Page 37 of Take Me Slowly, Part 1 (Aurora Hollow duet #1)

LEAH

The cleanup was never as fun as the setup, but most of Aurora Hollow turned out to help, making it quicker than it would otherwise have been. I kept an eye out for Brooks, even quietly asking around, but I saw no sign of him. No one could remember seeing anyone who fit his description.

I was starting to think I imagined seeing him at all. He might have been a trick of the light or something like that. Either way, he didn't come knocking on my door or turn up beside me to pick up discarded paper cups, or pull down streamers.

By the middle of Monday afternoon, the town was cleaned up and all the food trucks and amusement rides were gone like they'd never been there. If it wasn't for indents on the grass, they might also have been figments of my imagination.

"Thank goodness that's done." Louisa wiped her hands on her jeans. "Thanks a lot for pitching in. It's very much appreciated."

"You're more than welcome," I said honestly. "I feel like it's the least I can do given how nice everyone's been."

"I heard Holly sold both of the paintings she had at her table." Louisa bent forward to tie up the top of a bag of trash.

"She did," I said. "Early in the day too." I didn't know who she'd sold them to, but I was grateful for the money.

"I'm not surprised one bit," Louisa said. "You're very talented. It won't be long before people are coming up here just to buy a Leah Kent original."

My face heated. I glanced down at my shoes and muttered, "I don't know about that."

She finished tying the bag and stood up straight to rub her back.

"I do. I know what people come to Aurora Hollow for.

Some come to the atmosphere. Some come for the adventure tours.

And some come for things they can't get anywhere else.

The craft items, made by local folk. I've seen it a bunch of times.

They buy up everything they can, take it to a gallery in the city and put up the price.

Sooner or later, the artist figures it out and sells directly to the gallery themselves.

" She smiled. "Eliminate the middle man, as they say.

Middle person is probably more appropriate these days.

At any rate, there's been muttering about setting up a gallery here for years.

Sooner or later, someone is gonna do that. Maybe it'll be you."

"It's crossed my mind a few times," I admitted. "If I had an investor or two, maybe then…"

I had no illusion I could do it on my own. Physically or financially.

"There might be some rich city folk ready to invest in something like that." She picked up the bag and hefted it higher before carrying it over to the pile ready for trash collection.

I watched her for a moment, lost in thought. Was that really something I could do? Set up my own small gallery here in town? Rent out space to other artists, so they could reach buyers of their own?

The place could have rooms at the back for art classes for people of all ages. That would mean putting down roots here in town. Cementing my place as a member of the community. What would the rest of the town think of that? Living here was one thing, indicating I planned to stay was another.

I decided to put that in the back of my mind for now. I'd barely begun doing the administration work for Riley and Connor. That and my own art deserved the bulk of my attention at the moment.

I caught a hint of black slipping out of the store opposite the pub. I hadn't seen Josiah Lachance for a couple of weeks. Presumably he stayed up the mountain, keeping away from aggressive, prying eyes in town.

Without realising it, I crossed the road and hurried after him.

"Josiah, wait," I called out.

He glanced back over his shoulder. Scowled. "What do you want?"

"I—" What did I want? "I just want to talk. See how you are."

He stopped and squinted at me. "Why do you want to know?"

He reminded me of a wild animal, wary, but eyeing a handful of food. Certain he should run, but something kept him there.

"Because I don't like the way you've been treated," I said. "You deserve to walk around town as much as anyone else."

"Yeah, right." He clearly didn't believe a word I said. Waiting for the punchline as if this was some kind of sick joke.

I took a couple of careful steps forward. "It's true," I said firmly. "If they can welcome a total outsider, they can welcome you. What happened was?—"

"I know what it was," he snapped. "I don't know why you're trying to be nice to me, but fucking stop .

You don't get bonus points for it. No one's going to give you a gold fucking star.

I don't need to be your pet project or whatever the hell is going on in your head.

" He gestured towards my face, his movement small as if he didn't dare to have his hands any further from his own body than they were.

As if being any closer to me might set him on fire.

"I don't see you that way," I said. "Has it been that long since someone was nice to you that you don't recognise it?"

If I wasn't watching closely, I would have missed his flinch.

He wasn't a wild animal, he was an abused one.

Locked in a tiny cage, given scraps to eat.

And for what? Because he dared to bark a warning that wasn't believed?

Because he looked away and something terrible happened?

Because he was a kid who had a responsibility dropped on his young shoulders?

It wasn't fucking fair.

"Don't. Be. Nice. To. Me." He closed his eyes and shook his head, then opened them again. "Don't talk to me. Unless you want the whole fucking town to hate you, then do yourself a favour and stay away from me."

He turned and hurried away, this time straddling a motorbike and jamming a helmet down on his head. He started the engine, gave me a look over his shoulder before roaring away.

"Josiah… Oh." An older woman came bustling out of the store beside me. She held a bag in her hands. "He left the nails he bought." She held a packet in her hand. "I guess he'll come back for them."

Impulsively, I held my hand for the packet. "If you can tell me where, I'll take them to him."

She looked at me like I was out of my mind, but shrugged. She handed me the packet and gave me directions, which I listened to carefully before thanking her and stepping away.

I didn't know who would be angrier that I was doing this, Connor or Riley, but I wasn't planning to ask their permission. I was doing something nice for someone who needed a break. Okay, and I was curious to see where Josiah lived.

I hurried back to my cottage and slid into the driver's seat of my car.

The bag of nails, I tossed onto the seat beside me.

I put the car into drive and headed in the direction the woman told me to go.

Driving more slowly than the speed limit, because as soon as I left Aurora Hollow, the road became windy and narrow.

She was right when she said I couldn't miss the way up. Every so often, a track broke off to the left or right, but this was the only sealed road. I passed the spot where the zip line platform was, and kept on going.

To the left, I saw a glimpse of white. The falls. I wanted to slow down and take a look, but I could stop on the way back. Whatever Josiah needed the nails for, it could be important. Better that I get them to him before he realised he needed to go back for them.

I drove past the gate to Aurora Lodge and on to a couple of cottages maybe half a kilometre away. As I pulled into the track leading to them, I spotted Josiah's motorbike, tucked in beside one of the buildings.

"This must be the place," I said to myself.

I parked beside the motorbike and killed the engine. Grabbing the nails, I pushed out of the car and stood.

I froze.

I was barely aware of the packet of nails falling out of my hand and hitting the dirt with a crunch.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Josiah appeared from around the side of one of the buildings.

I was barely aware of him too.

"I've been here," I whispered.

I knew that cottage right in front of me. Knew exactly where the creek was. The creek I'd been told a million times to stay away from. I always had. Sitting beside it, but keeping a respectful distance. Knowing my father would scold me if I went any closer.

My father?

Oh God.

I didn't know I was falling until I landed on my knees in the dirt.

Footsteps ran towards me, the sound of concern. "What the hell?" Josiah kept his distance, his hands out in front of him.

No. No. No.

None of this could be true. My heart raced faster than the water down the falls. It couldn't be true, but I knew it was. I didn't remember everything, but I remembered enough.

I covered my face with my hands.

They were wrong.

Coral Clarke hadn't died that day.

I'd just come home.

Thank you for reading! The story concludes in Take Me Slowly part 2.

If you’d love a bonus scene of Riley after his little run in with Leah and her easel, you can find that here .