Chapter 24 #2
"I quite like your mama bear personality," Kendra said. "It extends to us girls, too, by the way."
"Good to know," Avery said.
"How's your mom?" Reese asked.
"She's fine, thanks. She's healthy, thank goodness. She loves living in Florida. She’s spending Thanksgiving with her friends."
“And your sister?”
“She’s traveling with friends.”
Once we were done with dinner, we all moved into the living room. Mom cut Avery’s pie in the kitchen, and everyone was welcome to take a plate with a serving.
I was pleased that everyone was embracing Avery so openly, not only my cousins and brothers, but also their wives and fiancées.
"Sam, you didn't update me. Did the board change their mind about sending you to the boonies for that clinic?" Kimberly asked.
I froze. Next to me, I felt Avery tense up. She looked at me. Mom gasped.
"What? You didn't tell me about that,” Avery exclaimed.
Kimberly put her hand over her mouth. "Shit, Sam, you still didn’t tell her? I didn’t know it was still a secret."
“Kimberly, language,” Gran said.
Kimberly cleared her throat. “Sorry, Gran. Sorry, Paisley.”
"It's not a secret," I said slowly.
"Well, clearly Avery doesn't know, and I think part of the family… Okay, okay. I'm going to shut up now," Kimberly said.
She smiled apologetically at Avery, who sat uncharacteristically still.
"I'm not sure which of you is going to need the mama bear personality soon, but I'm here for both of you," Kimberly said. "I'm going to get seconds."
She walked to the kitchen just as Reese was heading in our direction. Kimberly caught her sister by the arm and whispered something in her ear. Reese’s eyes widened, and she went toward Mom instead.
"I'm sorry you found out like this," I murmured to Avery. "Kimberly shouldn't have blurted it out."
"It's not her fault. She couldn't have known you didn't tell me." Her voice was strained.
I took her empty plate and put it on the coffee table next to mine.
"Want to take a walk in the backyard?" I asked.
"Sure."
We headed away from the living room, through the door that connected to the backyard. Outside, it was windy and far too chilly for my taste, but I wanted to have some alone time with my girl.
“Let me get your coat,” I said.
“There’s no need. Please, I just want to talk.”
“Okay.”
"How long have you known?"
"That's not important."
She looked up at me. Her eyes were furious. "Yes, it is.”
“Robinson Matthew, the CEO, told me about six weeks ago.”
"Weeks? You've known for weeks? So wait, all that time you were hinting at our future and you were secretly wondering how to tell me? Or were you going to tell me at all?"
"Avery." I made a move to touch her arms, but she took a step back. "Of course I meant to tell you. The thing is, I haven't accepted their deal."
Her shoulders dropped. "Why not?"
"Because it's in Maine, and it's not what I want."
"But that clinic is all you've been talking about."
"I want to open it in Chicago."
She swallowed hard, rubbing her arms with her palms.
"Are you sure you don’t want your coat?”
“I’m fine.”
"Avery, I'm not going to accept it."
"But it's your dream," she murmured.
"Yeah, but I'm flexible when it comes to that. My family is in Chicago. You're in Chicago."
"You were with Doctors Without Borders for years, Sam. You went all around the world, and your family was still in Chicago. What’s changed?"
"You. Now I have you."
She shook her head. "No. This isn't right."
"What? What do you mean?"
"You shouldn't make a decision based on our relationship."
I stared at her. "Why the hell not?"
"Because things can happen. You can change your mind, or I can, or things fall apart, and then you’ll regret that you stayed here."
"Way to be optimistic about the future." I was stunned.
In my mind, I’d kept rehearsing how I was going to break the news. The only variations were the words I would choose, but I had to admit I always thought her reaction would be to jump my bones and tell me how happy she was that I wasn't going anywhere.
"You don't mean that," I said.
She ran a hand through her hair. "It's just that I know how important dreams are and how crucial it is to go after them and fulfill them."
"So what you're saying is, if someone told you they would exponentially grow your business if you moved to London or something, you'd just pack up and leave."
"That's not what I'm saying at all."
"Sounds to me like you are. You're basically telling me not to choose you because you're not sure you want me for the long run."
She gasped. "Sam… I’m sorry. Is that what I said? It's not what I meant. Oh God. I’m so confused."
"Take all the time you need to think about what you really want to say. But for now, let’s just go join everyone and enjoy the rest of the day. I don't want us to continue this conversation right now."
“I agree. We both need to think about… everything. Let’s get back inside. I don’t want anyone to worry.”
“Sure.”
My tone was clipped. The legendary Maxwell confidence led me to think that Avery saw the future just the way I did. But apparently she didn’t.
I was starting to feel like an idiot.