Lauren lit the pine tree scented candle on Saturday morning, about the same time her parents should’ve been leaving Seattle. She still hadn’t told them about Trent, not being able to bring herself to say the words out loud to her mother.
She hadn’t even really said anything to Aunt Mabel. The crying said plenty, but she was determined not to cry today. Her parents hadn’t visited Hawthorne Harbor in a couple of years, and she was going to take them to lunch and they were going to spend the day shopping and talking and enjoying one another’s company.
Her brothers would be here tomorrow, and Aunt Mabel was hosting Christmas Eve at her cottage, where her parents and Kimmy were staying. Lauren’s brothers would bunk with her for a couple of nights, and Lauren was thrilled everyone would be in
