Bound by the Past, Locked by the Heart novel Chapter 35

Willa replied, "I'm moving in. Why wouldn't I? Martha's packing up right now. If I don't move in, I'd be doing a disservice to the lunatic who just dropped millions of dollars to clear it out."

Sophie was confused. "But didn't that lawyer just say..."

"But I'm the one who still holds the deed, right?"

Recognition dawned on Sophie's face. "Good point."

Sophie had promised to help her move a few days later, but that very night, a phone call from her brother summoned her back to her family estate.

Early on the morning of the move, Zack showed up, having been recruited by Sophie.

Seeing each other again, the air between them was thick with awkwardness.

But some things needed to be addressed quickly to minimize the damage.

Willa started, "Zack, I need to talk to you about me and..."

Zack seemed to anticipate exactly what she was going to say and refused to give her the chance. The moment she started, he cut her off, "Willa, your ankle isn't fully healed. Let me pack. Whatever you need to say, we can talk about it after you're settled."

Without waiting for her to respond, he hurried over to her bedroom and began frantically sorting her belongings into cardboard boxes, his movements jerky and panicked.

Willa stared at his busy back, swallowing the words she had prepared.

For the rest of the day, Zack worked with manic intensity, taking on all the heavy lifting and repeatedly telling her to just sit back and rest.

He spoke very little, only occasionally stealing quick, fleeting glances at her before quickly looking away.

Every time she tried to broach the subject again, he derailed the conversation with something trivial.

Willa watched the moving company carry the last few boxes into the old house, but she felt no joy.

All the old furniture was gone, and the childhood memories attached to them seemed to have been washed away as well.

She could barely remember what the place used to look like.

Zack dusted off his hands, looking around with a strained smile. "Willa, I'll hire a cleaning crew to come through later. Look around and see what's missing, and I'll go buy it."

Zack wasn't ready to give up. "But that's between the two of you..."

"Randal is my ex-boyfriend. And it ended horribly."

The living room fell dead silent. You could hear a pin drop.

After a long while, Willa broke the suffocating quiet. "I'm sorry. I should have told you when we were at your place. I wasn't trying to hide it."

Zack hung his head, staring at his tightly clasped hands, his voice dropping to a whisper. "So... are you two now..."

"We are nothing," Willa answered with absolute certainty, and a spark of hope lit up Zack's eyes.

She continued, "But as you can see, he doesn't seem to want to let me go. I refuse to be the reason your relationship with your family gets destroyed."

"What do you mean?" he asked. "Is Randal trying to win you back?"

Willa let out a bitter laugh and shook her head. "Maybe he's just angry that I dumped him and wants revenge. Or maybe he just thinks torturing me is fun. But whatever his reason, you shouldn't be dragged into the crossfire."