14. Chapter Fourteen
It doesn’t surprise me when I wake up the next morning to find a note taped to the fridge with Easton’s signature at the bottom, letting me know he had to head out of town for work again. What does surprise me though, is the hurt that passes through me at the thought of being away from him for days at a time.
There’s no denying how amazing our date went last night. I had expected him to be jumpy or on edge, but he was perfectly calm and even managed a few smiles throughout the night. When he wasn’t looking, I’d study his posture, trying to look for any signs of it straightening from pressure, but he was as relaxed as I’ve ever seen him.
That kiss though?
Out of all the ways I thought last night would end, the last one was him giving me a quick kiss before leaving me standing at my bedroom door.
Is this his way of avoiding me again? It can’t be a coincidence that he left the day after our date. Since Bethany is still with her grandparents, I use the time to call Savanna to talk about how the date went last night.
The line rings once before she answers and says, “Tell me everything.”
“Well, good morning to you too,” I laugh while walking into the living room and sitting on the couch. “How did you sleep?”
She scoffs. “Uh uh, spill it. How was it?”
I stare at one of the pictures hanging on the wall of Easton and Bethany with smiles on their faces. “It went better than I thought it would, but I’m still worried he doesn’t feel the same way.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Well, he left town again without warning and I feel like it’s his way of trying to avoid me.”
Savanna sighs. “He might just need some space to think about everything. If he’s really avoiding you, then it’s because the date went well and he’s scared. I wouldn’t stress over it too much though, babe.”
“It’s a bad idea to date my boss, right? Not to mention he’s also your brother.”
“Not when there’s been sexual tension between you for years,” she says with a soft chuckle. “I thought you guys would’ve made a move on each other years ago.”
Was my attraction to Easton always that obvious? I try to think back to my younger years and what it would’ve looked like to have this young girl pining after Easton and my cheeks heat. I’m sure he was embarrassed about it more than anything else, not knowing how to act around me, so he resorted to bickering with me.
A throat clears behind me and I find Bethany leaning against the living room doorway, her eyebrows raised, and I let out a string of coughs. “Uh, yeah, I’ve gotta go, Sav. Bethany’s here. Call you later!”
There’s a weird smile taking over Bethany’s face and I’m not sure what to make of it. Did she overhear my conversation? More importantly, how the hell did I miss her walking through the front door?
I clear my throat and give her a nervous smile. “Bethany, hey, how long have you been standing there?”
She shrugs, her gaze not giving anything away as she walks over and sits next to me on the couch. “Not long.”
Shit.
What if Easton didn’t want Bethany to know anything? There’s sweat beading on my forehead at the thought of him coming home to his daughter badgering him with question after question about me.
I nod slowly. “How about we keep anything you heard to yourself for now?”
Bethany arches a brow and smirks. “What’s in it for me?”
Of course, the twelve year-old is going to try to get something out of me for this. It’s exactly what I would’ve done at her age.
“A girl’s night with Sav?”
She taps her chin and eyes me curiously. “Can I eat as much junk food as I want?”
“Whatever your little heart desires, girl, as long as you don’t mention anything about the conversation I just had with your aunt.”
She shrugs, then stands from the couch and gives me a sassy grin. “Just saying, I would’ve kept my mouth shut regardless.”
That little – she’s twelve, Autumn, no need to get nasty.
I’ve two grocery bags filled with everything we might need for our girls’ night and Bethany is bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet as she looks over it all. I sigh and wave a hand over the junk food. “Is this good enough for you?”
She giggles and reaches into one of the bags for the large bag of Twizzlers, then happily prances into the living room where we’ve got our mini spa situated. Aside from trying to keep her mouth shut, after some thought, I figured this was actually a really good idea.
There’s a knock on the door before it’s being pushed open and Savanna sticks her head inside with a smile. “I come bearing gifts,” she says, lifting her grocery bags in the air.
I rush up to her when I see the brown paper bag that holds my favorite wine and snatch it from her hand. “Have I mentioned how much I love you?”
She shrugs. “Once or twice, but I might need to hear it more after tonight.”
“Aunt Savvy!” Bethany says excitedly from the hallway before throwing her arms around her aunt. “Come on, we’re going to have so much fun!”
Savanna chuckles as Bethany pulls her into the living room and sits her gently on one of the couch cushions planted right in front of the spa area. I figured with Bethany joining us that we could go all out – do mani-pedi’s, hair, facials, then relax with a movie and junk food.
If Easton walked in here right now his eyes would probably bug out of his head at all the junk I managed to buy for the night. That’s why I chose to do it while he was gone. He can’t get mad at me for something he’s not here to witness.
While Bethany brushes through Savanna’s hair, I walk over to the large glass case filled with movies and survey our options. Tonight isn’t a night for any action, which is basically all this man owns, but I eventually find Clueless and pull it out with a smile.
“I don’t mind, you know,” Bethany says softly while focusing on Savanna’s hair, briefly glancing at me after she says it. “About you and my dad.”
“You don’t? I thought you’d be upset to know that I’m with him while working as your nanny.”
Bethany chuckles. “Come on, Autumn, we both know I don’t really need a nanny. It’s just a way for him to feel better, so I deal with it.”
Savanna looks at me with a frown on her face and she closes her eyes slowly. I’m sure everyone around Easton has told him how short of a leash he has his daughter on, but he refuses to let anyone tell him what to do. Would he change his tune if he heard what Bethany is saying right now?
I sigh. “Well, I don’t know what’s going to happen and that’s why I need you to keep your lips sealed about it.”’
She nods, then cocks her head to the side. “Do you think he’ll ever be happy again?”
It never fails for a girls’ night to get deep before the real party starts. Savanna pulls away from Bethany and turns so she’s in front of her. “You’re dad is happy, Bethy. He loves you madly. He’s just wary about getting involved with another woman. He just needs time.”
“How much time, though?” Bethany asks, then gestures around the house. “What is he going to do when I’m eighteen and go to college?”
Savanna chuckles. “Okay, Bethy, no need to go so far into the future. The idea of you going off to college gives me hives.”
My mouth is clamped shut, not wanting to say anything as it’s not my place. Do I hope that Easton could eventually be happy, even if it’s not with me? Of course.
I won’t lie, I’ve wished for years that I could be that person even when I thought I was over those feelings. Deep inside it was always his name etched on my soul – which is weird now that I think about it since he never gave any indication that he felt the same way until now.
“Who wants ice cream?” I finally ask, hoping to steer the conversation in a different direction. It’s fine for the first few minutes of girls’ night to be emotional, but you never want it to last the entire night.
Savanna clears her throat and smiles. “Mint chip sounds heavenly right about now.”
Bethany narrows her eyes. “Not if I get to it first.” Before Savanna or I can react, Bethany shoots up from her spot on the floor and rushes into the kitchen.
I chuckle and shake my head. “She’s going to be really disappointed when she sees I got two of the mint chips.”
Savanna sighs as she gets up, then frowns at me. “What if he can’t allow himself to be happy again, Autumn?”
“It’s not our place to worry about that. If he wants to be alone for the rest of his life, letting the fear take over, then that’s all on him. You can’t force him to be with someone.”
She reaches out and squeezes my arm gently. “Are you okay?”
I shrug. “I wish I would’ve gotten more than a note letting me know he left, but I’m not sure why I expected anything different.”
There’s a screeching from the kitchen that has Savanna and I hightailing it in there, then we come to a halt in the doorway.
Bethany is standing at the counter, but the most alarming thing is all the ice cream that seems to have been flung through the space. There are drops on the island, fridge, ceiling, everywhere I look is a tiny speck.
“Uh,” Bethany says. “I kinda forgot to put the lid on the blender?”
Savanna and I glance at each other, then we bend over in fits of laughter until I can’t breathe. This is what I’ll be missing if I leave town, but what else am I supposed to do?