Chapter 7 #2
But I didn’t order it because it costs money—money I don’t have.
‘Did you let your customers know you wouldn’t be there today?’
‘Not yet, but I will.’
‘Don’t wait too long. It’s better to let them know before they have to ask.’
‘Yeah, got it,’ I say, trying not to sound annoyed. I know he’s just trying to help, but I don’t want his help. I’m not a little kid anymore who needs his big brother’s advice.
Kate hops off the counter and walks to the living room. Seeing my shirt on her is killing me. My mind keeps imagining how it’d feel to slide my hands up her legs, under that shirt to her—
‘I’ll let you go,’ Nick says. ‘Talk to you tomorrow.’
‘Yeah, bye.’ I set the phone down, then pick it back up, remembering I need to order that part.
I can’t focus. Kate’s got my thoughts going places they shouldn’t even be considering going.
I’m usually not like this. I mean, yeah, I’m easily distracted by women, but not like this.
Not to the point that I forget what I was doing.
And when I’m stressed about my business, like I am now, it’s all I can think about.
It’s why I haven’t dated much the past couple months.
I need to fix my business before I can focus on a relationship.
‘Is there anything you want to watch?’ Kate asks from the couch as she flips through channels on the TV.
‘You can pick something. I need to order a part.’ I find it online and click on the order button. I hope my credit card works. Last time I looked I’d maxed out my limit, but I made a payment since then.
My phone rings just as my order goes through. I don’t recognize the number, but answer it anyway.
‘Hey, this is Brody.’
‘Who?’ a man says.
‘Brody Kanfield. Who’s this?’
‘I’m looking for Katelyn Millstone. I need to speak to her.’
‘I don’t know who that is.’
‘I don’t understand. She told her mother she was staying there and that we could reach her at this number.’
Katelyn is Kate. Shit. I wasn’t thinking.
‘Yeah, she’s here. I’ll give her the phone.’
Kate jumps up from the couch, a panicked look on her face. ‘Who is it?’ she whispers.
‘A man,’ I whisper back as I give her the phone.
‘Hello?’ Kate chews on her lip, her eyes darting around. ‘Yeah, Dad, I’m fine.’ She sits on the arm of the couch, which makes the shirt ride up and show more of her legs.
I walk away, back to the kitchen, to give her privacy but also so I stop staring at a girl who’s off limits.
‘I’m not coming home.’ She gets up and starts pacing the floor.
‘No, I’m not getting back with him. I wasn’t in love with him.
I can’t marry a guy I don’t love.’ She stops pacing and squeezes her eyes shut as she takes a breath and listens to whatever her dad is saying.
‘I don’t know. A week? Maybe two? I have three weeks off from work and I don’t want to spend them at home.
’ She shakes her head. ‘I’m not moving back with you and Mom.
I mean, maybe for a week or two until I find a place, but that’s it.
I’ll call Abi and see if her building has any apartments open.
’ Kate listens. ‘Yes, I’ll call them, but not now.
My phone’s dead and the charger is in Cam’s car, which is buried in a foot of snow.
’ She starts pacing again. ‘I wasn’t thinking about that when it happened.
I saw Brody’s truck and all I could think about was flagging him down.
I was freezing and just wanted to get warm.
I wasn’t worried about what I’d left in the car. ’ She nods. ‘Yeah, I will. Bye, Dad.’
Kate walks over to me in the kitchen and hands me my phone. ‘Thanks for letting me borrow it. I told my parents they should only call if it’s an emergency, but they aren’t great at following directions.’ Kate laughs, but it’s an uncomfortable laugh that I’m guessing is hiding how she really feels.
‘I don’t mind if they call.’ I slip my phone in my pocket.
Kate’s nervously chewing on her lip as she stares at the floor. Her parents must really stress her out, or maybe talking to them brought back the stress she felt from earlier today.
‘You okay?’ I ask.
She looks up and forces out a smile. ‘Yeah. I’m fine.’
‘Liar.’
Her smile drops. ‘Okay, I’m not, but there’s nothing I can do about it. The next few weeks and months are going to be tough. And stressful. I just need to accept that and get through it.’
‘You want to talk about it?’
She shakes her head.
I could push her to talk, but I really need to stay out of it.
I’ve got enough drama of my own. I don’t need to be adding to it.
The problem is, I’m starting to care about this girl, a total stranger I met a few hours ago.
Maybe it’s her situation. I hate seeing people feel bad for doing what they want, and it sounds like that’s what’s happening to Kate.
She didn’t want to marry the guy and instead of her friends and family supporting her, they’re telling her she made a mistake, making her feel like she did something wrong and can’t trust her own judgment.
Sometimes I feel that way too. My family supports me, but they don’t always support my decisions or trust me to make them.
They say they’re just looking out for me, but I wish they’d let me figure stuff out on my own instead of assuming I’ll screw everything up without their help.
Unfortunately, my current situation is proving them right.
I need to fix it, and I will. I just haven’t figured out how.
Going back to the living room, I sit on the couch and watch whatever Kate had on. It’s some kind of girly movie with tiny dogs and lots of pink.
‘Okay, here’s the thing,’ Kate says, plopping down next to me. ‘I love my parents, but I think they secretly want me to be miserable.’
I guess she changed her mind about talking.
‘It’s not that they intentionally want that,’ she says. ‘They just want what’s best for them instead of me.’ She sighs. ‘Which makes me miserable. ’
I grab the TV remote and turn the volume down. ‘How is marrying that guy best for your parents?’
‘Cam’s parents know a lot of important people and they’re very wealthy, like the type of wealth where they can afford private planes and multiple houses. My parents want into that world and me marrying Cam was the way to do it.’
‘They’d really make you marry a guy just so they can be friends with his parents?’
‘They’re already friends with them, but if I married Cam, we’d all be family. And family gets more perks than friends.’
‘What kind of perks are we talking about?’
‘Invites to exclusive clubs and social events. Letting my parents use their private plane. Inviting my parents to parties with people who could bring in more business to my parents’ law firm.’
‘Are your parents disappointed you don’t work there? At their law firm?’
Kate sighs. ‘Yes. They wanted me to go into law, not business. They ended up being okay with it because, according to them, it was better than getting a degree in design, which was what I really wanted.’
‘They have degrees in that?’
‘Yes.’ She smiles at my question, but hey, I didn’t go to college. I don’t know what people study there. ‘My parents didn’t want their money paying for a degree they thought was frivolous, and to them, anything involving art or design is frivolous.’
‘So you picked something you didn’t like.’
‘It’s not that I don’t like it. It’s just not what I want to do. ’
‘You’re going to work at a job you don’t want to do for the rest of your life?’ I shake my head. ‘That sucks.’
‘I wasn’t supposed to be working for that long.
The plan was to marry Cam, have a couple kids, and stay home with them.
I figured I could use my business degree in some kind of volunteer job, like being treasurer for a local community group.
So in a way, I’d still be working, just not a regular job. ’
Watching her talk, I get the feeling she’s lying.
She got this fake rise of excitement in her voice when she mentioned staying at home and being a treasurer, whatever the hell that is.
I’m good at spotting bullshit, and what she said just now is bullshit.
She didn’t want that life, or if she did, she didn’t want it with Cam.
I don’t think she knows what she wants. She seems confused as hell, like she’s got so many people telling her what to do that she has no idea what she actually wants.
I’m lucky I have parents who let me do what I want.
When I told them I was starting a lawn care business, I saw the worry on their faces, knowing I’d have to go into debt before I’d actually make money.
But they didn’t tell me not to do it. And they supported my decision to expand the business to snow removal and my decision to buy this house.
Now I’m in debt with my business and a house that’s falling apart and I’m afraid to tell my parents.
I’m afraid to let them down. It’s stupid because I know they’d still be supportive and help me however they could, but that’s not what I want.
I want to prove to myself and them that I can do this, that I can get out of the hole I dug myself in and start making money again.
But then my snowplow breaks down in the middle of a huge storm and the hole gets even deeper.
I should be freaking out right now, but I’m not because it’s not who I am.
I don’t know if I ignore bad shit because I’m easygoing or because I just can’t deal with it.
In a way, I’m glad I’m like this and not someone who worries constantly like Kate.
Talking about her parents, she’s getting all tense like she was when I found her.
I might have to take her out in the snow again to loosen her up.
She’s totally not my type, but I do like her. I’m even kind of hoping it keeps snowing so I can spend more time with her.