“Yeah.” Annie walked over to her abandoned wineglass and took a sip. She had to get a grip. The evening was starting to take on an out-of-control feeling, as if she were in a movie and had no idea what her next lines were. She struggled for a moment, then grasped for the one topic that wasn’t confusing. “I know I don’t know him or his side of the story, but Danny was obviously not the right person for you.”
“Thanks.” Serena gave her a small smile. “And you and Brody found your lake house the same year Danny and I found our dream house, huh?”
“Yes. Brody kept complaining about how far away from the city it was.” Annie thought back to that warm June day when their real estate agent had taken them to the very top of Westchester County to see the house on the lake, right when they’d found out they were pregnant with Finn. They’d both fallen in love at first sight and put in an offer that night, even though Annie hadn’t put her New York City apartment on the market yet. But they’d been too late. There’d been multiple offers before theirs, and the buyers had gone with another one. After a summer of looking at more than fifty houses, she’d seen that their dream house still hadn’t closed. Their agent had made a call and told them, “Make your best offer now if you want the house. The buyers just got turned down twice for their mortgage and are about to ask for a third extension. The owners are freaking out.”
She and Brody had gone slightly above the asking price and the sellers had gratefully accepted, severing the relationship with the previous buyers.
“You were lucky to find it.” Serena’s dreamy voice brought Annie’s attention back to her. “It sounds so nice.”
“It was. Sometimes I wish everything hadn’t happened and that we were still happy there.” Annie sighed. “But there’s no use trying to go back in time. Brody knew this was the right move for us. And I think he’s right.”
“He’s such a great husband.” Serena’s voice was tinged with longing.
“Yes, but that doesn’t make him the perfect husband.” Although now, compared to Danny, Brody looked like a saint.
Serena’s shoulders dropped. “I don’t need perfect. I just need someone who will stick by me and not blame me and run away when things get tough.”
Annie realized Serena had just described Brody. He loved her, even these past years, when she’d been at her worst. When had she forgotten that? He’d given up his life to move them all here, and yet here he was, making the best of things. He’d even gotten a job, even though he received a pension when he retired from the FDNY. While she was throwing temper tantrums and acting like an entitled princess. Annie was suddenly ashamed of herself.
“You’re right.” She nodded. “You’re making me appreciate Brody more.”
“You should hold on to him. Men like him are hard to find. Just like your lake house.”
“You’re right,” she said again. “We sold it right away. We were just two houses down from the beach, so we could pile everything into a beach buggy and walk down. It was so nice for Finn.”
“So nice,” Serena echoed, staring into her wineglass, as if hypnotized by the ruby wine.
“It’s rare to find that kind of affordable waterfront house in Westchester County.” Annie let out a loud sigh. “It was perfect.”
“I know. They are really hard to find.” Serena gave her glass a swirl, still staring at the crimson liquid inside. “That was the perfect house.”
Annie nodded, a smile on her face as she thought about the house, but then she faltered. “Wait, what?” She looked up at Serena, who finally tore her eyes away from her glass.
“I said it was the perfect house. Twenty-Five Lake Circle.” Serena gave Annie a serene smile.
Annie stared at Serena, and it took everything inside her not to drop her wineglass. Her blood froze, and she could literally feel the color draining out of her face as a chill spread through her body. That was the exact address of their old house on the lake.
28
A flash of light lit the sky and lightning strobed through the Ohana, making Annie think she was in a horror movie. A few seconds later, the loud crack of thunder made her jump as she stared at Serena, who hadn’t moved at all. Annie knew her skin was probably so white now it would have pleased even the most die-hard Taiwanese mother who prized pale skin. The beating of the rain intensified outside.
Annie had to practically shout to be heard over the storm, which seemed to have reached an apex. “How do you know that address? Who are you?” She felt as though she were in the midst of a prank. Someone was going to jump out any minute and say, “Gotcha! Ha!” Because how else to explain all the eerie things that had been happening since Serena appeared on her doorstep? Marley, who had been taking a nap in his bed by the couch, suddenly lifted his head and growled.
“I’m Serena. Serena Kent.” Her voice was loud, and she gave Annie a friendly smile, as if Annie should recognize her name. And as ridiculous as the thought was, all Annie could think was that she’d never asked Serena her last name, like Brody had told her to earlier.
Was she a celebrity? Someone Annie should recognize? Annie scrambled to think, to put a face to the name. Was she the woman in that rom-com that just came out, about the maid of honor who killed her best friend for marrying the man she loved? Wait, no, that wasn’t a rom-com. Or maybe she was the woman in that Netflix show about the mother who could see dead babies? No. Try as she could, Annie couldn’t place the name.
Serena cocked her head to the side. “You don’t know who I am? And who Danny is?”
“No. Should I?” Annie tried to keep the panic out of her voice. “I don’t get it. What’s going on? Do we know each other? I mean, from before? How do you know my address in New York?” Her brain was scrambling, trying to make sense of the situation. She looked around frantically. Maybe she’d left a piece of mail with their old address lying around, which would explain everything. Otherwise, whatever Annie was imagining was enough to make her poop in her pants.
A look of satisfaction crossed over Serena’s face. “Because that was the house we were going to buy. Our dream house. Me and Danny’s.” She gazed at Annie indulgently, as if willing her to catch up to the game.
“Wait.” Annie’s brows furrowed and her thoughts spun. That was why what Serena said earlier had rung a bell. “Brody and I got the house because the people who were supposed to buy it had something happen with their mortgage. It got turned down or something.”
“Yes,” Serena said calmly, as if they were having a conversation about the weather. “That was us. Our mortgage got turned down twice. Because I lost my job and, without our combined incomes, the banks wouldn’t approve our mortgage.”
“That was you? You and Danny?” Annie stared, her mouth dropping open. She took a step back, and Marley was suddenly by her side, as if sensing her apprehension. What weird twilight zone was she living in? What the hell was Serena doing in her house?
Serena nodded. “You didn’t know our names, did you? I thought you would, but when I mentioned Danny’s full name, your face didn’t change. I guess they didn’t tell you the names of the people you stole the house from, huh?”