The first rose bloomed in my little courtyard.
I squatted down beside the flower pot, using a cotton swab to gently wipe aphids off the leaves.
My phone lay on the stone table, its screen glowing with a new text from an unknown number. I ignored it.
Ever since I moved to this small town, I had gotten random calls and texts like this every now and then.
They were almost certainly from people Julian sent to track me down. I never answered any of them, never replied to a single one.
To me, everything from the past had been locked away in the deepest, darkest corner of my heart the day Nora left. I never wanted to touch it again.
I had just stood up to head back inside when the sound of frantic, pounding knocks echoed from the courtyard gate.
I frowned. All the neighbors here were frien
