1
“Wait…you’re not still running that book club you started in high school, are you?”
Gia Rossi had been shopping at her local grocer when her sister called. “I’ve never really stopped. Not completely.” She switched her phone to her other ear, so she could use her more dexterous left hand to steer her empty shopping cart across the parking lot to the reclamation point.
“Most of the members weren’t your friends. They were just people who blindly followed you no matter what you did,” her sister pointed out drily.
Was there a hint of jealousy in that response? Margaret, who’d been known as Maggie when they were kids but now called herself a more distinguished Margot, was only thirteen months younger than Gia, so just one year behind her in school. Margot hadn’t been nearly as popular—but it was because she’d never done anything exciting. She’d been part of the academic group, too busy excelling to be going out having fun.
“A few of them were close friends,” Gia insisted. “Ruth, Sammie and a handful of others are still in the book club with me, and we rotate picking a read.”
“Seriously? It’s been seventeen years since you graduated. I thought you left them and everything else behind when you dropped out of college and took off for Alaska.”
Her sister never would’ve done something that reckless, that impulsive—or that ill-advised. Gia had walked away from a volleyball scholarship at the University of Iowa, which was part of the reason her family had freaked out. But she was glad she’d made that decision. She treasured the memories of freewheeling her way through life in her twenties, learning everything she could while working on crabbing and fishing boats and for various sightseeing companies. She wouldn’t have the business she owned now, with a partner, if not for that experience. “No. We fell off for a bit, then we went back to it, then we fell off again, and now we meet on Zoom to discuss the book we’re reading on the fourth Thursday of every month.” She lowered her voice for emphasis. “And, of course, we make sure it’s the most scandalous book we can find.”
Margot had never approved of the book group or anything else Gia did—and that hadn’t changed over the years, which was why Gia couldn’t resist needling her.
“I’m sure you do,” Margot said, but she didn’t react beyond a slightly sour tone. She’d grown adept at avoiding the kind of arguments that used to flare up between them, despite Gia sometimes baiting her. “So seven or eight out of what…about sixty are active again?”
“For one month out of the year, the ratio’s quite a bit better than that,” she said as the shopping cart clanged home, making her feel secure enough to walk away from it. “The rest of the group gets together for an online Christmas party in December.”
“How many people come to that?”
Margot sounded as if she felt left out, but she’d never shown any interest in the book group. “Probably fifteen or twenty, but it’s not always the same fifteen or twenty.” She opened the door to her red Tesla Model 3, which signaled the computer to start the heater—something she was grateful for since she hadn’t worn a heavy enough coat for the brisk October morning. Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, didn’t usually turn this cold until November or December.
The car’s Bluetooth picked up the call as Margot asked, “Why haven’t you ever mentioned it?”
Now that they lived thirteen hundred miles apart, there were a lot of things she didn’t tell her sister. It wasn’t until she’d left her hometown behind that she’d felt she could live a truly authentic life—one without the constant unfavorable comparisons to her “perfect” sibling.
But that wasn’t why she hadn’t mentioned the book group. She’d assumed her sister wouldn’t want to hear about it. Margot had been mortified when Gia challenged the gaggle of well-meaning but misguided women from the PTA who’d descended on Room 23 on Back-to-School Night, insisting Mr. Hart, head of the English department, drop The Catcher in the Rye, The Outsiders and The Handmaid’s Tale from the Honors English reading list. Gia had expected her favorite teacher to stand up for the books she loved by explaining why they were so important. She’d known how much he’d loved those books, too. Instead, just to avoid a fight, he’d caved in immediately, which was what had incited her to start a club that championed the books they’d targeted—as well as others.
That was the first time Mr. Hart had let her down, but it wouldn’t be the last. “If you’d ever joined the club, you’d be on the email list,” she said as she backed out of the parking space.
“I would’ve, but you know me. I don’t really read.”
Her sister would not have joined. The Banned Books Club was far too controversial for Margot. It would’ve required a bit of rebellion—something she seemed incapable of. And maybe she didn’t read much fiction, but Gia knew her to consume the occasional self-help tome. That was probably how she reassured herself she was still the best person she knew, because if there was anyone who didn’t need a self-help book, it was Margot. Their parents’ expectations were more than enough to create her boundaries.
“You should try reading along with us now and then. It might broaden your horizons.” As good as Margot was, she had a mind like a steel trap—one that was always closed, especially when faced with any information that challenged what she already believed. She lived inside a bubble of confirmation bias; the only facts and ideas that could permeate it were those that supported her world view.
“I’m happy with my horizons being right where they are, thank you.”
“You don’t see the limitations?”
“Are you trying to offend me?” she asked.
Gia bit back a sigh. That was the difference between them. Margot would sacrifice anything to maintain her position as their parents’ favorite child, to gain the approval of others, especially her husband, and be admired by the community at large. Growing up, she’d kept her room tidy, gotten straight As and played the piano in church. And these days, she was a stay-at-home mom with two children, someone who made a “hot dish”—what most people outside the Midwest would call a casserole—for any neighbor, friend or acquaintance who might be having surgery or suffering some kind of setback.
Her conventionalism was—in certain ways—something to be admired. As the black sheep of the family, Gia knew better than to try to compete with Margot. That wasn’t possible for someone who couldn’t take anything at face value. She had to question rules, challenge authority and play devil’s advocate at almost every opportunity, which was why she was surprised that her sister had been trying, for the past two weeks, to convince her to come home for the winter. Their mother’s health had been declining since she’d been diagnosed with breast cancer. It was at stage four before they discovered it, and the doctors had done what they could, but Ida hadn’t responded to treatment. Margot claimed their mother wasn’t going to last much longer, that Gia should spend a few months with her before it was too late. But Gia was surprised Margot would risk the peace and contentment they all seemed to enjoy without her.
Gia wasn’t sure she could go back to the same family dynamic she found so damaging, regardless. She and her business partner ran a helicopter sightseeing company for tourists and flew hunters and fishermen in and out of the remote wilderness—but Backcountry Adventures was closed during the coldest months, from November to February. She would soon have the time off, so getting away from work wouldn’t be a problem. It was more that when she was in Wakefield, the walls seemed to close in around her. It simply got too damn hard to breathe. “Fine,” she grumbled. “Don’t answer that question. But speaking of limitations, how’s Sheldon?”
“Seriously, Gia? I’m going to assume you didn’t mean to ask about him in that way,” her sister stated flatly.
There was no love lost between Gia and her brother-in-law. She hated the way he controlled Margot, how he could spend money on hunting or fishing or buying a new camper, but her sister had to scrape and bow for a new pair of jeans. Margot explained it was because he earned all the money, that he was trying to be a good “manager” by giving her such a tight budget so the business would be successful and they’d have money to retire in old age, but to Gia, it seemed that Margot was making all the sacrifices. Stingy was stingy, and yet he was the one who wanted Margot at home, waiting for him with a hot meal at the end of the day. Their boys, Matthew and Greydon, were eight and six, both in school. Margot could work part-time, at least, establish something of her own, if Sheldon wasn’t calling all the shots.
“It was a joke.” Gia really didn’t want to cause problems in her sister’s marriage. Margot insisted she was happy, although if that were her life, Gia probably would’ve grabbed her kids and stormed out of the house—for good—long ago.
“He’s doing great. He’s been busy.”
“It’s deer hunting season. I assume he’s going.”
“Next week.”
And what will you do—stay home and take care of the kids and the house while he’s gone? Gia wanted to ask, but this time she managed to bite her tongue. “He’s going to Utah again?”
“Yeah. They go there every year. One of his buddies grew up in Moab.”
“Last winter, Sheldon’s business slowed down a bit, so I’m surprised to hear you say he’s been busy.”
“That was the economy in general. All trucking companies took a hit. I don’t think the same thing’s going to happen this year, though. He just bought two new semis and is hiring more drivers.”
“He’s quite the businessman.” Gia rolled her eyes at her own words. He hadn’t built the trucking business; he’d inherited it from his parents, who remained heavily involved, which was probably what saved it from ruin. But thankfully, Margot seemed to take her words at face value.
“I’m proud of him.”
He was proud of himself, could never stop talking about his company, his toys, his prowess at hunting or four-wheeling or any other “manly” pursuit. Gia was willing to bet she could out-hunt him if she really wanted to, but the only kind of shots she was willing to take were with her camera.
Still, she was glad, in a way, that her sister could buy into the delusion that Sheldon was a prize catch. “That’s what matters,” she said as she pulled into the drive of her two-bedroom condo overlooking Mill River. The conversation was winding down. She’d already asked about the boys while she was in the grocery store—they were healthy and happy. She was going to have to ask about Ida before the conversation ended, so she figured she might as well get it over with. “And how are Mom and Dad?”
Her sister’s voice dropped an octave, at least. “That’s actually why I called…”
Gia couldn’t help but tense; it felt like acid was eating a hole in her stomach. “Mom’s taken a turn for the worse?”
“She’s getting weaker every day, G. I—I really think you should come home.”
Closing her eyes, Gia allowed her head to fall back against the seat. Margot couldn’t understand why Gia would resist. But she’d never been able to see anything from Gia’s perspective.
“G?” her sister prompted.
Gia drew a deep breath. She could leave Idaho a few weeks before they closed the business. Eric would cover for her. She’d worked two entire months for him when his daughter was born. She had the money, too. There was no good excuse not to return and support her family as much as possible—and if this was the end, say goodbye to her mother. But Gia knew that would mean dealing with everything she’d left behind.
“You still there?”
Gathering her resolve, Gia climbed out of the car. “Sorry. My Bluetooth cut out.”
“Did you hear me? Is there any chance you’d consider coming home, if only for a few weeks?”
Gia didn’t see that she had any choice. She’d never forgive herself if her mother died and she hadn’t done all she could to put things right between them. She wished she could continue procrastinating her visit. But the cancer made it impossible. “Of course. Just…just as soon as I finish up a few things around here.”
“How long will that take you?”
“Only a day or two.”
“Thank God,” her sister said with enough relief that Gia knew she couldn’t back out now.
What was going on? Why would having her in Wakefield matter so much to Margot?
“I’ll pick you up from the airport,” her sister continued. “Just tell me when you get in.”
“I’ll get back to you as soon as I’ve made the arrangements.”
Margot studied the guns neatly lined up in her husband’s locked cabinet in their bedroom. He had several rifles—a .30-30 Winchester, a Remington Model 700, a .375 H&H Magnum, a .22 and what he called a “varmint” rifle—as well as a twelve-gauge shotgun. He also had a 9 mm Glock up high in their closet for home defense. That was what he’d leave behind when he went hunting. She’d have easy access to it, but it was the shotgun she coveted. She’d feel safest with the shotgun. She’d heard her husband say that pistols and rifles almost always take multiple shots to hit a target. They’d visited the gun range together, but because of the recoil and the deafening noise—and her fear of guns in general, especially having them around the children—she’d only practiced shooting once or twice. After that, Sheldon had deemed her a “nervous Nellie” and given up trying to share his love of firearms with her. But she’d learned enough to know she wouldn’t have to worry too much about aiming a shotgun.
Did she dare hide the shotgun so he couldn’t take it with him when he went hunting? She could act as though someone had broken in and taken it, say she’d left the house unlocked for a short, fifteen-minute interval while picking up the boys from school, and it was gone when she returned…
No. That would raise his suspicions. He’d wonder why that was the only thing missing, and she didn’t dare try to stage a full-fledged robbery. It would be too easy to get caught doing something like that. Sheldon was naturally suspicious—always looking out for how someone might put one over on him. With any luck, he wouldn’t see this coming, but she could only count on having one chance, which meant she had to craft the perfect plan, and that included providing for every eventuality.
Maybe she should forget about the shotgun and the Glock and settle for pepper spray or mace—something she could buy over the counter at Walmart. Then she wouldn’t have to worry about gun safety and would never be faced with the decision of whether or not she’d have to shoot her own husband…
“Margot? What the hell are you doing?”
Sheldon’s sudden appearance in the doorway sent her heart slamming against her chest. She was standing in the middle of the floor not far from the bed, which, fortunately, didn’t incriminate her in any way. She just had to hope she didn’t look as guilty as she felt. “I was…trying to remember why I came in here.”
He rolled his eyes. “Sounds like you. I swear, I have no idea how you graduated from college. Most of the time you’re dumber than dirt.”
Normally, Margot flinched at the insults he lobbed so casually, usually with a laugh so that if she took umbrage he could say he’d been joking. Today, she merely studied him for any evidence in his ice-blue eyes that a bigger argument was brewing. “What are you doing home?” she asked, checking her watch. These days, she lost minutes, even hours, ruminating over her future—and that of her children. But it couldn’t be late enough for Sheldon to be home from work. She’d never lost an entire day.
“Forgot my lunch. I’ve been trying to call you to have you bring it to me but couldn’t get an answer. Why the hell do I pay for you to have a cell phone if I can’t even reach you on it?”
“I-it’s in my purse,” she said lamely. “From when I took the boys to school.”
A disgusted huff revealed his irritation. “Of course it is. You never have it when you need it.”
“I usually have it,” she said in her own defense, but she was careful to keep the pique out of her voice. She knew how easily they could wind up in a fight if she didn’t.
He ignored her response. “My lunch isn’t on the counter. What’d you do with it?”
When he left it behind, she’d assumed he was going out with his friends. Although he’d gained quite a bit of weight over the years and made an occasional, half-hearted attempt to lose it, his diets never lasted. She’d assumed he no longer wanted the carrot sticks and other healthy food he’d directed her to start packing for him. “When you didn’t take it, I assumed you had other plans and—and put it in the boys’ lunches.”
His eyebrows snapped together. “So you wouldn’t have to make more? Jesus, woman! Why didn’t you just call me?”
Because she hadn’t wanted to hear his voice. The only peace she had was when he was at work and too caught up in being the “boss” to check in with her. “I didn’t want to bother you if you were busy.”
Lifting his Wakefield Trucking ball cap, he scratched underneath it before mumbling something she couldn’t quite make out—probably “stupid bitch”—as he trudged back down the hall. “Now what am I going to eat?” he called back to her when, judging by his voice, he’d reached the kitchen.
Margot curled her fingernails into her palms. She was having terrible thoughts lately—of wanting to put something gross, like a spider or dirt, in his sandwich, or something dangerous, like antifreeze, in his tea. She knew that was downright evil. Her upbringing and her belief in God had stopped her so far—that and she didn’t want to be yanked away from her children to spend the rest of her life in prison.
But the desire to hurt him in return was growing stronger by the day. That she could even consider such things—Margaret Rossi, salutatorian of her high school class and daughter of two loving parents who’d raised her to be much better than that—was shocking. It certainly wasn’t something she’d anticipated before she got married.
But was it really her fault? Sheldon was like a girdling tree with roots that had slowly wrapped around her over the years, trapping her and holding her in place while squeezing the life from her…
“Dammit, Margot! Didn’t you hear me? Get your ass out here and make me another lunch! I’ve got work to do!”
She wanted to scream Make it yourself! and slam the door. The anger simmering inside her was like bile rising in her throat. Sometimes it was all she could do to choke it back. But she knew what would happen if she let loose. He’d never struck her; she couldn’t claim that kind of abuse. But his fits of rage were getting worse—bad enough that she believed it was possible he might completely unleash one day.
Even if that didn’t happen, what he did was almost as bad. His words slugged her like fists. He belittled her to the point that she was afraid to say or do anything for fear of reprisal. And he made her feel as though she deserved every cutting remark.
That she was beginning to believe she wasn’t worthy of being treated any better created a panic that gnawed at her soul. If she didn’t do something soon, she was afraid the old Margot—the happy, well-adjusted Margot she was struggling to hang on to—would disappear for good.
It won’t be long now, she promised herself, and cast his guns a final glance as she forced her feet to carry her back to the kitchen. “I’m here,” she said woodenly. “What would you like?”
Excerpted from The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak. Copyright © 2024 by Brenda Novak, Inc. Published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
She left her hometown following a scandal—but family loyalty is dragging her back…
Despite their strained relationship, when Gia Rossi’s sister, Margot, begs her to come home to Wakefield, Iowa, to help with their ailing mother, Gia knows she has no choice. After her rebellious and at-times-tumultuous teen years, Gia left town with little reason to look back. But she knows Margot’s borne the brunt of their mother’s care and now it’s Gia’s turn to help, even if it means opening old wounds.
As expected, Gia’s homecoming is far from welcome. There’s the Banned Books Club she started after the PTA overzealously slashed the high school reading list, which is right where she left it. But there is also Mr. Hart, her former favorite teacher. The one who was fired after Gia publicly and painfully accused him of sexual misconduct. The one who prompted Gia to leave behind a very conflicted town the minute she turned eighteen. The one person she hoped never to see again.
When Margot leaves town without explanation, Gia sees the cracks in her sister’s “perfect” life for the first time and plans to offer support. But as the town, including members of the book club, takes sides between Gia and Mr. Hart, everything gets harder. Fortunately, she learns that there are people she can depend on. And by standing up for the truth, she finds love and a future in the town she thought had rejected her.
Romance Contemporary | Women's Fiction Friendship [MIRA, On Sale: September 17, 2024, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780778369592 / eISBN: 9780369748539]
It was a shocking experience that jump-started Brenda Novak’s bestselling author career. “I caught my day-care provider drugging my children with cough syrup and Tylenol to get them to sleep while I was away,” Brenda says. “It was then that I decided that I needed to do something from home.” However, writing was the last profession she expected to undertake. In fact, Brenda swears she didn’t have a creative bone in her body. In school, math and science were her best subjects, and when it came time to pick a major in college, she chose business. Abandoning her academic scholarship to Brigham Young University at the age of 20 in order to get married and start a family, Brenda dabbled in commercial real estate, then became a loan officer. “When I first got the idea to become a novelist, it took me five years to teach myself the craft and finish my first book,” Brenda admits. “I learned how to write by reading what others have written. The best advice for any would-be author: read, read, read….” Brenda sold her first book, and the rest is history. Many of her novels have won or placed in contests such as the National Reader’s Choice, the Bookseller’s Best, the Write Touch, the Award of Excellence and the Beacon Award for Published Authors. Brenda and her husband, Ted, live in Sacramento and are the proud parents of five children—three girls and two boys. When she’s not spending time with her family or writing, Brenda is usually raising money for diabetes research. Her youngest son, Thad, has diabetes, and Brenda is determined to help him and others like him. She also enjoys traveling, watching sporting events and biking–she rides an amazing 20 miles every day!
© 2003-2025 off-the-edge.net
all rights reserved Privacy Policy