Chapter 36 Giselle
GISELLE
The stars somehow shone brighter as Thayer and I lay on a blanket in the bed of his truck staring up at them.
He’d taken me to a deserted spot, where street lights didn’t obstruct the view, and it was exquisite.
He held my hand between us, and even though it was cold outside, I could’ve stayed out there all night with him.
Thayer’s phone vibrated. He lifted it to find Masie’s name lighting up the screen. He quickly sent the call to voicemail before setting his phone down again.
I tried to quell the jealousy swirling in my stomach. He’d sent the call to voicemail. It wasn’t like he’d hurried off to answer it. Besides, he was there with me.
“Do you know what you’re gonna pack for Switzerland?” he asked, smoothly trying to distract me from the phone call he’d ignored.
“Warm clothes,” I said, letting my head fall to the side to look at him.
He chuckled. “Yeah, it’s gonna be cold, for sure. But not at night.”
I groaned, my eyes averting his. “Seriously?”
“What? That wasn’t smooth?”
“Not even a little.”
His phone vibrated again, and he checked it. When he saw it was Masie again, he silenced it and placed it back down.
“You can answer it,” I said.
“I’m sure it’s nothing.”
“I think she still likes you.”
He smirked, his eyes meeting mine. “I’m definitely a tough one to get over. Lucky for you, that’s not something you’ll ever have to endure.”
His phone vibrated again.
“Please answer it. Even I’m starting to get curious,” I said.
He sat up, and I followed, eager to know what warranted three calls in the span of five minutes.
He lifted the phone to his ear. “Hey, Masie…yeah, sorry about that…I’m still with her…
I’m not sure…” His eyes cut to mine, and indecision was written there.
“I’ll have to ask her…Let me get back to you. ” With that, he ended the call.
“So?” I probed.
“So…that call was actually about you,” he said.
“Me?”
He nodded.
“What about me?”
“Masie’s an influencer.”
“Exciting,” I said, though it came off unimpressed because I was jealous as hell that he talked to any girl that wasn’t me.
“Apparently, she’s being sent to some weeklong brand event that’s going to be all over social media.”
“Oh?” I said, not really knowing where this was going.
“She said that she needs, and I quote, ‘five killer outfits for each day with shoes and accessories.’ She knows you own a boutique and was hoping you could help. She also said it would offer great exposure for your store.”
“But…” my voice drifted off as my mind whirled.
“I know,” he said, understanding my loss for words. “I told her I’d let her know. So, no pressure.”
“Would you be there?” I asked him.
“If you want me there,” he said.
I cocked my head. “I don’t want you there. I need you there.”
“Then, I’m there.”
I pulled in a deep breath. I could do this. It would be baby steps. And Thayer would be by my side. “Let’s drive by the boutique.”
“Yeah?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I agreed, knowing that if I was ever going to do it, now was the time.
Thayer
“You got this,” I assured Giselle as we hopped out of my truck. It was dark in the back parking lot, and I wondered if we should have waited until morning to go inside.
She pulled her keys from her handbag as we approached the back door, and with an unsteady hand, she unlocked it. I wanted her to push through her nerves, so I waited patiently as she did.
Once the door was open, she just stood there.
In an attempt to ease her trepidation, I stepped inside first. Police caution tape was wrapped around the entire area.
I quickly yanked it down, following it all around the store until I’d retrieved it all.
That’s all she needed to see—and be reminded of.
“Thanks,” Giselle said as I stuffed it into a nearby garbage container.
She switched on the lights, and her store looked the way it always did. There were no belts on the floor where I feared there may be, and none of the clothing racks had been tipped over. Thank fuck.
She quickly got to work neatening clothes on the racks, and I let her. She could do whatever she needed to do to feel comfortable in that space again.
I played some music on my phone, and the store felt a lot less morbid.
Giselle glanced over at me with a smirk. “You trying to get me to dance with you?”
I smiled. “Do you want to dance with me?”
Her smirk faded, and she turned to face me. “I don’t think I could ever be here alone again.”
My lips twisted regrettably. “Then, you’ll have someone with you at all times.”
She exhaled a shaky breath, and I could see just how terrified she was.
“Or, we could hire security.” I moved toward her and wrapped my arms around her. She sank into me willingly.
“We?” she asked.
“I’ll help you do whatever you need to feel safe,” I said. “This was your dream.”
“Do you think that Masie calling you was a sign?” she asked.
“I think it probably was,” I said.
“It’s time, isn’t it?”
“If you say it is, then it is,” I said.
She nodded. “I can do this.”
“Damn straight you can. My girl can do anything.”
She smiled, and I could tell she loved me calling her that. But, her smile didn’t fade. She looked like she was considering something.
“What?” I asked.
“I have an idea.”
“Yeah?” I asked, hoping her idea and mine were the same.
“I’m gonna talk to Jesse.”
“Jesse?” I asked, unsure where she was going with that.
She nodded. “I think his shop needs a female touch.”
Ah.
“The store next door is for rent,” she continued.
“I noticed.”
“I wonder if we could knock out a wall—or at least a doorway.”
“I bet that’s a possibility.”
“Then, on one side, he could sell his winter gear, and on my side, we could add some class and style.”
“I think you may be on to something,” I said.
“That way, there’d always be someone else there,” she said.
The notion that she never wanted to be alone cracked something inside of me.
She was a total badass, but she’d forever be scarred by what happened.
Damn Gino. She’d definitely move forward, like she’d been doing, but there would always be a piece of her that needed the security of someone else.
And, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that I’d be that person for her. Today. Tomorrow. Always.
“There’s definitely not a ski and style shop anywhere that I’ve heard of before,” she continued.
“It would definitely be a first,” I agreed.
“Do you think he’d be open to the idea?” she asked.
Kason and I would kick his ass if he wasn’t. “Definitely.”
She looked around at her boutique as if for the last time. I wondered if recollections of her time there were flashing through her mind or if that fateful night made it too difficult to let those images through. “I’m going to miss this place.”
“You’ve got a lot of good memories here.”
“Yeah,” she agreed sadly. “And one really bad one.”
I buried my hands in my pockets, unsure how to respond. She was right. That bad memory would always outweigh the good ones.
“But…I think I know what’ll help,” she said.
“What’s that?”
“I think I need to make one really great memory here before starting over.”
“You wanna throw a party, or something?
She shook her head. “I want to lock the doors, and you call me ‘your girl’ with your clothes off.”
I burst out laughing.
She pouted. It was the most adorable thing I’d seen in a long time. “I was serious.”
“Then let me give my girl everything she wants.” I wasted no time, pulling off my shirt.
Given the hungry look in her eyes, I had a sneaky suspicion that this just might help erase the bad and make way for the new.