“Now,” Sylvia said, her voice echoing out over the speakers. “To another year as the best bourbon in Kentucky.”

She took a sip. The crowd mirrored her motion, though many of the younger people swallowed their full glass in one quick shot. “Let’s forget what holds us back, leave behind all that darkness, and look forward to another year!”

The town’s applause could’ve been an explosion. And as the cries left their lips, so too did a dark haze. Almost exactly like what Kaden had seen at the bar. His pulse ratcheted up as the darkness descended around them like a fog—much thicker than Kaden remembered. It was as if a cloud had passed over the sun, but the golden orb still hung unobscured in the sky. The shadows swirled, rising above them.

Kaden blinked and rubbed at his eyes.

“Did you see that?” he asked Addison.

“See what?”

“The gloom…”

Addison shook her head and took another sip. “There’s always more of it this time of year,” she said. “Probably what brings the fireflies out.”

Kaden stared at her, stunned. “You didn’t see it appear?”

“What do you mean appear?” Addison asked. “It comes from the angel’s share of the bourbon. Wait, did you forget that?”

Kaden shook his head slowly.

“Are you all right?”

“I… I’m fine,” he said, brow furrowed. “I think the heat’s getting to me.”

He rubbed at his eyes. When he opened them again, the gloom was still there, but the swirling he’d seen had faded, leaving him uncertain if he’d seen anything at all.

Chapter 27

Irene

Irene hadn’t stepped foot on the front lawn of the Bonner mansion in twenty-five years, but as far as she could tell the house hadn’t aged a day. The paint still held its brilliant peach hue, and the white porch railing was immaculate, not a single chip or stain in sight. It was as if the gloom didn’t touch the place. More likely, Sylvia Bonner paid a pretty penny to make it appear that way.

She thought, after all this time, that the memory of Nate in the alley with that woman would’ve faded, but the sickeningly sweet scent of the hydrangeas and the familiar walk up the drive brought her time with him back in one unwelcome rush.

It had Irene reeling.

She was glad she and Kaden had arrived separately to the founders’ dinner. She wasn’t ready for him to see her like this. She rested her cheek against Clem’s shoulder, her throat tight. She felt like she was twenty-one all over again.

“How does this still hurt so much?”

“You were going to have a life together,” Clem said.

Taylor wrapped Irene in a gentle hug. “Of course it hurts.”