Lauren saw the unicorn cake in Megan’s hands and tears sprang to her eyes. “Hi. It’s perfect,” she gushed.

  “Hi, Lauren,” Megan smiled, her eyes were rimmed in red, dark bags beneath them.

  “Let me take that.” Lauren took the cake from Megan’s hands. “It’s amazing. You are amazing,” Lauren managed to hug Megan with one arm without messing up the frosting on the unicorn’s mane. “How are you doing?” Lauren asked.

  “I’m doing okay,” Megan smiled and started to shrug off her coat.

  “Let me get that for you.” Josh reached to help his wife out of her coat, but she stopped him. “You just make sure that he doesn’t wake up,” she pointed to the bulging baby sling on his chest.

  “He was up all night,” Josh explained, resting his big hand on the back of his sleeping son. “So was Meg.”

  “I remember those days,” Lauren commiserated, but her arms were starting to shake with the weight of the cake. “Look what you have to look forward to,” she laughed and tilted the unicorn’s horn to point at the pandemonium in the day lodge.

  “It’s amazing that he can sleep through this insanity.” Josh rubbed his son’s back gingerly, “But if the damn dog whines, or wags his tail, he wakes up.” Josh looked just as tired as Megan. Those years were over a decade ago, but Lauren remembered them well. She also remembered doing it alone. “You’re lucky to have each other,” she smiled. “Come on in, Charlotte and Serena are here somewhere…”

  Lauren left Josh and Megan in the crowded room and headed into the kitchen. She pulled the candles out of her purse and stabbed them into Megan’s creation.

  “Ooh, Megan’s so good.” Lauren turned to see her sister. “Let me help you with those,” Charlotte said.

  “Thanks.” Lauren shoved the pack of candles at her sister. “I haven’t had time to go to the bathroom all afternoon.”

  Lauren headed out into the hallway and made her way into the women’s bathroom. She flushed the toilet and stood up, pausing to enjoy the solitude of the stall. The main door banged open and she saw two pairs of adult-sized boots walk into the room. She didn’t feel like making small talk with any of the parents, so she paused, hoping to avoid whoever it was.

  Whoever it was didn’t use the stalls. The boots paused in front of the sinks. Lauren heard the water running and then the sound of makeup compacts being opened and closed.

  “A little over the top don’t you think?” voice one, a husky smoker’s voice said.

  “Those girls feel like they have to prove something,” a second, higher-pitched voice said. “But at least the kids are having fun.”

  “Just pisses me off a little,” the husky voice continued. “The way those trash rats come back to town with a little bit of money and then throw it in our faces like this.”

  “I think she just wanted her daughter to have a nice birthday,” voice two replied. Lauren didn’t know who either of the women were, but she was thankful for the kindness of voice two. Growing up as an outcast, Lauren grew a thick skin early in life and the whispers of the women in the bathroom were nothing she hadn’t heard before. She rested against the door, tapping her fingers on her face, waiting for them to finish so she could leave.

  “But, the second voice was quieter now, “Did anyone ever find out who knocked her up?”

  The husky voice cackled, “I don’t think she even knows.”

  “I would die of embarrassment. I mean, people talk.”

  Lauren felt tears stinging her eyes but wiped them away before they could fall down her face. She couldn’t believe the nerve of these women, shit-talking about her in the bathroom of the party she was hosting.

  “Well, they were a family of sluts,” the husky voice continued. “I don’t think that they were picky about dicks.”

  The second voice laughed. “I wonder if the kid will follow in the family tradition.”

  Lauren’s face was burning, she was holding her breath and could feel the rage building inside of her. The rumors from her teenage years hadn’t died, and as much as she knew she couldn’t stop, or change them, they couldn’t have been further from the truth. Yes, she had made a mistake. The first and only mistake in her life, but if she could do it all over again, she would. That mistake had given her the best thing in her life, her daughter. She could handle people talking about her, but there was no way she was going to let these small-town bitches get away with talking about Tabitha.

  She turned and flushed the empty toilet, announcing her presence.

  “Shit, there’s someone in here,” the husky voice whispered. Lauren could hear the zipping of purses and clattering of makeup as the two women tried to make a quick escape, but she wasn’t having it. She burst out of the bathroom stall; her hands balled into fists at her sides.

  “Oh, no,” the second voice gasped. It belonged to Jennifer, the mother of one of the boys in Tabitha’s class. The husky voice, Lauren should’ve known, was Carrie’s. She was the mother of another boy in Tabitha’s class, and younger sister to Stacy, the woman who hated Charlotte and Lauren like it was a sport. Carrie folded her arms in front of her chest, her cheeks red.

  “I’m sorry, Lauren. I-I didn’t know you were in here,” Jennifer stammered.

  Lauren looked to Carrie, waiting for an apology. “Shouldn’t hide in the stalls.” Carrie narrowed her overlined lips, sticky with fresh gloss.

  “You two.” Lauren stepped forward, her voice strained. She inhaled deeply and then stepped back. She resisted slapping Carrie across her smug leathery face because that’s the kind of drama she wanted. Lauren refused to lower herself to Carrie’s level.

  “I may have grown up with nothing,” Lauren said through her teeth. “But at least I have something that you two will never, ever have.”

  “And what’s that?” Carrie huffed. “A bastard child?”

  “Class,” Lauren whispered. She held open the bathroom door. “I highly suggest that you collect your kids. Oh, and be sure to think of a good excuse to explain why you’re leaving the best birthday party of the year early.”

  Jennifer’s face was beet red and Lauren could see the tears in her eyes. She was doing what most people in Chance Rapids did. Talk about their ‘friends’ behind their backs, and Lauren knew that she would probably go home and feel bad about the whole thing. Carrie, on the other hand, was a woman who came from a family of bad apples, and she would go home and feel good about herself, proud that she had brought down one of the Bunkman sisters.

  Jennifer scuttled out of the bathroom, staring at the floor. As she left, she whispered, “Sorry.”

  Carrie tilted her hip against the sink, her rhinestone belt jingling against the ceramic counter. “What if I don’t want to leave?”

  “You’re not welcome here.” Lauren crossed her arms across her chest, holding the door open with her back.

  Lauren wasn’t a confrontational person. The only time she’d ever been in a physical fight was with her sister, and it had been over something stupid, like clothes. She worked as a lawyer, but in the courtroom, she had time and experience on her side. She could make anyone crumble on the stand, but she never had to do it with the blood boiling in her veins.

  Lauren’s heart was beating in her throat as she watched Carrie examine her long bubble-gum pink fingernails. She squeezed her eyes tight and imagined slapping the cheap lipstick right off of her face. Carrie bent down and picked up her purse from the bathroom floor and brushed by Lauren. “It was a shitty party anyway.”

  After Lauren watched Carrie strut away in her pleather stiletto boots, she bent over the sink and rested her head in her hands.

  “Lauren.” She snapped her head up to see her sister Charlotte in the doorway. “Are you okay?”

  Lauren waved her away, but being Charlotte, she ignored the dismissal and stepped to her sister’s side.

  “What happened?” Charlotte asked. “You’ve been gone forever. I’m glad I didn’t light those candles.”

  Lauren groaned and shook her head. “A couple of the moms were in here and I overhead them talking about…” she hesitated. “Some stuff.”

  “Who? And what ‘stuff’?” Charlotte used her fingers to make air quotes.

  “Jennifer and Carrie.”

  “Stacy’s sister Carrie?” Charlotte asked.

  “Yep.”

  “Ugh,” Charlotte groaned. “She’s almost as bad as her sister.”

  Stacy had interfered in Charlotte’s life more than once. As a teenager, she had bullied Charlotte, and as an adult, had tried to get between her and Logan.

  “Carrie might even be worse, or she’s at least practicing to take over the bitch throne,” Lauren said.

  “Don’t let that shit get to you.” Charlotte squeezed her sister’s shoulder.

  “I usually don’t,” Lauren sighed. “I can take it. I’ve heard it all before. But Char, you should’ve heard what they said about Tabitha.”

  “Tabitha?” Charlotte stepped back, her eyes wide.

  “Yeah, they said the usual stuff about us and Mom.”

  “What the hell did they say about Tabby?” Charlotte said a little louder.

  Lauren shook her head, her long brown hair falling beside her face.

  “Lauren?” Charlotte coaxed.

  “Just let it go,” Lauren said. “Let’s get back to the party.”

  “No, I’m not going to let it go.” Charlotte put her hands on her hips. “Do you remember what it was like to live like that? With those rumors about us? The rumors that weren’t true, I might add?”

  Lauren knew that Charlotte was right. She worked hard to protect Tabitha, but in this small town she was vulnerable to the Bunkman sisters’ rumored past, and Lauren felt helpless to stop the cycle from repeating itself. “What could I have done? Hit her?” Lauren asked, then sighed. “They were talking about how she doesn’t know who her dad is.” Lauren gulped, trying to find the courage to continue. “Then they laughed and said something like, when is Tabitha going to turn into a slut like her mother, or something like that.” Lauren’s face was growing red again. “I confronted them and asked them to leave.”

  “That’s way more civil than I would’ve been.” Charlotte’s nostrils were flaring. “She’s just a kid.”

  “I know,” Lauren said. “And how embarrassed would she have been if her mom got into a fight in the bathroom?”

  “I guess that’s true,” Charlotte mused.

  Out of the two sisters, Lauren was the calm, reserved one. Charlotte was the hot head; known for throwing drinks in people’s faces or pouring champagne over their heads.

  “Lauren, you did the right thing,” Charlotte said. She pulled her sister in for a hug. “I wouldn’t have even invited their devil spawn brats to the party in the first place though.”

  Lauren squeezed her sister back. “I was trying to teach Tabitha about not excluding people.”

  “The world is a harsh place.” Charlotte pulled back. “But I can see why you’re trying to protect her from it as long as you can.”

  “Thanks.” Lauren’s shoulders started to relax; the adrenaline that had been surging through her body slowly fading away.

  “But I’m going to go make sure that bitch is nowhere near this chalet.” Charlotte pulled the door open and paused. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  Lauren nodded. “Yes, just a little shaken.”

  “Meet you at the candles.” Charlotte winked and stormed off down the hallway, her Prada winter boots following the same route that Carrie’s plastic ones would’ve taken.

  Lauren took a deep breath and inspected her face in the mirror. It wasn’t as red as she thought, just a slight blush on her cheekbones underneath the dark freckles that ran across her face from ear to ear. She headed back to the kitchen to light the candles, but her mind was racing a mile a minute, worrying about one of her biggest regrets: Not telling her daughter the truth about her father.

  Two

  He hadn’t been back to the Sugar Peaks Mountain range in over ten years. Now, as Baxter Caldwell watched the sea of snow-covered fir trees whizz by through the windows of the chopper, he felt a twinge in his gut – nerves. He told himself they were related to the importance of the business deal, but he knew that deep down, he was wondering if she was still in town.

  Lauren.

  As the helicopter settled onto the landing pad of the private chalet, he pushed the thoughts of the freckle-faced cleaning lady to the back of his mind. That was ancient history, and he was facing the most important acquisition of his career. For the first time, his father, Baxter Caldwell, Senior, had put him in charge of Caldwell International’s development department. Yes, he was the boss’s son, but he still had to prove himself if he wanted to keep the top spot in the development department.

  His father would be joining him for their annual heli-ski vacation after he sealed the deal with the resort. It was their father/son tradition and had been for years, so it seemed fitting that they would be returning to the same lodge where the tradition started.

  Once he was settled into his master suite overlooking the Sugar Peaks range, he sent a message to his team to meet him in the dining room, the spot that would function as their conference room for the next month.

  “Nicole, where are you with the local contacts?” he asked his assistant after they were all settled at the table.

  His assistant, a very capable woman who had been by his side since he started, put on her glasses and opened her laptop. “You have a meeting with the owners of the resort on Wednesday, the local realtor this afternoon, and the opposition lawyer on Thursday.”

  “How difficult have they been so far?” he asked.

  “Surprisingly civil.” Nicole smiled from behind her computer.

  “Good.” Baxter steepled his fingers in front of him and leaned back in his chair. “See if you can move those meetings up, same with the resort. I want to get these balls in the air sooner rather than later.”

  “Yes, sir,” Nicole replied, making a note on her laptop.

  Baxter looked to the other executives, Barry, his attorney, and Thomas, his lead consultant. “Do you two have all of the material ready to meet with the real estate agent?” he asked.

  “Yes, sir,” the duo responded simultaneously.

  “Good,” Baxter smiled. He had absolute faith in his team. “It looks like we’re all on the same page here. Thomas, do you mind sticking around to discuss strategy?” He looked to the older of the executives who nodded. “Good. The rest of you can relax for a bit. We will be heading into the town at three o’clock.”

  With the majority of the team dismissed, Baxter and Thomas started examining the spreadsheets and discussing strategies. They were only about an hour into their brainstorming session when a loud commotion from outside interrupted their business huddle.

  “What was that?” Thomas asked.

  “Beats me.” Baxter stood up and stepped onto the massive balcony that ran the length of the private chalet. Nicole and Barry were in the hot tub and waved at their boss. “What’s going on?” he shouted over the noise of the jets.

  “Looks like some sort of snowboard thing,” Barry said. He pointed to the base of the gondola.

  Baxter leaned over the wooden log railing, scanning the huge crowd of people, and then a snowboarder shot up from the half-pipe, spinning in the air while grabbing his board. The crowd went wild.

  “Impressive,” Thomas said.

  “Want to go check it out?” Baxter was equally impressed. He wasn’t a snowboarding expert, but he knew that what they were seeing could be a professional-level event.

  “Yeah,” Thomas smiled.

  Baxter prided himself on being a fair boss, and his team was ready for this project. He didn’t expect any major road bumps, with the exception of the conservation authority lawyer, which he figured they could easily ‘out lawyer’ with the Caldwell pocketbook. “Come on then.” He waved to Thomas.

  The two of them pulled on their boots and Canada Goose coats and trudged through the early season snow to the base of the mountain. The dreary morning clouds had broken, and the afternoon sun warmed their faces as they jostled for a place in the crowd where they could see the action.

  Rider after rider, the tricks seemed to get harder and higher; the crowd either screaming in awe or gasping as one of the young athletes crashed into the tall walls of the half-pipe. Baxter had to put his mitten to his ear every time one of the local riders dropped into the half-pipe. The snowboarder’s fan base could rival that of any boy band, and the screams of the girls pierced into his brain.

  “This is a bit much,” Baxter whispered to Thomas.

  “Ha, you can tell you don’t have kids,” Thomas shouted over the screams of the young crowd. “You get used to the constant chaos and noise,” he smiled and shrugged.

  Baxter looked around at the fans. The parents were standing back and chatting with each other, seemingly oblivious to the debauchery in front of them. He liked his quiet and organized life. He couldn’t imagine having to deal with the constant whining and screaming of kids, especially the girls. “If we stay here, I’m going to need to get a hearing aid,” he laughed.

  Thomas checked his watch, “We should get into town soon anyway.”

  They slipped out of the crowd and headed to the brick walkway in front of the lodge.

  “Heads up.” Thomas threw his arm in front of his boss’ chest as the door swung open and a woman dressed in heels marched out, a young boy in tow, who was literally digging his heels into the snow. The woman seemed oblivious to the fact that she had flung the door right into their path, stopping them dead in their tracks.

  “I want to watch the contest,” the boy whined.

  “Tough luck,” the woman hissed. “Pick up your feet.”

  Baxter raised his eyebrows at Thomas. “Remind me again why you have kids?”

  The woman had dragged her squirming kid out of earshot, but Thomas whispered, “That one looks like a handful.”