Chapter 17
Seventeen
River
Would I be lying if I said that finding out about Carter’s degree the way that I did didn’t hurt a little?
Abso-fucking-lutely. If I’m being one-hundred percent honest, it still kinda hurts.
I’m only human. But when I looked into Carter’s eyes on that plane, I could tell he didn’t intentionally deceive me.
He’s proven to me time and time again the kind of man he is.
As he grabs our luggage, a female yells his name, and I look back.
I recognize her as his sister from the pictures he’s shown me.
Her feet slap the pavement of the tarmac as she runs closer; their parents following behind her.
Cameron jumps up and wraps her arms around his neck.
Our bags drop from his hands, and he hugs her tightly, swaying her from side to side.
She laughs as he sets her back down on her feet.
“Hi, sis.”
“Hey, bub,” she says, releasing him, and throwing herself at me, causing me to giggle.
Cameron unwinds herself from around my body and links one arm in mine. “Eeek. I’ve been so excited for this day! You can call me Cammie or Cam.”
“Carter, sweetheart, we’ve missed you so much,” his mom croons and wraps him in a hug as his dad greets me with a small wave, keeping a safe distance.
God, I hope he didn’t tell them anything.
He’s not unwelcoming; he’s just . . . hanging back.
“Hi, River. I’m Ethan.”
I look up at him.
Holy shit.
This entire family is extremely tall. Or, maybe at five-foot-two, I’m just short. Either way, they all tower over me.
“Hi. Nice to finally meet you.” I smile.
Carter’s mom releases him and turns to me, cupping my face with both hands. Her blue eyes shine with unshed tears. “My gosh, look at you. You’re so pretty. We’re so glad you’re here.”
Heat rises to my cheeks. “Thank you.”
I look at Carter, and a smile tugs at his lips as his mom steals me away from Cammie and pulls me in for a hug. I notice Carter looks more like his mom where Cammie’s dark hair comes from their dad. Both siblings have those beautiful, piercing blue eyes and their dad’s tan skin.
“You guys ready?” Ethan asks.
Cammie steals me back and leads me toward their vehicle.
I thought they would be more upset that we “eloped,” and that they wouldn’t like me. Maybe they’ve had time to get over that.
We load our stuff into their Suburban. Carter and I jump in the middle row while Cammie takes the third row. I watch his parents, Ethan and Laura, with rapt attention the entire way back to their home in Paradise Valley.
As I observe them, my therapist’s words about the examples my parents set for me as a child—and how different Carter’s are with one another—keep circling in my mind.
The way they look at each other. How Ethan holds Laura’s hand—never letting it go.
Their conversation and laughter as we drive to their home.
The minute we pull in the drive, he peppers her knuckles with kisses, then they both step out of the SUV.
These two have shown each other more love in the past twenty minutes than I’ve seen between my parents in my entire lifetime.
I’m in awe as I exit their vehicle. The Grahams’ home is modest but breathtaking. I didn’t really expect anything less. It’s nestled in a valley between several hills, and the yard is beautifully manicured with palm trees and cacti.
Carter rolls our luggage into the house, and I follow him upstairs.
We enter a guest room, and he drops our bags on the floor beside the closet as I walk toward the window.
The light blue curtains are tied back, and the blinds are open, giving us a view of sprawling hills behind their home.
I turn to Carter and smile, but it falls a bit as he rubs the back of his neck.
I can tell he’s nervous about something.
“This, uh . . . this used to be my room. When I moved out, they made it a guest room. I guess it goes without saying, but we’ll be staying in here.”
“Like, together?”
Carter walks over to me and takes my hand rubbing calming circles across the top. “If it makes you uncomfortable, I can sneak out after everyone’s gone to bed and find somewhere else to sleep.”
Of course we have to share a bed. I look over to the king size bed and sigh. You can do this, River, you can keep your hands to yourself while you sleep next to him.
“No, Carter. This is your room. I’m not kicking you out. The bed is big enough for the both of us.”
“Are you sure? Because I don’t want—”
“It’s okay. I promise. We’ll make it work. I didn’t think of sleeping arrangements when I left the house this morning. All I could think about was you not being home to make me coffee in the morning. That’s the only reason why I came.”
He pulls me to him, wrapping his arms around me as he looks down at me and chuckles. “Sure it is, Kitten. I recall someone saying they missed me.”
“Who in the world would say that?”
“You.”
“Eh . . . I think that was the lack of caffeine talking.” I shrug one shoulder.
He returns my sass with a tickle to the ribs. Internally, I’m mildly freaking out. Part of me wonders if sleeping in Carter’s arms will keep the nightmares at bay. I haven’t had one in weeks, but being in an unfamiliar place can sometimes bring them on.
He releases me and takes my hand, leading me back downstairs.
As we pass the kitchen, I glance over my shoulder and catch Ethan and Laura flirting.
He backs her up against the counter, kisses her, then he swats her ass on the way out.
A blush tinges my cheeks as Cammie catches me watching her parents.
I’m not trying to be weird; it’s just weird to see a couple who have been together as long as they have still love each other that much.
“Thirty-five years together and they still act like teenagers . . . it’s disgusting,” she says.
“I think it’s sweet.”
“Yeah, well, you didn’t have to watch that shit your whole life.” She points toward the kitchen, laughing.
“I guess, but at least they weren’t at each other’s throats your whole life.”
“I don’t know which would be worse,” Cammie groans.
Carter squeezes my hand and leads me to the couch. We all sit in the living room, visiting. I feel at home. Included. These generous people have taken me in as if they’ve known me my entire life. Especially Cammie.
“What was it like growing up with Carter?” I ask her.
She tilts her wineglass toward her brother. “Never a dull moment. You should’ve seen him back in high school. He was a menace.”
“I was an angel.”
“Ha! That’s a lie, and you know it.” She glares, then turns her attention to me. “He used to pull all kinds of shit, then he’d blame it on me.”
“Like what?” he asks.
“Oh, I don’t know . . . how about the time you ran Dad’s golf cart into the pond on the sixth hole?” She smirks.
“That wasn’t my fault, and you know it. You threw a golf ball at a goose—”
“Because it was chasing me.”
“Yeah, until it started chasing me,” he says, then turns to me. “That damn thing was hissing and nipping at my legs. We jumped in Dad’s golf cart and took off, but we were both looking back when I accidently ran the golf cart into the pond—”
“See—you just admitted guilt.” she laughs.
“But it was partially your fault because you antagonized the damn thing.”
They razzed each other and told story after story until well after dinner that made me laugh so hard, I could barely see through the tears.
Now, Cammie and I stand at the kitchen sink washing dishes while Carter visits with his parents in the living room.
I rinse a dish and watch Carter across the open floorplan as Cammie puts the plate I just handed her into the dishwasher.
When I hear my name, my ears automatically perk up.
I’m not actively trying to eavesdrop; it’s one of those things where you know someone’s talking about you, and you want to know what they’re saying, even though their conversation is absolutely none of your business.
“I can see it now. The reason you two eloped. River looks at you the way your mom looks at me,” Ethan says.
Cammie turns to me, and I realize she’s been holding out her hand, waiting for me to give her the skillet, while I’ve been rinsing it for far too long. I give her an apologetic smile and hand it over.
“My dad’s not wrong, you know? I see how you look at Carter, too. Which surprises me given the situation, so either you’re a great actress, or you love my brother.”
I must look at her like a deer-caught-in-the-headlights because she tilts her head back and laughs. Do I look at him like that? I mean, sure, Carter makes me feel things I’ve never felt before, but love? No way . . . right? I don’t love him, do I? Nooooo. Nope. No way.
“Don’t worry. Our parents aren’t aware how things went down between you two, but there aren’t many secrets that my brother and I keep from each other. It’s a twin thing.”
I hand Cammie another dish, and she leans over, speaking low so only I can hear her. “No matter the situation, I can tell you two have something really special. I know he’s a lot to handle sometimes, but next to my dad, he’s the best damn man I’ve ever known.”
I cast a glance in his direction.
“I don’t know if he’s really told you anything about my past . . .” She trails off.
I shake my head, rinse another dish, and hand it to her.
“It felt like he and I were worlds apart once we graduated high school. I was in Florida, and he chose to stay and attend the university here. We were trying to discover who we were individually, but during my sophomore year of college, I was attacked.”
I freeze and look up at her. Water runs through the faucet, but I set the dish in the sink and give her my full attention. Both of her hands grip the counter, her head down, but then she lifts her chin and looks me in the eyes.