Page 25 of As They Are (Strawberry Springs #2)

WREN

RWL Superfan Discussion Central

Carly Ware: First episode of the second season drops TONIGHT! What are you most excited for?

Comments:

Jamie McCullough: I need an update on Wren and Jude! They better get back together!

Alicia Parrish: What about that other guy? Do you think he’ll be in it?

Neve Bullock: He’s just an off-season side piece. She better be with her soulmate!

Kerry Winsor : As a resident of Strawberry Springs, I can tell you he’s not a side piece! And he might be in the show ...

Neve Bullock: NO

Alicia Parrish: Is he cute in real life too?

“I’m so excited!” Mollie said. “We get to watch the new series while the star of the show watches it with us!”

She had ice cream in her hand. Cain followed behind her with popcorn. Eric grabbed a massive handful and Cain sighed when pieces went everywhere.

“How are you feeling?” Mollie asked, sitting next to me.

“Nervous,” I said. “I know they went a new direction with adding Henry, but it feels too good to be true.”

“I get it,” she said. “But they did such a good job on the first season. I bet this one will be even better.”

I hadn’t seen the first season. By the time I wasn’t filming it, I had no desire to see Jude and me flirt.

I’d never considered seeing myself on TV, not even when I was a kid dreaming. I never thought I was the kind of woman for that. Some days, I still didn’t.

Pulling out my phone, I checked it again, hoping Henry had changed his mind. He was a balm on my frayed nerves, and I knew he would know the perfect thing to say to put my worries to bed. I didn’t want to make him feel bad for taking time for himself, because he more than deserved it.

I just foolishly wished he didn’t shut me out from it.

We’d been spending a lot of time together, but I had a feeling that there was something I was missing.

Usually, I didn’t think this hard about people I hung out with, but I wanted to know everything about the man who’d helped me.

All that was in my mind was the put-together version of him he showed me.

And I wanted more.

The bar had done nothing for my crush, especially when he’d pulled me close during our dance.

I’d been serious when I told him I was fine skipping the dance floor, but now I regretted not staying longer.

There was something about him that made me unable to look away, even though I should for my own sake.

He was good at keeping up boundaries and making sure we didn’t spend too much time together and get confused.

Still, it stung.

“All right, we’re ready.” Mollie turned on the TV and did a little dance before passing the ice cream to Cain. “It’s a shame Henry couldn’t come.”

It was. “Yeah, but he’s literally saving my ass here. He deserves a day off.”

“Is that disappointment I detect?” Mollie asked with an eyebrow raised.

I shrugged as the show started.

The first episode opened with my interview with the camera, in which I talked about how things had changed between Jude and me. The tension was obvious on my face when Jude called us friends, and I was surprised Madison had left that in there.

Then, a drone shot of the library took up the screen, and my voice told the story of how I’d found it.

I left out the part where Henry and I had snuck in, but everything else was true. I felt like it was a forgotten centerpiece of a community. The town was tight-knit but needed a little love. How it had inspired me.

All in all, it was a good beginning. Madison easily could have put me in a bad light after the stunt I pulled.

Then, Jude came on the screen. He told the story of us. How we didn’t work out. And he sounded ... disappointed?

In all of the time I’d worked with him, he’d never given me the time of day. There was no indication he’d missed me at all.

Was he acting again?

“That’s odd,” I said. “I didn’t know they were gonna go for that angle.”

“They could just be wrapping up loose ends,” Cain said.

“They better be,” Mollie said as she grabbed the ice cream from him.

The episode moved to the tour of the library, then to me kissing Henry. My cheeks grew hot the second I saw us, because that looked ... real . And my best friend was watching it while she covered Eric’s eyes.

“Look at that hand placement,” she said. “Did you notice that?”

“No,” I hissed. “I was more focused on his other one on my face.”

She whistled.

“Can I see now?” Eric asked.

“I feel like I’m watching something private,” Cain said. “But it’s better than the first season.”

“You didn’t like the first season?” I asked. I wasn’t sure I could handle it if he didn’t, but my curiosity was piqued.

“I loved the work you did,” he said immediately. “But the romance was ... a little forced.”

“He unfortunately called the fake relationship.” Mollie rolled her eyes. “Rude.”

“It was unnecessary, that’s all. I only cared about the mansion. No offense.”

“None taken,” I replied. It was refreshing to hear someone care about the work. All I’d seen online were people freaking out over Jude and me.

But I’d started this whole thing to show my work to more people. I hated that everything was about a fake relationship and not the beautiful piece of history I was working on.

I focused back on the show. They were showing the first few days of work I’d done, though making it look like Jude and the crew did more than they had. The contractors hired were there during the day, but Jude was a true TV guy and preferred to only do work on camera.

Which meant he didn’t get much done at all.

Seeing it now made me roll my eyes. And it only got worse when they kept showing him watching me. I’d not noticed while we were filming, but there were loads of shots of him glancing over.

“Are they making it seem like he misses you?” Mollie asked.

“He doesn’t,” I said. “He was the one caught with someone else. He started this whole thing.”

But then the camera cut to another scene of Henry and me, and I wondered if what I’d seen was real. They weren’t making either of us look like the enemy, just a happy couple.

When the episode was over, I was tense. Looking at myself through a camera was far more uncomfortable than I expected.

“That was interesting,” Mollie said. “Especially now that I know the whole story.”

“It’s show business,” I muttered. “They want the good ratings.”

“Is that what you want?” she asked.

I frowned, trying to decide. I knew Mollie would want an answer eventually.

But by the time I’d come up with something, she was covering her mouth and running to the bathroom.

I blinked. I’d been the one to get the ice cream and popcorn. “Please tell me Dale doesn’t stock expired stuff,” I said.

“Oh, no. It’s fine.”

“It’s fine?”

“Mollie throws up sometimes,” Eric explained. “Any time I ask, they say they’ll tell me later.”

I frowned. “If Mollie’s sick ...”

“She’s not,” Cain said.

“Then—” I froze when I realized what was going on. Then I tore after Mollie.

She was hunched over the toilet bowl and didn’t spare me a glance as I hovered in the doorway.

“Cain, don’t be a mother hen. I’m fine . Stay with Eric and Wren.”

“I’m not Cain.”

She let out a groan. “Shit.”

“You’re ... Are you ...” I didn’t even know how to ask.

Mollie sat back on her heels. “Yes, I’m pregnant. Not very far along, but enough to make me throw up randomly. If you see a spot in a field, stay away from it.”

I could only stare. I knew they were discussing kids. But she was pregnant? Already?

“Wren?” she asked. “Are you ... You have nothing to worry about, you know. You’re welcome here, and my due date is way after you go back to Nashville, but even if you stay longer, we still have Cain’s old room we could use.”

I heard her words, but couldn’t say anything. I was in such a state of shock that I didn’t know what to do.

Mollie played with the hem of her shirt. “Please say something,” she begged.

I pulled myself out of my thoughts. I wasn’t sure what I was feeling other than total and complete shock. “I am so happy for you.”

She perked up, her back straightening. “You are?”

“Of course!” I pulled her into a tight hug. “You’re gonna be an amazing mom.”

She was. And I knew it more than anything. Mollie was kind, funny, and selfless. Cain was dedicated and caring. There was no reason I shouldn’t be thrilled.

And I was.

But there was also a deep sadness, one I carried with me everywhere. Mollie hadn’t done this, and all she deserved to see was my happiness. But I couldn’t shake the grief that rocked me to my core.

My future niece or nephew was going to have the greatest mom in the world.

And I’d gotten one of the worst.