Sundown Over My Heart
Verse 1
The sun dips low, the sky turns gold,
shadows stretch where we once strolled.
Your footprints fade on the empty street.
I reach for you, but you’re out of reach.
Pre-Chorus
Every laugh we shared, every whispered vow,
echoes in my chest, and I don’t know how.
Chorus
Sundown over my heart, you’re gone and I’m torn apart.
The colors fade, the night steals the light.
Sundown over my heart, you left me where it starts.
Alone with the memories, holding back the fight.
Verse 2
The wind carries your voice through the pines,
every corner whispers your lines.
I chase your shadow down the riverbend,
but some stories don’t have a happy end.
Pre-Chorus
I keep the pieces, but they cut so deep.
Your promises linger, haunting my sleep.
Chorus
Sundown over my heart, you’re gone and I’m torn apart.
The colors fade, the night steals the light.
Sundown over my heart, you left me where it starts.
Alone with the memories, holding back the fight.
Bridge
The stars come out, but they don’t shine like you.
I trace the night, but it’s empty and blue.
I’ll learn to stand when the day is done,
but right now, I’m just a heart undone
Final Chorus
Sundown over my heart, your shadow lingers in the dark.
The world moves on, but I’m frozen in time.
Sundown over my heart, I’ll carry the scar.
Learning to live with the ache of leaving you behind.
Outro
The sun is gone, the night holds sway.
Sundown over my heart, I’ll find my way.
Prologue
Memorial Day, Lakeland Cemetery
West Loon Bay, Minnesota
Population 397
Annika Nilsen stood at the grave of her best friend, Hope Cummings, and blinked back tears. Hope had been only twenty-seven when her small car collided last December with a white-tailed buck, killing both her and the animal.
“I miss her so
much,” Annika said and swallowed hard. “Don’t let me cry, Carly. If I start,
I’ll never stop.”
Carly Strand squeezed
Annika’s hand in support then she knelt and placed a bouquet of freshly cut daisies
in the urn next to Hope’s monument. “Growing up, I thought we’d always be
together. It still amazes me how one day she was texting us about meeting for
lunch. The next day she was gone.”
Annika gazed up at
the clear blue sky and thought about how the three of them had been inseparable
since first grade. Growing up, the trio spent every summer swimming in Lake Tremolo,
slurping root beer floats at the drive-in restaurant, and taking turns hosting sleepovers.
Hope had the bluest eyes and the thickest, curliest, copper-colored hair of
anyone Annika had ever known. A tomboy at heart, Hope loved galloping around
town on a huge quarter horse she’d named Angus. She rode so much her family had
knick-named her “Merida.” It seemed like only yesterday they were arranging
their Christmas lunch date, not six months ago.
“It’s not fair.” Annika’s
voice wavered. “Hope, why did you leave us? We had so many plans…”
Carly sighed and
flicked a lock of long brown hair over her shoulder. “Plans that aren’t carried
out are nothing more than daydreams, Annika.” She emptied her bottle of water
into the urn and rearranged the flowers. “Hope may be gone, but there’s nothing
to stop you and me from continuing with the things we’ve always talked about. Like,
the road trip we keep discussing but never seem to get around to actually doing.”
“You mean, drive
to California?” Annika reached down and pulled a pair of clippers from her
purse. “Without Hope?”
Carly nodded. “She
would want us to go. I want us to go.”
For two years,
they’d tossed around the idea of packing up the car and taking a cross-country
trip out west, stopping at every scenic park, museum, and tourist trap along
the way. Once they got to California, if it proved to be the amazing place that
they’d heard so much about, there was a distinct possibility they wouldn’t have
come back.
Annika handed Carly
the clippers. “Are you serious?”
Carly began to
trim the grass around the base of the monument. “You bet I am.” She stopped and
looked up. “There’s nothing in this town to keep either of us here.”
Annika knelt
beside her and brushed the clippings away. “You know I agree with you—one
hundred percent, but I can’t just drop everything and leave.”
Carly sat back on
her heels and exhaled an exasperated sigh. “Why not?”
“My parents need
more than a couple of days’ notice if they have to find someone to take over my
job at the restaurant.” Annika bit her lip, knowing it sounded like a
cop-out... “I know it sounds like a convenient excuse, but the only task my mom
handles now is the accounting piece. I’m responsible for everything else.”
“They must have
some sort of backup plan, don’t they? I mean, what if you suddenly got sick or
you were married and got pregnant?”
Anika responded
with a wry laugh. “You know there’s absolutely no chance of me getting married
anytime soon. I don’t even have a steady boyfriend. If I got sick, Penny Skoog
would probably take over for me.”
Carly shrugged.
“So, there you go. Tell your mother you want to—no, you are taking a
trip with me out west and Penny is replacing you.”
That’s easier
said than done, Annika thought. My parents depend upon me.
“Annika,” Carly
said in a cajoling tone, as though she could read Annika’s mind. “Growing up, all
the three of us ever talked about was how we were going to break away from the
boredom and static pace of living in this town. The future won’t be the same
without Hope, but that doesn’t mean we should abandon our dreams.” Carly stood
up. “Look at us, we’re two years short of thirty. You’re still mopping the
floors in your parents’ café and I’m still serving beers to rowdy tourists in
the town honky-tonk. Pathetic, isn’t it? We need to stop living on the Isle
of Someday and start seriously pursuing something better.”
“The café is my
parents’ dream, not mine,” Annika said in a tired voice as she stood up,
brushing the clippings off her hands. “It’s dominated my family ever since I
can remember. No matter how hard I work it never seems to be enough. There is
always something that needs cleaning, fixing, or replacing. It’s not my dream
job, that’s for sure, but you know I have to do it because they expect it of me.”
Ten years ago, her
brother faced the same dilemma. Rather than walk in his parents’ footsteps,
Erik chose his own path in life and moved to the west coast to pursue a career
in the music industry. His decision to abandon everything had created a deep rift
with their parents and passed the responsibility on to her to take over the family
business. Most people wouldn’t turn their backs on an inheritance, but that’s
what Erik did when he left. Instead, he’d created his own legacy with his rock band.
Oh, how she envied him!
Erik owned a house
in Beverly Hills. He must have found life as a celebrity too important to leave,
even temporarily, because in the ten years he’d been gone, he’d never once
returned to West Loon Bay or contacted his family. If she and Carly drove to
California, perhaps they could pay him a visit. That is if he was home—and
willing to see them.
“You work six days
a week, year in and year out,” Carly said as she slid her arm around Annika’s
shoulders. “You need a break, Annika. We both do.”
She stared into
Carly’s soft brown eyes. “We’ll stock the car with giant bags of M&Ms and a
cooler full of Coke. Have some crazy fun, like old times.”
Carly set the
clippers on top of the monument. “You got it! So, that means we’re going,
right?”
Annika hesitated at
first, then nodded. “Yeah, we’re going.”
Carly pinned her
with a no-nonsense look. “Let’s set the date for the end of July. That should
give us enough time to get our affairs in order. Promise me you won’t back down—no
matter what.”
“I promise.”
A beautiful smile spread across Carly’s face. “California, here we come.”
Chapter One
Early June
The corner of Main Street and Broadway
Her coworker and
lifelong friend, Penny Skoog, wandered toward the window. “What’s all the fuss
about now?”
Annika shot Penny
a sideways glance. “A couple of drunken tourists are facing off like gladiators
in the street and if the crowd gets their way, those men will beat each other
to a pulp.”
“That’s if the
idiots don’t get struck by lightning first.” Penny frowned as she stared out
the window. Her gaze lifted toward the dark clouds gathering overhead. “Maybe
we’ll get lucky this time and the storm will break, forcing them back indoors.”
Annika checked her
watch. “It’s only four o’clock in the afternoon. The trouble seems to start
earlier every Saturday.”
Penny snorted.
“What’s new? It’s not townsfolk. It’s the weekend crowd from the Twin Cities.
Most of them probably caught their limit of walleye in the lake this morning,
so now they’re fishin’ for bottle bass at the town watering hole.” She pulled
her phone from her black apron pocket. “I’ll make the call.”
Annika turned away
from the window as Penny speed-dialed the county 9-1-1 dispatcher. The Ramblin’
Rose had become a minefield of controversy with similar incidents on a daily
basis since the weekend of opening fishing a month ago and the situation had
become so bad that they’d started taking turns calling the police.
“Something needs
to be done about Rose Lange,” Annika grumbled. “Every person who walks into her
bar is drunk by the time they stumble out. They end up here, trying to sober up
and I have to help them find a ride home.” She rolled her eyes. “I wish that
dump would burn down.”
Aptly named for
her chin-length copper hair, Penny smirked as she reached her pudgy arm behind
the counter and pulled out a disposable butane lighter. “Go ahead, Annika.
Torch it. That place is so old it wouldn’t take much.” Her golden eyes twinkled
with mischief as she offered Annika the lighter. “I won’t tell anyone.”
“Um...just
kidding.” Annika spun away from her short, plump coworker and hustled to the
back of the empty dining room. Penny loved gossip and she spread her fair share
of it around town. Annika usually kept her opinions to herself, but the
prospect of dealing with trouble over at the Ramblin’ Rose every weekend had made
her edgy.
She and Penny had
worked in her family’s café as waitresses since they were both sixteen. Five
years ago, Annika became the manager when her parents retired and she
immediately promoted Penny to head waitress. At twenty-eight, they worked
together like a well-oiled machine.
“Too bad it won’t
do any good to talk to Rose,” Penny said after reporting the incident. “I mean,
when your brother-in-law is the chief of police for the county, you can pretty
much get away with anything you want.” She shrugged. “At least, she can.”
Rose Lange’s twin sister,
Robin was married to Police Chief Bob Wyatt. Bob was a tough cop who kept the
town on a tight leash, but when it came to Rose, he often looked the other way.
For years, gossip had circulated that Rose and Bob were having an affair and a
lot of people believed Rose’s son, Alexander, was Bob’s illegitimate child.
Rose, however, refused to divulge the father’s name, claiming she didn’t care
what anyone said about her. Protecting the identity of the boy’s father had created
a juicy scandal and kept the gossip mill grinding for the last thirty years.
A fifteen-pound
walleye mounted on the wall behind Annika vibrated to the music of the country song
blaring in the Ramblin’ Rose; a clear indication someone must have propped open
the side door to the bar. There was a strip of green space between the
buildings where a small structure had been torn down. The area was landscaped
with shade-loving flowers and picnic tables, intended as a “pocket” park for
shoppers and tourists to relax, but the bar patrons had taken it over as their
private smoking section.
A heavy rumble of
thunder shook the building, followed by a deafening crack overhead. The lights
flickered and then suddenly went dark. The music next door abruptly ceased as
though someone had pulled the plug on the sound system.
Annika hurried to
the rear exit and stepped outside to get a better look at the impending storm. Leaden
clouds conveyed an ominous message as they swirled across the late afternoon
sky. A gust of wind shoved her backward, catching the door and slamming it against
the back wall. She slipped back inside and managed to pull it shut. “Looks like
we’re closing early, Penny. We haven’t had a single customer in the last hour. Most
people are probably taking shelter in their basements. If the storm gets worse,
we might have to do the same thing.”
The back door blew
open again and Carly Strand hurried into the café, slamming it shut behind her.
The slender brunette wore a pair of stretch jeans and a tight-fitting black T-shirt,
her uniform for her cocktail waitress job at the Ramblin’ Rose. Her long, glossy
brown hair was held in place under a fawn-colored western hat with dark brown
stitching.
“Hey, Carly,”
Penny said in her jovial way as she scrutinized Carly’s outfit. “You must be
working tonight. I don’t envy you.”
Carly ignored the
barb as she walked toward the counter. “I need a cup of wild rice soup and an
egg salad sandwich on white bread to go, Penny. Rose called me in early tonight
and I didn’t get a chance to make something to eat before I left home.” She
turned to Annika. “Let’s sit down and talk while I wait for my order.”
Penny pulled her order
book from her apron. “If we get a bad storm, maybe Rose will shut down and
you’ll get out early.”
Carly slid into a
booth in the farthest corner of the dining room, their favorite place to talk
in private. “The Ramblin’ Rose never closes.”
Annika grabbed the
ice scoop. “Want a coke?”
“Sure.”
Annika quickly
filled two tall glasses with ice and Coke and hurried over to the booth. She
slid in and pushed one of the glasses, fizzing like a geyser, toward her friend.
Carly picked up the
tall red plastic tumbler. “Have you talked to your mother yet?” She took a sip.
“You keep putting it off.”
Annika glanced
toward the front of the restaurant, making sure Penny was too busy to overhear
their conversation. “She’s coming in on Monday to do the payroll,” Annika
replied in a low voice. “I plan to talk to her about it then.”
Carly’s soft brown
eyes studied her. “How do you think she’ll react?”
Annika clutched
her coke with both hands and let out a tense breath. “You’ve known her all your
life, Carly, so you already know how it’s going to come down. She’ll blow a
gasket.”
Carly shook her head.
“I don’t get it, Annika. You’re twenty-eight and you still let your mother boss
you around like she did when we were in third grade.” Her fine, dark brows
knitted together. “She needs to get rid of this place and let you get on with
your life.”
Annika responded
with a troubled sigh. “She thinks this place should be my life.”
“You promised.”
Carly pointed her index finger at Annika. “You agreed at Hope’s grave you’d be
ready to leave by the end of July. I’m holding you to it.”
Annika gulped her
Coke. “I know, I know. You can’t wait to get out of this town. Neither can I.”
She sat back and smiled. “I keep thinking about how cool it’s going to be—rolling
into L.A. I can’t wait to go shopping!”
Carly arched one
brow. “Yeah, well we’re not there yet. You have to sever your umbilical cord to
your parents first and clean out your apartment. I’m not going to breathe easy
until we’re in my car heading out of town.”
“Don’t worry about
it,” Annika said with a wave of her hand. “I’ll call you on Monday and let you
know how the conversation went.”
Carly glanced
toward the serving counter. “Have you talked to Penny yet? About taking over
your job?”
Annika held her
finger to her lips and glanced toward the stainless-steel serving counter where
Penny stood conversing through the serving window with the cook. “Not yet. Not
until I’ve worked it out with my mother. You know how much Penny gossips. I
don’t want my parents to find out I’m leaving town from anyone but me.”
Carly stared
curiously at Penny. “Are you sure she’s ready to take over for you? That’s
probably the first objection Helen will raise.”
“Are you kidding
me? Penny has been ready and champing at the bit for a promotion for months,”
Annika said seriously. “She knows my job inside and out.”
Carly absently
toyed with her straw. “That’s one big hurdle out of the way, but convincing
Helen to put someone in charge of the café who isn’t in your family is going to
be your toughest challenge.” She leaned forward. “Don’t let me down, Annika.
I’m going to L.A. no matter what, but it would be a lot more fun if you and I went
together.”
Annika folded her
arms as her chest tightened with familiar anxiety. “Hey—you’re not leaving me
behind. I’m going. I’ve been putting off this opportunity for too long. No
way am I going to back out now.”
Penny walked
toward them with a brown paper bag in her hands. “Here you go, Carly. The total
is nine dollars and fifty-seven cents with the tax.”
Carly handed her
twelve dollars. “Keep it,” she said, indicating Penny could have the change as
a tip. Clutching the bag, she stood and glanced over her shoulder at Annika. “Stop
in at the bar after you close up. I’ll buy you a drink.”
“I will if it’s
not too late,” Annika replied as she stood to walk Carly to the back door. Going
out the back way was closer to the employee entrance of The Ramblin’ Rose. “I’m
closing up early, but I’ve got a lot of side work to do tonight.” In addition
to her regular duties, she had to clean out the pie case and dust all the
trophies on the dining room walls. “I hope you’re our last customer.”
She’d barely
uttered the words and waved goodbye when a rusted-out Jeep Wrangler with bad
brakes screeched to a sliding stop at the front entrance. Disappointed, she
walked to the front of the dining room and peered at the Jeep through the
window, hoping the people simply wanted something to go.
*
* *
Alexander Lange
shut off the Jeep and stared at the wide front windows of the Northern Lights
Café. “I don’t like this,” he said uneasily. “We should have stayed at the
cabin and had a pizza delivered. What if someone recognizes us?”
“Relax,” Erik Nilsen
replied. “Knowing this town, most people are at home watching storm warnings on
TV. The rest are at the bar, getting blitzed. Even if any of them do come into
the café, they probably can’t see straight enough to read the menu much less
zero in on us.”
Alex gripped his
hand on the steering wheel. “The last thing we need is for the paparazzi to
figure out we’ve come back to our hometown. This place would turn into a three-ring
circus.”
Erik shrugged. “I
needed to get out of the house for a while. I’m tired of pizza and reality shows
on TV.”
Alex studied his
bandmate and best friend, wondering if that was the true reason Erik had
insisted that they stop at the café for dinner. Erik had pulled his red Angels
baseball cap low on his forehead to cover his buzzed hair. His black-framed
sunglasses and close-cropped reddish beard concealed much of his face. If he
kept the cap and glasses on, no one would recognize him.
Not only Erik, but
all of the members of the “Wolfmoon” band members were different people than
the five immature boys who’d left town ten years ago. Back then, they were
gangly youths in worn jeans and T-shirts. By the time they went on the road to
promote their first hit, the public saw a pack of hard rockers with long hair
and skin-tight clothes. Most of the guys had been inked with tattoos and wore
flashy jewelry. Now, they were back to short hair, T-shirts, and plain, faded
jeans—back to the small-town country boys they used to be. Their lives had come
full circle. Sadly, the “happily ever after” they always sang about had not
happened to them…
Alex stared
straight ahead. “Your parents still own the café. I checked. There’s a chance
we might encounter your sister if we go in there.” Turning his head, he watched
Erik’s response to his next question. “What are you going to say to her if we
do?”
Erik pulled off
his sunglasses and tossed them on the dashboard. His blue eyes narrowed. “What
makes you think I want to talk to her?”
Alex’s fingers
tightened on the steering wheel. Erik’s reaction made him uncomfortable. If he
planned to reunite with his sister, he’d better drop the defensive attitude.
“Isn’t that why you wanted to come here? To make amends?”
Erik folded his
arms and glared at Alex with a stubborn expression. “Maybe I just want to see her.
Maybe I just want to get a feel for how she’s doing before I try to invite
myself back into her life.”
Maybe the
possibility of rejection is harder to take than you first realized, Alex
thought to himself. Maybe you’re not as tough as you act.
“Okay,” Alex said
evenly. “It’s up to you. Hey, it’s your show.”
Erik’s only answer
was to inhale a tense breath.
Alex pulled the
key from the ignition. Couldn’t sit here all day waiting for Erik to make up
his mind. He shoved open his door and stuck one foot out. Erik didn’t move. Alex
looked back. “You okay, buddy?”
“Yeah.” Erik grabbed
his sunglass and then shoved open his door. “I’m hungry. Let’s go.”
Alex slid out of
the Jeep and jammed the key into his jean pocket. Over the years, he’d done his
share of fixing things for Erik with girls. This was one time, however, he planned
to keep his distance. He was an only child. Dealing with a sister was totally
out of his league.
~*~
Available on Kindle for only $2.99
Get your copy now at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WJ4ZPZ6
~*~
The worst lies are the ones
that you tell yourself…
Carly Strand has been holding a
secret close to her heart for nearly a decade. In high school, her infatuation
with Erik Nilsen had produced a child. Sadly, by the time Rylee was born, Erik
was long gone, leaving Carly no choice but to allow a married cousin to adopt her
baby. She’s never been able to cope with losing her child or deal with Erik’s
abandonment. Now, he’s back in town and wants to make amends—with her and
Rylee—but can he be trusted or will he break her heart again?
They say you can’t run from your past. What if you don’t
want to?
Erik Nilsen is ready to leave the
last decade behind him. Ten years of touring with his rock band has made him wealthy
and famous, but the experience has also taught him that money can’t buy true
riches. He’s determined to take a year off to reunite with his family and old
friends. The trouble is, the person from his past that he wants to be with the
most is pushing him away. When he learns of her secret, he realizes how much he
has to lose by staying silent. Can he convince Carly Strand to rekindle the
love they once shared or will she refuse to forgive him for leaving her back when
she needed him the most?
Available now on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited. Get your copy now!
~*~
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