12. Evvy
CHAPTER TWELVE
evvy
It’s been three days since Zack’s lap turned into a lumpy pillow.
And yes, I’m counting. That was quite a thing to wake up to, and it really made me wish I had a vibrator.
Luckily, there have been no additional…incidents.
He took two days off, just like he promised.
Yesterday he practiced for a couple hours early in the morning, and then we spent the remainder of the day watching another movie marathon.
Zack has actually been really sweet, which continues to mess with my mind. College-aged me would have given anything to see him again. That eventually transitioned to actively avoiding any mention of him, but now I’m just…confused.
We agreed to be friends and he’s been a good one so far, so I’ll give him credit for that.
But the more time I spend with him, the more I’m reminded of how much I truly missed him.
He makes me laugh, and he’s been really thoughtful, like with how he remembered my coffee order after all these years.
And sometimes I wonder if his voice has a direct line to my vagina.
It’s always all gravelly and rugged. We never lacked chemistry, and the sex was always hot.
Luckily, my brain has been acting as the voice of reason, but my vagina needs to get on the same page.
I need to remember that Zack’s just being nice to me and likes to flirt.
It doesn’t mean he’s actually into me. Even if he was, that’s just something I can’t think about.
When I walk into the kitchen, Zack’s setting a bunch of shopping bags on the counter. “Good morning.” He smiles over the top of one bag.
“How the heck did you do all this shopping already? I just got up.” I peek into one of the bags and see that it’s full of clothes. There are no stores within twenty miles of Fiddlehead Ridge that carry anything like this.
“Delivery. I ordered this stuff the day after you got here. It was waiting on the front steps this morning. I hope it’s okay…
” Zack shifts his weight back and forth, looking at his feet.
“Don’t be mad, I just couldn’t stand the thought of you not having any of your own stuff. I want you to be comfortable here.”
I move to take a closer look at the other bags.
Clothes, shirts, bras, underwear, and hair products.
If you can name it, Zack bought it. “This is too much.” It really is.
There’s more stuff here than I had in my entire cabin.
I mostly wore the green park uniform, and I definitely didn’t have luxury bath products or candles.
“I hope you like all of it. We can exchange anything that’s not your style or if you need a different size.”
Checking a tag, I see he guessed correctly.
How the hell he figured out my size is a mystery to me.
My eyes move to a bag from a pharmacy. It’s full of tampons, pads, pain relievers, and a heating pad.
If a man searched the internet to find out what a woman needs when she’s on her period, this would be the list. It’s like he thought, fuck it, and decided to buy everything.
“Sorry if that’s weird. I…I mean, not that it’s weird for you…I just thought you might need that and wasn’t sure when.” Zack coughs, pulling at the back of his neck. “I know I make it weird sometimes.”
“No. This is really thoughtful. It’s just…I don’t need this stuff anymore. And I don’t want to waste your money.” I straighten myself and look up at Zack who’s scratching his chin.
“We could just save it.” He shrugs. “And don’t worry about the money, Evvy. This is nothing.”
It’s nothing to him, but I’m sure this cost a fortune.
“Zack, I had a hysterectomy, so there’s no need to save this.
” This wasn’t exactly something I wanted to bring up, but I can’t let all of this stuff go to waste.
He blinks, looking like a robot trying to reboot, not able to process this new information. “Remember how I had endometriosis?”
“Yeah,” he whispers.
“The pain became unbearable, so between that and everything that happened with my mom…”
“Did you…?” His mouth falls open as he looks at me, eyes full of sadness. “You mean cancer?”
“No, nothing like that. I’m perfectly fine.
A few years back, my doctor decided it would be best to have the procedure done.
I lived with the pain for so long, and it also made sense to reduce my cancer risk, so…
yeah.” Zack blows out a breath, looking relieved.
“I never wanted children and had been planning to have surgery anyway, so it made sense to have it all removed.” I gulp, feeling a little queasy from sharing too much too soon.
“Evvy, I’m so sorry you went through that alone.” He takes a step forward, lifting his arm like he’s going to reach out, but drops it onto the island countertop instead.
“I wasn’t alone. Bailey was with me. And I recovered quickly. It was a relief to get it over with.” I smile, because that’s what I do when I get myself in these awkward situations. “I always knew it was a possibility and now I don’t have to worry as much.”
It’s hard to explain this to someone who hasn’t gone through it.
Watching someone I loved experience something so painful was devastating.
Then I had to live with the knowledge that history could repeat itself all over again with me.
Not to mention the physical pain I was experiencing daily.
Even though it was an elective procedure, going through major surgery to remove part of myself was strangely emotional.
I was so lucky to have my best friend by my side to help me through it.
Despite the experience, I’ve felt nothing but relief once I healed physically.
It was like a weight was lifted from my shoulders, and I could finally breathe again.
“Still, that’s a lot to deal with.” His eyes meet mine, and his features soften. “You’ve been through so much, Evvy. And I’m…I’m just so sorry.”
“It was a long time ago. A lot has happened, but I’m good now, and that’s all that matters, right?” I busy myself with unloading the other bags, avoiding eye contact. “And maybe you could donate this stuff?”
“Right.” Zack’s voice cracks. “Yeah, I’ll do that.”
* * *
I spent the morning trying on my new clothes. Zack managed to pick everything perfectly, which still baffles me. He left to go help his mom out with something. I could tell he was hesitant to go, but I insisted I could keep myself entertained for a day.
The bag of period products disappeared with him, but he left another pile of candy corn on the kitchen counter.
For some reason he doesn’t add it to the big jar.
It’s always the same routine: a bag of candy sitting on the counter and a cup of cold brew coffee waiting for me in the fridge. He’s consistent, I’ll give him that.
I’m dumping the candy corn into the jar when I hear someone behind me. I jump and the candy spills everywhere.
“Ahhhh!” The man screams, and my heart lurches.
He looks younger, maybe mid-twenties, and he’s wearing a Maine Meteors shirt.
Light brown hair flops to one side, hanging just above his ear.
His bright blue eyes are wide and locked on mine.
It doesn’t take long for me to realize it’s West Baxley, one of the Maine Meteor’s newest players.
I may have done some more cyberstalking on the team after Zack continued to show up at my work.
“You’re the geologist,” he says, clutching his chest. I love how he’s the jumpy one when he came up behind me.
“And you’re the hockey player,” I say with a smile.
“And you’re a psychic too. I like you.” He laughs with his whole body. “West.” He holds out his hand.
“Evvy.” I shake his hand in return. “Zack isn’t home right now. He went to visit his mom.”
“I know. I came to raid his fridge.” He grins. “Want to help?” He walks to the fridge, swings the door open, and rummages through the food.
“You don’t have a fridge?” I’m intrigued and frankly amazed at how easily he makes himself at home. I’m getting the sense he does this a lot.
“I live above Brent’s garage.” He pauses his grocery scavenger hunt and turns to face me. He must sense my confusion. “Brent, our captain.”
“So you drove here to go through Zack’s fridge?” I raise a brow, still not following this.
“No, Brent lives…well, I guess I should say we live right there.” He points toward the front door. “Right across the street.”
“Oh, so that’s cool you live close to some of your teammates.” I hop up onto the barstool and watch West gather ingredients.
“I live next to many of my teammates. They all live on this street, most of them anyway.” He walks toward the pantry and returns a moment later with a bag of tortilla chips. “Want some nachos?” He holds up the bag.
“Sure.” I laugh. “But you’re telling me all of your teammates live on this street?”
“Yeah, hasn’t Zack told you this?” He dumps the nachos out onto a sheet pan.
“No, I’ve only officially met Nate. And you’re the first person I’ve seen since I got here.
” I absentmindedly tap my fingers on the cool granite countertop.
I guess Zack doesn’t want to share these details of his life with me.
His teammates live close by and he hasn’t bothered to introduce me to anyone.
But we aren’t together, so I don’t know what I was expecting.
“He’s keeping you all to himself.” He laughs as he pulls out a package of ground beef from the fridge and dumps it into a frying pan.
“Oh, no. We aren’t together.” I wave my hands, but he’s focused on seasoning the meat.
“He gave us strict instructions to leave you alone.” He turns and raises a brow with a chuckle before returning to the food.
The many sides of Zack confuse me. He took time off work to make sure that I was okay, but then he hides me from his friends like I’m a dirty secret. “So, why are you here?”
“I was hungry…and curious. And I saw Zack’s car leave, so I knew the coast was clear.” He laughs as he dumps a container of diced onions into the meat. “I just had the best idea!” He looks at me, eyes bright with excitement.
This kid sure is enthusiastic, and it’s really cute. “And what’s that?”
“I’m summoning the guys. They want to meet you too.” He pulls out his phone and types away.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” I hold up my hands. “Zack might not like that.”
“Don’t care. Sent.” His phone starts vibrating. “They’ll be here soon.”
* * *
“Evvy!” Nate yells as he walks through the front door with a huge smile on his face.
“Great to see you again!” I only met him briefly, but he’s acting like we’re old friends.
I really hope Zack doesn’t mind that I inadvertently invited his friends over.
It’s really not my fault, this was all West the rookie’s doing.
Another giant athlete strolls through the door.
Green eyes meet mine and I recognize him as Zack’s captain, Brent.
“You must be the infamous Evvy.” He hunches down, pulling me into a hug.
“Sorry, we’re huggers here. And if this grump likes you then you must be good people.
” Nate gives him a shove before joining West in the kitchen.
I laugh. “And you must be West’s landlord. The man who doesn’t have enough food in his fridge.” Brent barks out a laugh. “Don’t shoot the messenger.” I laugh, throwing my hands up.
“He cleaned me out. That kid’s like a garbage disposal.” He turns, looking back through the door. “Honey, come meet Evvy!”
A gorgeous blonde struts through the door with the confidence of a model walking the runway. She’s carrying a giant bottle of tequila and some mixers. “Evvy! I’ve heard so much about you.”
“You have?” I ask, unable to hide my shock.
“Babe,” Brent warns.
“I mean, it’s so nice to meet you, and I can’t wait to learn more about you…because no one has told me anything.” She winks and flashes me a warm smile before pulling me into a hug. “I have a feeling we’re going to be great friends!”
“Josie, let the woman breathe!” Brent laughs, and Josie pulls back, the bottles in her hands clinking together. “Here, let me take those,” Brent says.
“This is Marsh.” She gestures to the man behind her. “Don’t worry, he looks like he might bite, but he won’t.”
“I heard that! Are you even supposed to say things like that when you’re the PR manager?” He scoffs.
“It’s Saturday and I’m off the clock!” Josie pumps her hands up and down like she’s raising the roof.
The man lets out a deep sigh. “Marsh,” he says, holding out his hand.
“Evvy,” I say, imitating his serious tone.
“I love you already,” Josie squeals. I’ve only known her for a few minutes, but I think I like her too.