Chapter 12 #2
That one cut deeper than anything he’d said, and he saw it in the tight pull of Cal’s mouth. For a moment, something raw flickered there—hurt, maybe, or regret— but it vanished almost immediately.
Cal grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair, shrugging it on with brisk efficiency. “Fine,” he said, tone going professional. “I thought we could have an actual conversation. I didn’t come here to fight.” He moved toward the door, pausing just long enough to glance back.
Slater silently prayed that this was goodbye.
“Just think about it,” he added. “I’ll be staying a few more days. You’ve got a nice little place here. I’m sure your trust fund helped, but I can see why you and your friends bought it.”
It was as close to a compliment as he was ever going to get, but it meant nothing.
“Maybe we can grab dinner together and you can introduce me to them. I’d love to see how everyone’s doing. I’ll bet they’d all agree that you should come to the ceremony. Heck, bring them along! We’ll make it a party!”
The same oblivious confidence. The same assumption that Slater would eventually fall in line.
Then he walked out and the door clicked shut behind him. And he was left alone in the office, staring at the empty space where his father had stood, the echo of old anger settling heavily in his chest.
The shaky breath came out as he slowly lowered himself onto his desk chair. This was the first time he’d ever vented this much, and where had it gotten him? Nowhere.
Still.
Not that he was surprised, but it still baffled him how someone could be so damn callous to their own flesh and blood.
Suddenly, Evie’s words from last night came back to him.
“Did you ever purposely hurt someone? Were you ever deliberately mean to them?”
“No.”
“Do you think your father was?”
“Yes.”
“Then see? You’re not like him.”
He wanted to believe it was that simple, but he’d been telling himself the complete opposite for most of his life for no reason. And he wasn’t sure he was ever going to be able to believe otherwise.
No matter how strong the proof was.
The alarm on his phone chimed reminding him that his hike was going to start in fifteen minutes. With no other choice, he got to his feet, looking around his office and still feeling a little shell-shocked by everything that had just happened there.
“Hey,” Lexi said quietly as she opened the door. “Are you okay?”
All he could do was nod.
“I saw Cal walking across the lobby and figured it was safe to come back.” She gave him a sad smile. “Want to talk about it?”
“No. But thanks. I’ve got a hike in fifteen.”
“Okay. I’ll be here when you get back,” she said. “You know, whether we need to go over schedules or you just want to sit in silence, I’m here.”
That made him smile. Barely. “Thanks, Lex. I’ll see you later.”
And when he stepped out of the office, he forced himself to focus on the task at hand and forget about the conversation with his father.
It wasn’t hard to do.
He’d been doing it his entire life.
Three days later, Evie stared down at her phone with a loud sigh.
Tom: Hey, Sis! We’ve been missing you around here. I’m sorry Mom and Dad never made it over to see you, but they’ve been helping with wedding stuff since you’re not here.
Tom: You’re going to be back before we all leave for Costa Rica, right?
Tom: I heard about what happened with Morgan’s cousin. Is it going to be weird for you to see him with his girlfriend?
She groaned. “Is nothing private?”
Tom: Although, there really isn’t anything I can do about it. The guest list is already small, and Morgan’s close with him, so…
“Then why even ask?” she murmured.
Tom: Anyway, hope you’ll be home before all the festivities begin! We can really use your help organizing everything. You know Morgan’s not great with that kind of thing. She was really hoping you’d be here to assist. No one makes things run smoothly like you do!
Tom: Miss you, kiddo!
Tom: Give me a call sometime!
Tossing her phone down, she mumbled, “You would think a sister’s comfort is more important than a cousin’s, but whatever.”
Slater walked in just as she was saying it. With a lopsided grin, he asked, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Everything’s great.” And…cue the sarcasm.
Slater looked at her curiously.
“Just a text from my brother asking when I’m coming home.
” She stood up and began to pace. “And at first, I just thought he missed me, but basically his fiancée just misses having me there to do everything for her. Free wedding labor.” She shook her head in disgust. “Oh, and he feigned concern about me having to see Tucker and his new girlfriend, but there’s no genuine concern because it’s not like they’re going to uninvite him.
” Another headshake. “And how do they even know about that whole thing, huh? Like…why would Tucker even bring it up?”
“Um…”
“And you know the worst part?” she asked as she turned and faced him. “The absolute worst part?”
He mutely shook his head.
“This is what my life is! I’m the person whose feelings no one takes into consideration. It’s perfectly fine to put Evie in the corner and have her do all the menial stuff that no one wants to do while they hope I won’t make a fuss. Gah! I’m so tired of it!”
Gently, Slater came closer and wrapped her in his arms. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not fair,” she mumbled against his chest.
“You’re right. It’s not. Sometimes people are just clueless. And families more so than most.” He rested his chin on top of her head. “I’d say don’t go to the wedding, but it’s your brother so I know that’s not an option.”
Pulling back slightly, she looked up at him. “What would you do?”
“Excuse me?”
“If you were me, what would you…” She paused, almost cursing herself. “Sorry. That was thoughtless of me.”
He looked utterly confused. “What are you talking about?”
“With everything that went down with your dad a few days ago and the whole thing with whatever ridiculous honor they’re giving him, why would I ask you what you would do if you were me?
I already know the answer. You wouldn’t go.
” Shaking her head, she tried to cushion the unintentional blow.
“You have good reasons. Your relationship with Cal has never been great. But Tommy and I have always gotten along just fine.”
Slater released her and took a step back. “You can still ask what I’d do, Evie. The two situations aren’t even remotely close. If my father and I had a good relationship, but I didn’t like the expectations put on me to be at the ceremony, I’d speak up.”
“But it won’t matter if I speak up,” she countered. “Good little Evie does what she’s told and does it quietly. That’s who I am.”
“That’s not the woman I’ve spent the last month with. You are fierce and opinionated and strong. I don’t know why you don’t let more people see that side of you. You’re pretty damn spectacular when you stick up for yourself.”
“I’ve never had…I mean…I’ve never felt like there was anything worth arguing over.” She shrugged. “Most of the stuff is just annoying. I’m the responsible one, so I shouldn’t complain when people expect me to be…you know…responsible.”
“But it’s not responsible when they’re telling you what to do and not asking. You’re allowed to let people know when they’re burdening you with stuff. It’s not okay for you to be everyone’s lackey.”
“I wouldn’t put it that way…”
“Then how would you put it?”
Frowning, she looked at him and wanted to lash out and argue because she didn’t want to talk about this anymore.
And how was that for irony? She wanted to argue with him because she didn’t want to argue anymore.
Ugh…
“I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” she finally said. “I’m going to be home next week, and I’ll deal with it then.”
“And by deal with it you mean that you’ll do what they want and ignore your own feelings,” he said with his own hint of sarcasm. “You’ll put everyone else’s feelings before your own.”
And for some reason, that last sentence was the final straw.
Hands on her hips, she snapped, “Yup. Because that’s what I do. Hell, I’ve been doing it with you since I got here!”
Slater opened his mouth and quickly shut it.
“That’s right,” she went on. “I’ve been so careful not to say anything about feelings or commitments or asking what we’re doing because I feel like I have to tiptoe around things like that with you. You’re a flight risk and I wanted this—whatever this is—to go on for as long as possible!”
She was breathless and shaking, but there was something very cathartic about getting this off her chest finally.
“Don’t get me wrong, I knew what I was getting into and I just figured if I do what I always do and just try to stay under the radar, we could have this time together. Which, FYI, I’ve wanted with you for a long time.”
She paused and tried to calm down, but the adrenaline coursing through her seemed to push her to keep going. Fortunately, Slater was looking a little too stunned to respond.
“We start talking about us and then we pull back, and I never push because clearly you’re not comfortable with the subject.
But you know what? Too bad! Why do I have to be the only one who’s uncomfortable?
” Stepping in close, she poked his chest. “You pursued me when we both agreed we shouldn’t keep going.
What did you think was going to happen, huh?
Did you think I was suddenly going to be okay with you just sleeping with me until I go back to Seattle? ”
“Um…”
Another poke. “Did you ever once think that this affair took me so far out of my comfort zone that it was crushing my soul a little?”
“Okay, that seems a little…”
“It’s crushing my soul, Slater!” she shouted before huffing out a breath.
“I have genuine feelings for you. Feelings that I want to put into words but can’t.
Feelings that I know are one-sided.” Her shoulders sagged.
“And that’s on me. I knew what I was doing.
But when I go home next week, this is going to be hard for me to get over. ”
For a moment, neither spoke, but Slater looked almost painfully uncomfortable.