Chapter Twenty-Four
Levi
“I’m just saying, if you bring store-bought apple pie to Friendsgiving tomorrow, I will riot,” Billy says to Mark as he wraps the hose.
“Come on, man,” Mark whines. “You know I can’t bake.”
“You’d better learn! Pinky’s been teaching me a few things. She found Sara’s old recipe book, so she, Blake, and I have been taking turns making them. Just wait until you guys get a taste of my sweet potato casserole.” Billy puts the hose in the rig and rubs his hands together excitedly.
“Great. I’m a cook, not a baker,” Mark quips.
I stifle my laugh, hiding behind my checklist, not wanting to add any more gas to this ridiculous fire.
“No,” Billy corrects. “You were a cook. Now we’re firefighters who happen to also know how to cook.”
“Whatever you say,” Mark says with a laugh. “I asked Remy to be my date for tomorrow.”
Billy’s eyebrows shoot up, and Mark grabs the back of his neck.
“Good luck, man.” Billy barks out a laugh. “You’re going to need it. That woman owns The Boozy Bear and is a total boss. No way she shows up.”
“It could happen. Crazier things have,” he argues. “Look at Captain and Tris. No one saw that coming.”
At the mention of her name, my heart sinks.
Tomorrow will be a week since our argument, and we’ve barely crossed paths.
I hate it. I’ve felt like an asshole ever since leaving Tom’s the other day.
Callie and Tom both laid into me for how wrong I was about comparing her to her father, and once I calmed down, I realized it, too, but the damage was done.
I’ve been trying to find the right time to apologize, but each time I think about how she is still standing by her father after all he’s done, I can’t get myself to do it.
But damn, do I miss her. Not a day has passed that I haven’t thought of her, wanted to share something with her, or wanted to be near her.
The ache in my chest is a physical one that’s building.
“You guys good here? I’ve got to go check on something.” I put the clipboard down, not bothering to wait for an answer, and hop in my truck.
A few minutes later, I’m back at home, ready to make this right. I knock on her door, but there’s no answer. I try again, still nothing. I didn’t think she was working today, but maybe I’m wrong. I let Ellie out quickly to do her business and feed her before heading to the cafe.
“Hey, stranger,” Rory taunts, her hands on her hips as she stares up at me with a look that’s more intimidating than most grown men.
“I know, I know.” I put my hands up in surrender, and though her eyes narrow, her shoulders relax. “I messed up. I get it.”
“You better,” Ainsley adds, walking over to lean on the counter with a to-go cup in her hand.
“Awesome,” I sigh. “So you’re all mad at me now?”
“Mad is a strong word.” Rory’s lips tilt up. “I’d say we’re disappointed.”
My mouth opens, and I grab at my heart. “Why does that feel so much worse?”
“It’s supposed to,” Ainsley laughs.
“Wonderful,” I hum under my breath, dry and pointed. “Is she here? I want to talk to her.”
The girls exchange a look, like a conversation with their eyes that I’m not privy to, before looking back at me.
“She is not,” Ainsley says slowly.
My brows furrow. “Umm, ok? Can you tell me where she is?”
“We can not,” Rory says, matching Ainsley’s cadence.
My teeth grind together as I look between the two of them, growing frustrated with the cagey answers.
“Can you tell me why not?” I grind out.
“Sorry, Levi,” Ainsley says gently. “It’s nothing personal. We’ve been sworn to secrecy.”
I take a deep breath and hold it, counting to five before I breathe it out.
“I want to know where my girlfriend is,” I state firmly, making myself perfectly clear.
Ainsley retracts slightly, but it’s enough to set the pink firecracker off in front of me.
“That’s nice, and I want my best friend’s boyfriend to not act like a total asshole, but looks like neither of us is getting what we want today,” Rory snaps, her brow raised in a way that tells me I’ve already lost this battle.
“How does so much moxie fit into such a tiny body?” I grumble, mostly to myself as I roll my eyes.
“Trust me, Levi, you haven’t seen anything yet.” She grins. “But I will tell you that she’s okay and she will be back sometime tonight or early tomorrow morning...”
“What?” I grunt.
“Oh, please. If you’re going to get all macho-man, call Tom. He’ll tell you the same thing we have, but at least we won’t have to deal with you looking all broody and scaring off customers.”
“Tom?” My head tilts as I try to connect the dots.
“Goodbye, Levi.” Rory walks away, waving her hand behind her.
“Can I at least get a coffee—”
I’ve barely got the sentence out of my mouth when Ainsley hands me the to-go cup she brought over earlier.
“Goodbye, Levi.”
Tom was as much help as the girls were with telling me where Tris had disappeared to.
I don’t like it, and I let Tom know with a few choice words that I’d never dare say to the ladies.
He assured me that she’s fine and in safe hands, but that’s left me with more questions than before.
After a long day of trying to get information out of everyone with zero success, and tossing and turning for the past two hours, I head to the kitchen.
“We have to stop meeting like this,” Chief teases when I grab the seat across from him.
“Trust me, I’d rather be sleeping,” I retort.
He snorts a laugh and runs his hand through his brown hair. “Yeah, me too.”
“What’s stopping you?” I ask, trying to distract myself.
“You first?” He gestures for me to share with an open palm.
“Well.” I huff a laugh. “Aside from the usual? I have no idea where Tris was today, and no one would tell me.”
“Did you try calling her?” he asks, already trying to help and come up with solutions.
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I can’t. We fought the other day, and I don’t want needing to know where she is to be the first conversation we have.”
“My guy... That makes no sense,” he says directly. “If you’re worried about her, call her. You don’t have to rehash everything. Save that for in-person, but I can’t imagine her reacting poorly to you checking on her well-being.”
The way he says it so plainly makes me realize he’s right. I need to call her even if she doesn’t want to talk to me.
“Alright, your turn.” I give him the same hand gesture, opening the floor to him.
He leans back in his chair and taps his fingers on the table, eyes focused on something that isn’t there.
“I was invited to the Friendsgiving tomorrow,” he finally says.
“And that’s a problem because?” I ask, drawing out the word because.
“Because I’m not sure how my Little Lion will feel about me being there.”
“Ah.” I nod my head in understanding. “She’s still avoiding you?”
He raises his brows and pinches his lips with a nod.
“Well, there’s only one way to figure it out,” I tell him, with the same direct approach he recommended to me.
“I guess you’re right,” he finally breathes after mulling it over. “You make that phone call, and I’ll have that conversation. What do you say?”
I smirk because he’s good at this. Chief knows exactly how to motivate people, and that’s what he’s doing right now. I push my tongue against the inside of my cheek, fighting my grin until I lose.
“Alright, man. You win. But you’d better show up tomorrow,” I say, knocking on the table twice before heading back to my bunk.
I stare at my phone screen as my finger hovers over Tris’s contact. It’s late, but knowing her, she’s still up.
Finally, I tap it.
I hold my breath as it rings.
Once.
Twice.
Three Times.
I’m about to hang up when the fourth ring cuts short.
“Levi?”
She didn’t tell me where she was last night.
Only that she’d be home early this morning.
We didn’t talk long. The conversation was stiff and awkward.
I hated every second of it and felt like pulling my hair out.
There’s too much we’ve both left unsaid, but when we hung up, and I told her I love her and she said she loves me too, everything else didn’t seem to matter.
It doesn’t.
All that matters is us.
I quickly finish my early morning checklist and run through the shift change with the rest of the crew before we all head out to get ready for Friendsgiving today.
The Cozy Pines Cafe is closing at twelve, so we’re all meeting around three this afternoon and having dinner at four.
Tris, like the natural born leader she is, or control freak, depending on how you look at it, made sure to give everyone an assigned dish to bring, ensuring everything would be organized.
Thanks to her, we won’t end up with five sweet potato casseroles.
Ainsley and Rory are meeting up at the cafe early to set up, and so Tom and I can help re-arrange some tables and chairs.
We were told to show up ready to be put to work.
Everyone we invited is coming, and even though this is the first real major holiday I’m celebrating since Krystal passed, I’m happy to be surrounded by friends.
I know that’s what she would have wanted, and it fills me with a peace that settles the nerves that over the last week have been buzzing inside me.
I climb up the steps of our duplex and smile when I hear music playing through the cracked window of Tris’s kitchen and smell the delicious scent of honey-glazed ham and mashed potatoes already cooking.
She told me last night she’s been watching YouTube videos all week and reading recipe ‘tips and tricks’ for how to make them both.
I was a little worried at first, I probably will be until it’s all done, but there’s something about how much work she’s put into organizing this for everyone and how important it is to her that makes pride spread like warmth through my chest.
She’s amazing.