Chapter 9
GREER
I pull into the gas station with only a quarter tank left. Thankfully, I should have enough money for the return trip home, so long as I sleep in my car and dine on the granola bars I stole from Kellan.
My phone buzzes with a call from Rus.
I told him I was homesick and needed to return, and now he’s scrambling to find me a room to rent.
“Hello!” I chirp into the phone, trying to sound upbeat so he doesn’t suspect something’s up.
“Where are you at?” he asks, sounding tense.
I look at the sign and scrunch my brow. “Cavalier Gas Station. Why?”
“There’s an accident up the road, and I think you should stay where you’re at for a bit. Maybe take in a meal.”
“It’s getting late, and I was hoping to drive a few more hours before it gets dark.”
“Trust me—you don’t want to get caught up in the mess down the road.”
I wouldn’t mind waiting in bumper to bumper traffic, but it would waste too much gas and I might not make it all the way home.
“Thanks for the heads up.”
I pull over to the corner of the parking lot and recline my seat, hoping to get a little shut eyes before the next big leg of my trip.
But instead of sleeping, I surf for jobs around Summerton.
An image in my mind manifests. Something similar to a food truck, but instead of selling food, I can go around grooming pets.
Technically, I wouldn’t need my GED to get started, but I still want to follow through and take the test.
I can do this. I really can.
As I plan the plot points of my life, an emptiness grows inside my chest, threatening to extinguish the small embers of hope I’ve struggled to kindle.
It’s my fault. All of it. I should have just accepted Kellan’s help without complicating matters.
The more I try to plan, the deeper into despair I fall, because while I know I can make it, a life without Kellan feels joyless. I know that sounds dramatic, but it’s the truth. I fell for him. Hard. And I don’t think anyone is capable of filling the void he’s left behind.
KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK.
I jolt up in my seat, and look out my window. A large shape looms on the other side of the glass.
“Kellan?”
He gestures for me to roll down the window.
Confused, I roll down the window and bark, “What are you doing here?”
“Get out of the car, Greer.” His voice is low. Steady.
Every cell in my body wants to fling open the door and jump into his arms.
But the words written on that sticky note are etched into my soul, telling me how he really feels.
“No.”
He grumbles something, and moves around the car to the passenger side. “Then let me in.”
He probably wants to make sure I won’t tell Kellan what we’ve done, which is mildly offensive.
Still, I unlock the door. He’s not a villain, and I owe him my thanks.
He slides into the passenger seat.
“Thank you for every—” I start.
“Come back with me.” His voice is thick and raspy.
I grip the steering wheel, trying to channel all my nervous energy into it. “I know you’re worried about me, but I’m good now. I’ve started to put together a plan, and—”
“Yeah, I have a plan of my own—and it starts with you following me back up the mountain—where you belong.”
The gratitude I felt turns to anger. “I know how you feel, Kell.”
“No, you don’t.”
“I saw the sticky note.”
He pulls out his phone and toggles through the screen. “You mean the note I wrote in response to this.” He hits PLAY.
Kell, please, pick up the phone. I’m not the same person I was years ago. I regret what I did, but I can’t take it back. Just give me another chance. We could be happy together.
The recording ends and Kellan puts down his phone.
“Who was that?”
“My ex,” he says, running his fingers through his hair and sighing. “She calls every few weeks begging for another chance.”
“What happened between you two?”
“When we were together, she signed my name to a bunch of documents, landing me in a heap of trouble. It was the worst betrayal I’d ever felt, and it did something to me inside. It broke me.”
“Why have I never heard this before?”
“I was embarrassed, and I didn’t know who I could trust. I obtained a lawyer, and they were able to broker a deal with my ex, and I agreed not to turn her in. While negotiations were taking place, I left, leaving everyone with a whole lot of questions.”
“And the note?”
“Loneliness was beginning to creep in, and I needed a reminder never to go back.” He hands me a yellow sticky note.
Think with your dick.
You deserve this.
She completes you.
I blink at the note, tears stinging my eyes. “What’s this?”
“It’s the sticky note I wrote when I was scared of losing you.”
I don’t know what to say. I can hardly form a single thought.
“Greer, I told myself to wait. That you needed to get your diploma and explore what you want to do before I made my move.” His face twists, looking desperate.
“But I can’t risk losing you.” He places a hand over mine on the steering wheel, and all at once, I relax.
“I want you, Greer—I love you, even. I just didn’t want my selfishness to deter you from what you wanted to do with your life. ”
“Oh, Kell—it’s you. You’re what I want to do with my life. Whether it be sitting in your cabin or working in your clinic, or taking care of Gerry—you’re what I want—”
His lips press to mine, hard and urgent, and the last shred of doubt I have snaps. I melt against him, my hands grabbing at his shirt, my lips frantic and needy.
The kiss is everything we’ve been holding back, and a promise of what’s to come. A life with a man who’s kind, generous, and hot enough to melt the polar ice caps.
And when we finally part, I have no more doubts or questions of where I stand. I belong to him; he belongs to me.
He presses two fingers under my chin, bringing my gaze to his.
“Come home. Not because you have nowhere to go. Come home because we both want this.”
I nod, tears flooding my eyes. “Yes! Of course.”
He exhales a long, relieved breath. “Good. We’re taking my truck.”
“But my car—”
“Will be replaced by the end of the week.”
“But—”
“Don’t you but me—the only reason I hadn’t replaced it already is because I didn’t want to be too forward. Now all I need from you is whether you want an Escalade, Range Rover, or a Lexus SUV.”
“Those all sound expensive.”
“That’s because they are.” He opens the passenger door and slides out. “I’ll grab your things, and have the dealer come collect this once we decide which car suits you best.”
I know better than to argue, so I follow him to his truck and climb into the passenger seat.
“So...does my brother know?”
“Yep.”
“How’d he take it?”
“I’ll feel lucky if I last the rest of the week.”
“It can’t be that bad if he helped you track me down.”
“He gave me literal hell when I first told him because of how I left my last fiancé. But I explained things to him I should have long ago, and he calmed down. Hopefully, one day, I’ll prove myself to him, and to you.”
“Well, you’re off to a pretty impressive start.”
As Kellan drives off, I look back at the old beater that got me up the mountain, away from my parents, and say a silent goodbye.
The sun is setting as he pulls into his long driveway, stopping just short of the porch.
As I reach for the door handle, his hand curls on my shoulder, and he gently presses against it, turning me to face him.
“Welcome home, Greer.”
His words settle over me like a warm, comfortable blanket, and I allow myself to feel safe, secure, and loved.
Kellan helps me from the truck and we head inside.
Gerry rushes over, nudging between us, squawking in approval.
“Almost forgot,” Kellan says in a gravely serious voice. “Gerry and I are a packaged deal. He is my world, and must always come first.”
I bend down and pat Gerry on the head. “In that case, you’d better draw up some adoption papers.”
Kellan laughs, and we spend the rest of the evening planning our futures together. It starts as a joking banter about me needing a she-shed, but settles into something steadier.
We talk about expanding the clinic, and adding a larger outside areas for a doggie daycare. He sketches it into life on a notepad, always with two stick figures, one of him, the other of me.
I glance up, into his stormy eyes as he adds more details to the drawing.
I take the drawing when he’s done. “Is this what you want?”
“It’s more than I ever hoped to dream of.” His eyes train on the doodle. “Happiness that was always just out of my reach.”
“Same. But maybe together, we can do this.” She sighs. “We can make it work.”