The exact opposite of Audrey.
The Wells sisters might be considered Irish twins since they were all born within a year of each other, but the foursome could not be more different in both personality and appearance. The only physical characteristic they shared was the hourglass figure that they’d inherited from their mother, which they were all grateful for. Other than that, they looked nothing alike, and they all had very unique personality traits.
The oldest, Grace, had been like a second mother to the rest of them. She had taken custody of all three of the sisters when their mother passed away when Grace was eighteen, Ava was seventeen, Viv was sixteen, and Audrey was fifteen. And she had taken care of the household for the years their mother was sick leading up to her death. Grace was textbook Type A. She needed to have control at all times or her world was not right.
Up until a couple of months ago Grace had been a high-powered entertainment law attorney in Los Angeles where her nickname had been The Ice Queen, or ‘Elsa’ from Frozen. The nickname worked on two levels because not only was Grace considered cold and detached by her colleagues, she also resembled the Disney princess with her light blonde hair and icy blue eyes.
But that’s not who Grace was deep down. She was loyal and selfless and would do anything for the people she loved. She now lived in Hope Falls and was engaged to Easton Bishop. The two of them had entered a reality home renovation show and won. They were continuing to flip houses while he worked on a book he was writing, and she worked as a real estate agent. Audrey could not be happier for her sister.
Ava, the second oldest and the one who was set to get married on Valentine’s Day, was the most nurturing of all the sisters. She had long, light brown hair and gorgeous blue-green eyes. She was kind and caring and it didn’t surprise Audrey at all that her sister had gone into the mental health profession. Ava was a psychologist who was focusing her specialty on childhood trauma and early development.
Her soon-to-be husband, Asher Ford, worked in law enforcement and had recently joined the Hope Falls force after leaving New York homicide division. He moved himself and his teenage daughter across the country so that he could focus on being a parent to Blake, who was having some behavioral issues. Audrey knew that Ava was going to be an amazing stepmom.
Viv was third in the lineup and probably the most opposite to Audrey. She had long vibrant red hair and huge green eyes. Whenever she was stuck for a Halloween costume, she’d throw on a red dress and go as Jessica Rabbit, who she was a dead ringer for. Viv was the wild child. Growing up their mother had endearingly nicknamed her ‘Troublemaker.’ She was flirty, fun, and free spirited. She loved adventure and new challenges. She had a phobia to commitment and loved meeting new people. She was blunt, brutally honest, and bold.
Viv was unapologetic in her pursuit of happiness. If she wanted to do something, she did it. If she wanted to say something, she said it. If she wanted something she went after it. No hesitation. No overthinking. No shame. Audrey had always envied Viv’s fearlessness.
Audrey was the youngest Wells sister and well, the plainest in the bunch. Where her sisters all had stand out features, she just had dark brown hair and her eyes were sometimes green sometimes light brown, which she supposed made them hazel. Even her eyes couldn’t make up their mind as to what they wanted to look like. She was the only Wells girl to inherit their father’s olive complexion which her mother always commented on, saying how much she looked like him with a hint of sadness in her voice.
Audrey loved organization, lists, plans, and keeping everything in order. If Viv was a fly by the seat of her pants type, Audrey was a wear the same pants every day and never go anywhere type. She was shy, quiet, and the bookworm of the bunch. She blended into the background and was an observer.
“Do you need a ride home?” Viv adjusted her purse strap on her shoulder as the sisters made their way out of the rec room.
“I came with you so…yes.” Audrey would have thought that would have been obvious.
“Okay, well I just have a few people I need to talk to. I’ll be back.”
With that declaration, Viv was gone. Audrey was left alone in the lobby surrounded by people who were all making small talk. Feeling out of place, she did what she always did when she found herself in situations like these. She moved to an out of the way spot, took a book out of her purse, and put her head down.
She did, however, make sure she had a plain view of the door so she’d be able to see Josh when he came out. If he saw her, there was a good chance he’d come over and at least give her a hug and maybe a kiss on the forehead which he did about fifty percent of the time when they said goodbye.
It might not be a kiss on the lips, but she treasured those sweet moments of physical contact probably a lot more than she should. No, definitely a lot more than she should.
As the meeting came to an end, Josh stood and offered Nonna his arm. She used it as leverage as she stood. These days it took her a little while to get out of a chair if she’d been sitting for a while. She said her bones got stiff so it was a process. He hated seeing her growing physical limitations because it was the evidence that her age was finally catching up with her.
When he was a kid, he had honestly believed that Nonna would outlive everyone, including his father and himself. He’d been right on one count.
Nonna continued using him to brace herself after she was on her feet as he leaned over and picked up her coat. He then held it out so she could put one arm through at a time, making sure to keep hold of him with the other. He’d bought her three canes, one for her house, one for the auto shop and one that he kept in his car so she would always have one at her disposal. So far, all they’d been used for was collecting dust.
His mind was still stuck on this singles week thing and he wanted to press her for more information but he knew that she would say it was none of his business. Maybe it wasn’t but he was very concerned about her taking on a project of this scale. She was already doing too much, and he’d noticed that she was getting tired and needing to rest a lot more often than she had been even six months ago.
If she was taking this on, he would need to step in and help. Which meant he was going to have to deal with people. Which was his worst nightmare.
Being in the garage, fixing cars, was his safe place. He did okay dealing with customers one on one but only when it was under his own roof on his terms. When he knew exactly what needed to be said and there was a structure to the conversation it was fine. Small talk, however, was his personal hell. He’d never been a huge fan but growing up in a town of this size where everyone knew everyone, he’d gotten good at faking it. But that was when he was younger before he’d been diagnosed with depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and PTSD. Now he wasn’t so good at faking it.
“If you scowl like that for so long your face is going to look like a bulldog, il mio tesoro.” Nonna reached up and patted his cheek, using the Italian nickname she’d given him when he was a child which translated to, my treasure. She had a special name for each of her grandkids and great grandkids. Josh’s name had always made him feel special, which he was sure was the point. Her hand was freezing, as always, and her skin was soft and smelled like Vaseline Intensive Care hand lotion. His grandmother had been using the same lotion since he was a kid. He’d never smell that smell and not think of Nonna.