45. Tanner
Chapter Forty-Five
Tanner
Go big, or stay home
“So what does that mean? Who is it? Tell me all about her.” Sophie wasn’t one to waste time.
I gave her the condensed version. “Her name’s Ava.
She’s smart, sarcastic, and organized to a fault.
She broke her ankle when she was here on vacation, and I helped rescue her.
One thing led to another.” I paused and took a breath.
“She’s coming back to Alaska, but something’s up with my phone.
Our texts aren’t getting through to each other. ”
“How do you know?”
“Because Josie told me since they’re in touch. I need to call the phone company. Meanwhile,” I continued, “I’m going to fly down to Seattle.”
“Oh, I love that,” she said immediately. “Do it, Tanner. Go big, or stay home.”
I snorted. “Something like that.”
“I think I know what’s up with your phone, though.”
“Do tell,” I replied with a sigh.
“Wasn’t Laney on the account with you before?”
I stopped pacing abruptly. “Uh, yeah, but she hasn’t been since we broke up.”
“But did you change the login and password and all that jazz?”
“To my phone? She doesn’t have access to my phone.”
My sister snorted, and I could imagine the eye roll that came with it. “No, I mean online, doofus. She could log in and manually block numbers.”
I tapped my fingertips on the steering wheel. “You are fucking kidding me,” I muttered.
“I am not fucking kidding you,” my sister said dryly. “And I would not put it past her.”
“I’ve gotta go.”
“Give her hell.”
Sophie had never really liked Laney. She had been polite because she loved me, but that was the extent of it.
“I’m glad Mom called you,” I said.
“I am too,” she said after a beat. “Talk soon. Love you.”
After the call, my jaw was so tight I had to force myself to relax it. I wanted to call Laney immediately, but I needed proof.
When I got home, I went straight to my laptop and logged into my cell phone account.
I rarely touched the online dashboard because everything was automated.
It took less than a minute to figure it out.
Once I clicked into the section for blocked numbers, most were spam calls, but right at the top was Ava’s number.
“Fuck,” I breathed. Anger slammed through me, cold and sharp.
I removed Ava’s number from the blocked list and promptly changed my password. Clearly, I’d been naive about Laney.
I didn’t dally and grabbed a backpack, tossed in some clothes, and booked the first direct flight I could find to Seattle. On the drive to the airport, I called Laney.
She answered on the second ring. “Tanner,” she said, her voice was like nails on a chalkboard to me now.
“I changed the password to my phone account,” I said flatly.
Silence ticked for a few beats. “Tanner, what are you even talking about?”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about.” More silence. “I’m a dumbass,” I added. “We were already over for good, but I never assumed you’d pull something like that.”
“Tanner—”
“Don’t,” I cut in. “Just don’t.”
She exhaled shakily. “I just—”
“We’re not doing this again. This is bullshit.
What did you think you were going to get by blocking Ava’s number?
” She didn’t answer. “Love isn’t a game,” I continued.
“Relationships are work. That’s the part you never understood.
You thought it was supposed to be easy and fun all the time.
” Her breath hitched. “It’s not going to be with me,” I said firmly.
“But I hope you figure that out for yourself.”
What felt like a ringing silence stretched between us on the call. “I’ve gotta go,” I added. “If you stay in town, I’m sure I’ll see you around. I hope you can be gracious.”
I hung up before she could respond. At the airport, waiting to board, adrenaline finally gave way to a hint of hope.
I sent another text to Ava.
Me: I missed you. I love you. I’ll see you soon.
After I tapped send, I added another message.
Me: If you’re wondering why you didn’t get my texts before, it’s fixed now. I’ll explain when I see you.