wanted to help. But she didn’t know what help looked like for him right now. He was here. He’d chosen to come back home.

They went all the way down to John’s grocery store, and perused the aisles.

“PowerBait?” Quinn asked.

Her sister’s out-of-left-field question burst her deep thought bubble. “I’m good, Quinn. Thanks.”

Quinn grinned.

“How is Levi?” Fia asked.

Quinn practically beamed. “Oh, he’s great. We’re great.” Quinn had of course moved in with Levi recently, after her endeavor to get road access from his ranch to their store had turned into something unexpected for the both of them.

Quinn was happy. And Rory was happy for her sister. Even if the change in Quinn’s life made Rory feel weird about the lack of progression in her own. Even if it had been something of a trigger.