Caro was relieved as she passed the large sign on the side of the road that read, Welcome To Hillard. It had been dark for a couple of hours now, and she’d started to think she’d never stumble upon the small town nestled deep in the mountains.
Throughout the afternoon, she’d certainly noticed more than once how pretty the scenery was, and how clean and crisp the air felt with her window rolled down—especially compared to the city life she’d grown accustomed to. But why her sister had up and decided to move more than eight hours out from the nearest airport was baffling to her.
The last text she’d gotten from Ellie when she stopped at a gas station to fill up a few hours ago had said to meet her at the pub right on the edge of town, as that would be the only place still open to get some dinner. The sign was large, and the parking lot was fairly busy considering it was nine o’clock on a Wednesday night, but Hillard was a small town, and according to Ellie, aside from a fantastic diner, there weren’t a ton of eating-out options. Once she parked, she quickly texted her sister to let her know she’d arrived and got out to stretch her cramping legs.
Caro was not a fan of long drives, and this one had been tedious once the sun went down. But now that she was here, she could almost understand what Ellie had said about Hillard just feeling right. There was something about this place that calmed her as she took in a deep breath of mountain air. The scent of the woods at night brought back memories of camping in the backyard with her sister when they were little, and it made her smile.
Short story but pretty good. Nothing too complicated, good couple with mutual respect and lovely. Won’t regret reading this.