Chapter One

“I miss you.” The female voice came across the phone line.

“Stop whining, Madeline. It doesn’t suit you.” Mya Lawson couldn’t curb the smile from her face.

“I can’t believe you left me and L.A., moving off to The Middle of Nowhere, Washington. I mean, I could totally see Seattle. But Blink-and-You’ll-Miss-It Town is obscene. I bet you’re surrounded by nature. Did you hear that? That was me shuddering.”

“Stop. The town is called Roslyn.” Mya couldn’t help but laugh. “We’re not that far away from each other. A quick plane ride and an hour by car and you could be up here visiting me. Trust me, all this fresh air and nature would be good for you. Think of your complexion—it’ll do wonders for it. I’m sure it will take years off.” She bit her lip and waited for her the reaction of her friend, who also happened to be one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.

A gasp came across the phone line. “Hush. You know we don’t talk about aging.”

“Did you hear that?” Mya said. “That was me rolling my eyes. Please, you look the same as the day we met ten years ago.”

“Thankfully I have good genetics, and I refuse to believe it has been ten whole years.”

“It’s actually been a bit more than that. I graduated college twelve years ago and freelanced for over a year before landing a marketing job with the studio, which is where I met you on your first movie. It was my first real, steady-income job—I’ll never forget it.”

“I wish you’d forget the year…”

“Really, Maddie, it’s only been ten years. Wait until it’s twenty, or even thirty!”

“I hate you right now.”

Mya’s musical laugh filled her home. “No you don’t. Anyway, you remember I told you about my high school friend who always spent his summers up here with his family. His stories stuck with me all these years, and when I was looking for somewhere to move to, I remembered this place. One little trip later, I fell in love.”

“Are you sure nothing went on between you and this guy back in high school? It seems very odd to me that you say you two would talk every night, for hours, hung out all the time, but nothing else ever happened?”

“Stop. I’ve told you, nothing ever happened. He briefly dated my best friend. That was it.”

“You mean to tell me you didn’t find him attractive?”

“I’m not getting into that. He graduated from high school the year before I did, we ended up losing touch, and I don’t even know where he lives anymore.” She sighed and gazed out her kitchen window. “It’s just a fond memory.”

“You do know they have this crazy thing called the Internet and you can actually search and connect with old friends. Maybe you should give it a try.”

“What if he’s changed and we don’t have that connection anymore? I know I’m not the same person as I was in high school. No, I’d rather have the memory to hold onto than to risk losing something that meant so much to me.”

“You’re telling me the woman who first moved to L.A. when she was twenty-three, alone, and now moved up to Hole in the Wall, alone, is scared to look up an old friend who meant so much to her? What aren’t you telling me?”

“I’ve told you everything. Listen, it made complete sense for me to move up here. I needed to change my life. I was tired of L.A. —the stress, the pressure, you name it. This is an up-and-coming area. They say with the new incentives the state recently passed, this is going to be the next Silicon Valley, where technology meets eco-friendly, renewable resources. I have a couple of freelance marketing jobs set up already. I’m really excited about the innovative ideas they have, and you can’t deny the beauty of the landscape here. It’s amazing what they are doing without destroying everything in their path. I think you should come up. I know you’ll like it.”

“Oh I’ll visit, but I’ll never move up there.”

“No one says you have to, but I miss my best friend.”

“Me too. So what’s on your agenda today? Watching the grass grow?”

“That’s tomorrow.” They laughed. “I actually have an estimator coming out to retrofit my house with the latest technology to turn it into a self-sufficient, state-of-the-art smart home, complete with top-of-the-line security. Everyone I asked told me this company was the best.”

“The fact that you need all that in the middle of nowhere is a good reason for me not ever to want to come up there. But I will. For you. Just a visit.”

“I’ll take what I can get. Come soon.”

“As soon as this movie is finished, I’ll be there.”

“You have no idea how much I can’t wait to see you.” She glanced at the clock on the stove. “But Vault Security will be here soon, so I’d better get going. I love you.”

“I love you too. Stay away from the bears.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

They said their goodbyes and Mya disconnected the call, placing the phone on the kitchen counter. She smiled looking around her home, so different from the little bungalow in Studio City. The sleek, modern mid-century modern home tucked into the side of a hill was something she never dreamed of owning. Looking out the wall of glass to the valley below, she felt like the glass brought nature into her home.

When she’d made the decision to move, a sense that she was doing the right thing had settled over her. Once she set foot in Roslyn, the feeling became stronger. She was close enough to Seattle if she needed anything, but far enough away from the crowds of the city. The view of the Cascade mountain range was beautiful here, and she couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.

One thing she was still getting used to was being able to hear the sounds of nature and how well sound traveled here. She knew when someone started up the road to her place; the noise of the powerful engine echoed off the walls of the side mountain. Taking a moment to appreciate the roar of the machine as it accelerated, she smiled, wondering what it was. Picking up her phone, she walked to the kitchen door and waited for the vehicle to appear. A new Dodge Ram with a Hemi engine parked next to her car.

While she didn’t have a clear view of the driver, she knew it wasn’t going to be much longer as the door opened and the man stepped down from the truck and came around the hood. She gasped and couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across her face. What were the odds? Nate Robbins was here and walking up to her house.