Chapter 43 Avery
Avery
Things were quiet over the next couple of days. Too quiet. It gave Avery way too much time to think.
She was on edge, withdrawn. She couldn’t focus.
Couldn’t stop her mind from running away with her as her trust took another hammering.
She examined every conversation she’d had with Gemma over the years from multiple angles.
Obsessing over whether she should have handled things differently.
Spotted some kind of sign of her friend’s jealousy.
It was driving her mad.
“You have to let it go. This is about Gemma, not you,” Bel said, as they stood in their kitchen making coffee. “Real queens fix each other’s crowns. They don’t put eye drops in the hot sauce.”
“Again with the bumper-sticker wisdom.” Avery chuckled despite herself, but she wrapped her arms around Bel’s waist and soaked in some of her strength. “I love you, babe. You’re the realest queen I’ve ever seen.”
“Takes one to know one.” Bel planted a kiss on the side of her face.
And it helped a little. The advice and the kiss.
Work helped, too. With Jackson keen to have the commissions he’d requested as soon as she could turn them around, Avery didn’t want to fall too far behind.
So she got stuck in and kept herself busy, turning up her music and losing herself in the physical work of replacing the webbing on a vintage couch.
A couple of phone calls with Luke helped to get the plans for her own workshop rolling.
When Mats packed up to head home, she took a brief break to give him a hug filled with genuine affection.
“You take care, you hear?” he said gruffly into her ear.
“Promise.” Avery smiled in response. “And you come back soon.”
If only Arlo would follow suit and go too, but he was staying for now, making noises about finding somewhere to rent in Pine Springs for a while, although things remained stilted between him and Tanner.
Even more concerning, Tanner wasn’t himself.
Avery knew he was stressed about the surgery —and they were both stressed about the unresolved stalking—but there seemed to be more going on, even though he never passed on an opportunity to touch or kiss her, and he’d listened patiently to her complicated mess of feelings over Gemma’s betrayal.
But there was definitely something guarded about him, something he wasn’t saying, which was so unusual she didn’t know how to break through his reserve.
He was distracted. And it made Avery worry.
What if the note on the doll was right? What if Tanner was less invested now the thrill of the chase was over?
Giving herself a grim shake, Avery resolved to give this dating experiment more than a forty-eight-hour try. Especially considering the forty-eight hours in question.
She was just grabbing a cold drink from the fridge in the farmhouse kitchen when Tanner returned from taking Mats to the airport.
“All OK?” she asked.
“Yeah, I dropped him outside. He checked the flight on his phone and it’s all running to time.” Tanner flicked the switch on the coffee machine, fidgety fingers tapping instantly on the counter. “Want one?”
Shaking her head, Avery held up her glass of juice and his smile flashed briefly before disappearing. Her chest tightened. “Is something wrong?”
Turning to face her, his mouth tugged down at one corner. “Stretch—”
And then Arlo slouched into the kitchen with crappy timing and no cares, wrenching open the door of the freezer to peer inside.
“Yes! Butter pecan. The Holy Grail of ice cream.” He took his time rooting through the kitchen drawers in search of a spoon to dish up his unsuitable lunch, before looking from Tanner to Avery and back again. “Don’t let me interrupt.”
Tanner’s eyes darkened but he said nothing, just turned back to the coffee machine and finished making his drink. It was a relief when Arlo’s phone rang and he took it outside by the pool, just close enough to the doors that they could still hear the murmur of his half of the conversation.
“I’m just on edge, Ave.” Tanner blew out a long breath.
“I wish I had a guarantee of what’s going to happen after the surgery.
I haven’t missed a training camp in almost ten years and I hate the idea of the season starting without me.
I want to be involved, I want to get back on the ice. I’m not ready for it all to be over.”
For once, it wasn’t hard to be the one to go to him. Avery’s feet took her across the kitchen before she’d even thought about it and she wrapped her arms around his waist. Setting his steaming coffee to one side, Tanner drew her closer. He smelled of body wash and fresh air.
“We never know what’s around the corner,” she said, looking up at him.
“If you’d have told me before the Bach Bash I’d be here now, in your kitchen giving you a pep talk, I’d never have believed it.
” His dimple made an appearance and she felt a little of the tension leave his frame.
“Whatever happens with your shoulder, you’ll find something that lights you up.
You’re that kind of person. There’ll be parts of training camp you can get involved with, so be a positive force while you bond with the team.
Build relationships, support the other guys and stay focused while you recuperate.
And if you want to get on the ice, well, there’s always Ella-Jane’s Stick & Puck sessions.
Make yourself useful and give those kids a thrill. ”
Tanner laughed into her hair, squeezing her tightly. “Dammit, you’re right, Stretch. I needed that. How come you know exactly what to say?”
Because I love you and I’m here for you, the way you’re here for me.
He was the sparkle of raindrops in the sunshine. The warmth of summer sand on bare feet. He was feather pillows, hot cocoa, and unequivocal comfort. And she loved him.
But, as they shared the stolen moment in the quiet of the kitchen, knowing Arlo could rejoin them at any minute, she could almost see an array of unspoken thoughts and unfinished business glittering between them in the shards of sunlight.
And although Avery already knew she was willing to take a chance on Tanner—on them—she stumbled over the words that wanted to fall from her tongue and she held them back.
He talked her into joining him in the farmhouse for a late breakfast the following morning, saying he’d come out to the workshop to get her once he’d picked up some food. When he appeared in the doorway, Avery laid down her tools and turned off the music, more than ready to eat.
Catching hold of her hand, Tanner dragged her toward him until she hit his chest with a muffled laugh.
His tongue slid between her lips. His palm at the base of her spine pulled her closer.
That groan he made as their kiss deepened?
It lit Avery up from the inside. Flames spread through her stomach as his mouth traced the curve of her jaw and he sucked at the sensitive skin beneath her ear.
He was hot and solid and she wanted to keep him here and forget about food, even if her stomach complained.
“Damn, why do you always look so sexy with a hammer in your hand?” Tanner’s question was a gravelly grumble. “Makes me want to take you straight upstairs, but we have guests for breakfast. My mom’s in the kitchen.”
Avery snickered into his neck, her hands fisting in the soft cotton of his baby blue tee. “Maybe if you behave yourself during breakfast, I could make it worth your while once she’s gone.”
He cocked his head, eyes instantly alive with possibilities. “You would do that, huh?”
She nodded.
“Will there be nudity?” Tanner’s slow grin was brushed with hope and dipped in devilry.
“There will almost certainly be nudity,” she confirmed, heat pooling in her stomach.
“My room, your tits, my cock?”
“I’ll bring mine if you bring yours.” Avery rolled her eyes but laughed despite herself, and his grin split even wider.
Tanner kissed one corner of her lips and then the other, the sweetness of the gesture at wonderful odds with his dirty mouth. “Sold to the guy who’s going to have to deal with a boner at breakfast.”
Pushing her purposefully out to arm’s length, he kept his grip on her fingers and towed her across the patio to the open bifold doors.
Unusually, at this time of the morning, he wasn’t sweaty and maybe she was just a smidge disappointed.
Sweaty Tanner was one of Avery’s favorite Tanners.
Although, to be fair, there was strong competition.
She liked Freshly Showered Tanner, too.
Dressed-Up Tanner.
Dressed-Down Tanner.
Undressed Tanner.
And Rumpled First Thing In The Morning Tanner was turning out to be pretty fucking hot as well.
Still debating the issue, it took Avery a few seconds to register that the person chatting hesitantly with Cassidy Stone by the kitchen island was her mother. Bravely uneasy, Violet had a fresh cup of coffee in her hands and the wide-eyed look of a creature who’d escaped captivity.
That her mom instantly wrapped her in a hug surprised Avery almost as much as her presence. She smelled of lilacs and hairspray, and the embrace was comforting in a way Avery hadn’t known she needed.
“What are you doing here?” she asked with a stunned shake of her head. The only place she’d seen her mother outside of her own house since the divorce was finalized was the Family Fare Supermarket five minutes from her home.
“Cassie and Tanner invited me for breakfast. They came to pick me up and said it would be a nice surprise for you.” Violet’s mouth quivered just a little, as if she wasn’t quite sure whether or not that might be true.
Avery, still at a loss for words, pulled herself together enough to reassure her. “It’s the best surprise, Mom. I can’t believe you’re here.”
“They’re not an easy pair to say no to,” her mother admitted in a whisper that only reached the two of them.
Avery’s mouth tugged at the corner. “Tell me about it.”
With a warm smile so similar to Tanner’s that Avery couldn’t help but return it, Cassie pressed a mug of coffee into Avery’s hands and moved to open up a cake tin. “Hazel sent me with some of her tea cakes. You have to try them—they’re the stuff of legend.”
Catching Tanner’s eye over her mother’s head, Avery mouthed, “Thank you.”
She had no idea how he’d managed this feat but, if she’d been able to speak the two simple syllables aloud, he would have heard all the gratitude, sincerity, and emotion she was feeling.
From his smile, Avery suspected he knew it anyway.
“I was so shocked when Tanner told me what happened with Gemma. Whatever was she thinking?” Her mom took a seat at the table, legs crossed neatly at the ankle, and Avery sank onto the chair beside her. “That girl has been in charge of five-year-olds for years!”
“Good job all the scissors were blunt-ended.” Avery’s weak joke drew a sympathetic look from Tanner’s mom. She did not want to talk about Gemma.
Violet laid a hand on Avery’s knee in an awkward fashion. “You should have told me.” She darted a self-conscious look at Tanner and Cassidy. “I’m not so fragile that you need to keep things like that to yourself.”
“I didn’t want to bother you,” Avery said, but the truth was she had grown used to hiding stuff from her mom. Always careful not to unsettle Violet’s flimsy balance.
Tanner’s hand cupped the back of her neck as he moved closer to stand behind Avery’s chair, his warm thumb stroking her skin in soft, blunt sweeps as Cassie stepped smoothly into the momentary pause.
“Let’s have some breakfast. We picked up fresh fruit on the way over, as a healthy side to the tea cakes, and Tanner insisted on my baked oatmeal, too.” Cassidy’s laugh was light. “It’s a foolproof recipe—one of the few things I make.”
“And it’s the best,” he said, tugging out a seat at the table and sitting down. His fingers drummed happily on the table. “Just wait until you try it.”
“Where’s Arlo?” Avery asked.
“I’m not sure. He borrowed the car—said he had errands to run.” There was a caginess to Tanner’s words, something in his eyes that seemed to slip away when she looked again.
While they all dug into the food, Cassidy entertained them with tales from her book club, which sounded like a chaotic mix of characters and the source of very little actual book talk.
“It was Marjorie’s turn to choose this month—Hazel’s friend Marjorie from the general store?
” Cassie checked to see if they knew who she meant.
Avery nodded with a smile, picturing the woman, a forthright loose cannon who could always be relied upon to come out with the unexpected.
Her mom shook her head. “Anyway, she spotted this book at the library called Power of the Gods. She swore she only picked it up because she’s a fan of Greek mythology, but it turns out it’s a dark romance! ”
Avery spluttered into her coffee. Bel was going to be so pissed that she’d missed out on this.
“Was it a good read?” Tanner asked keenly, around a mouthful of oatmeal.
“Oh, very enlightening. And Hazel’s decided it’s a crying shame you can’t book a day trip to the Underworld.” Cassidy carefully sliced a plump strawberry with a sharp knife.
Avery found herself sniggering as her mom murmured, “I suppose it would beat a visit to the Battle Creek Taxidermy Museum.”
“You should come along, Violet.” Tanner’s mother issued the invitation with casual warmth. “To the book club, not the Underworld. It’ll be safer this month because I’m choosing the book, so we could pick something out together. The meeting is at my house, too. I’m happy to come and collect you.”
With the briefest hesitation, her mom agreed. As if Avery hadn’t come up with a thousand other suggestions in the past that might have helped her dip her toe back into more social waters. As if her mother hadn’t made excuses not to try every single one of them for the last ten years.
Cassidy was a goddamn genius.
And Tanner, well, he was her knight in shining armor disguised as a fidgety Adonis with a dimple to die for.
Avery found herself setting down her coffee cup with a lump in her throat that made it impossible to swallow.