Chapter Thirty-Three
“And there it is,” I say as she stands, flashing me her naked backside.
She smirks over her shoulder. “Meet Wilbur.”
Her pig tattoo is located just below the dimple on the right side of her lower back. How did I miss it the day she dropped her towel before getting into the shower?
“Why there?”
“In case it was a regrettable decision, I wanted it someplace that I wouldn’t see it every day.”
No one is like this woman, and that makes me deliriously happy. But I’m not ready for her to know my true feelings because my life is messy enough.
“Listen, I don’t regret this, but—” I stop short, not wanting to sound cliché.
She peers up at me while we dress on opposite sides of the bed. “But you don’t want to tell your friends we had sex two and a half times.”
I zip my jeans, eyes narrowed. “Two and a half?”
“I had three orgasms; you had two.”
I shake my head with a restrained grin. “Whatever. Even if we were actively dating, which we are not, I wouldn’t tell them we had sex this morning. It’s none of their business.”
“I agree. Also, I’m well trained at keeping secrets.” She pulls on her wool socks.
“Are you, though?” I mirror her, tugging on my socks.
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean years ago, when Jamie came to Missoula and started working at your office, it took all of two seconds before you blabbered about my taking your virginity.”
“Was that a secret? You didn’t stay long enough to mention that. You seem to tell Fitz a lot. He knew about Karen. Am I better than she was? Will you remember my name?”
I step into the galley. “Depends. Is my dick overrated?”
“That’s a good question. The last time I rated it, it was in a younger category. Now it’s in the over-forty group, where the ratings and competition aren’t as stiff.”
She’s such a ballbuster. I narrow my eyes as she stands toe-to-toe with me. I have a million comebacks. Instead, I grab her chin and kiss her until she is breathless.
“I love how you kiss me,” she whispers when I release her.
“I know you do.” I smirk.
“Is this it? Will I see you again before you go back to Somers tomorrow?”
“This is it. And I need that to be okay with you. I don’t have the emotional capacity for anything more than my dad right now.” Do I sound like an asshole? Absolutely. Is it intentional? No.
She scrapes her teeth along her bottom lip and nods.
“And if you tell Jamie, I’ll never hear the end of it. Okay?”
Everleigh wrinkles her nose. “She’s going to see it all over my face.”
“I didn’t come on your face. There’s nothing to see.”
Her cheeks turn pink, and I feed off her embarrassment. I feel privileged to experience her vulnerability.
“If you start to lose your composure, just fold your hands in front of you and do your doctor thing.”
Her nose wrinkles. “My doctor thing?”
I open the door. “Yes. You fold your hands in front of you when you’re being serious and professional.
And you fold them behind you when you’re up to no good, acting like a bratty twentysomething who’s hell-bent on making my life miserable.
” I head toward my Bronco, knowing she’ll be on my ass in no time.
Click. The Airstream door opens, and I grin.
“William?” She waits for me to turn. Then she folds her hands in front of her, taking calculated steps toward me. “That’s a terrible and completely inaccurate observation.”
“It’s not.” I turn and open my door. “And if you don’t keep your shit together around them, the next time I see you, I’m going to tie you up and spank you.”
I swear she gasps before I face her as she steps into my space hidden by the open door.
But she quickly clamps her jaw shut and swallows.
If only I could toss her into the back seat and take her with me.
Confess to my friends that I let the wrong girl go for the right reasons, eleven years ago.
But now she feels like the right girl, but everything else in my life is going really fucking wrong.
She still looks at me like I’m the brilliant one, like every word that falls from my lips is the most interesting thing she’s ever heard.
“It’s only a two-hour drive,” she mumbles with her chin tucked as she slides her icy hands up the front of my long-sleeved T-shirt, teasing my abs. “I have the week off. I could visit you.”
“You took the week off to work on your barndo.”
She shrugs and lifts her gaze to mine. “I’m in no hurry.”
I stare at her without knowing what to say because the offer is tempting. There’s nothing I’d love more than knowing I could crawl into bed with her after a long day with my dad. But I can’t complicate my life. Not now.
“You can say no, and I won’t act like a bratty twentysomething.”
My composure slips, and I grin. “I’m an asshole.”
She slides her hands around my back, nails teasing my skin as she rests her cheek against my chest. “I’ll stay here and keep my hands folded in front of me. You have Karen to keep you warm on cold nights.”
I grin while pressing my lips to the top of her head, and I almost chuckle thinking of that tiny violin. “Karen lives in Bozeman. The chances of her being at her mom’s house are pretty slim.”
“Well, there are others. You told me as much.”
I cradle her face, making her look up at me. “I lied. Did you really think I was getting laid while my father was in the hospital?”
She frowns. “Well, if we’re being honest, then I must tell you I had no intention of dropping my panties for Kade, the running back for the Grizzlies.”
I lift my eyebrows as if this is a shocking revelation. “Really?”
Everleigh shakes her head. “I’m not a whore like you, Will. I try, but I just can’t.”
I bark a laugh, and she grins. She’s so damn beautiful. It hurts to let her go as I climb into the truck.
“Can I tell you something without you feeling the need to tell me what to do?” she asks, tugging on her sleeves to cover her hands.
“That’s your specialty, not mine.” I fasten my seat belt.
Her gaze sweeps along the mountainous horizon, eyes narrowed in concentration or maybe contemplation.
“I’m kidding. Yes, you can tell me.”
The smile she tries on her face doesn’t seem to fit. “Johns Hopkins contacted me. They’re offering me a position and so much grant money for research that I nearly gagged.”
“Well, you should take—”
“No.” She shakes her head. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.
I already know what you’ll say. But this is my decision.
I get to decide what I want to factor into making it.
” Glancing down for a beat, she laughs, but it’s void of actual humor.
“I know you won’t ask me to stay. But leaving isn’t easy, and it’s not just about you.
I’m loyal to my patients. And I just purchased land and the barndo.
I have friends here. Missoula feels like home. ”
“I don’t know how you ever ended up here. You should have been at a place like Hopkins from the time you graduated.”
Her head whips up, lips parted. “Will.” She exhales as if something has knocked the wind out of her. “I came here for you.”
When she doesn’t follow up with a “Just kidding,” I slowly shake my head and chuckle.
“That’s . . . no. That makes no sense. You’ve been here for what?
Four or five years? No. You didn’t come here for me.
If you did, it sure has taken you a long time to mention it, which makes you look like a stalker. ”
“Mention it?” Everleigh runs her fingers through her hair.
“You saw me at a fundraiser the summer I moved here. The second you laid eyes on me, you made a beeline for the parking lot. I was crushed and a little angry that you wouldn’t even give me a second glance.
I thought you were holding a grudge over a white lie, not struggling with the emotional trauma, from the fear of going to jail.
Don’t pretend that you didn’t talk to Tyler about me after their wedding.
Victoria told me you had a lot of questions.
And I would have answered those had you returned my calls.
Tyler told you I was advanced. Has it really taken you this long to figure out that I’ve probably had better offers than Missoula, Montana? ”
“Taking a job in Missoula just to be near me was stupid. You know that, right? There was no advanced thinking that went into that decision. So you basically started your career with an insane decision.”
“I’m fully aware,” she says with a sharp nod.
“Well.” I laugh, starting my Bronco. “I have to believe you regret that decision.”
Everleigh’s gaze dips along with her head.
“I don’t know yet. But I’m not a stalker.
I’m just the young woman who fell in love with you in less than a week.
And I chose to be close to you over fancy titles at the most prestigious medical institutes because I’m smart enough to know that love is the most fulfilling emotion.
And even if we don’t work out, I won’t regret anything.
I would only regret not knowing. Not trying. ”
I lift her chin with my finger as her words jumble my thoughts and suffocate my already heavy heart.
“Everleigh, dive deep, and just keep swimming. Be grateful for being so smart and talented. Change the world before it changes you. All too soon, everything you thought mattered will feel insignificant. Trust me.”
She hooks her finger around mine, pulling it from her chin. Her lips lift into a knowing grin as she shakes her head. “You’re not listening to me, William Landry. I don’t need to dive deep or change the world.” She releases my finger and steps backward. “And you will never feel insignificant.”
This woman . . .
Everleigh doesn’t pretend to hide her emotions. Her heart leads. Common sense and self-preservation get dragged behind, kicking and screaming. There’s a word for that, but I’m not sure if it’s passion or delusion.
The line between the two is thin.
“Everleigh?”
She eyes me without speaking.
“Are you spending Thanksgiving with either of your parents?”
She furrows her brow for a second before shaking her head.
“Come to Somers for a few days. Then take the job at Hopkins.”
I don’t know what reaction I expect, but she gives me nothing. When I close my door, she slides her hands into her jeans’ front pockets and heads toward the barn.
I’m jobless.
Living with my mom.
Waiting for my dad to pass.
And catching feelings for the woman who made my life a living hell for years.
I could use a shrink.
Friendsgiving is bittersweet. These are my friends, but Everleigh should be here.
I’m not proud of myself for anything I’ve done in recent months.
Still, I do my best to enjoy the last evening of my break, but checking my phone every few minutes for a text from my mom or sister makes it hard to relax.
Thinking about Everleigh doesn’t help either.
“Are you sleeping with Everleigh?” Jamie asks in the middle of a conversation about doulas and midwives.
We’re gathered around Jamie and Fitz’s reclaimed wood table, complete with candles and pumpkin decor.
I draw my head back, giving her a cringey grin. “No.”
“Oh my gosh, I wanted to ask the same thing,” Maren says, passing potatoes to Ozzy. Thankfully, Lola is spending the night at a friend’s house again, much to Ozzy and Maren’s displeasure. But they can’t tell her no.
“Perhaps it’s none of our business,” Ozzy says to Maren.
She shoots him a wrinkle-nosed expression, something between a scowl and a grin.
“You all seem to like her,” I say. “So I’m taking one for the team and letting bygones be bygones. I’ve got too much other shit going on to deal with grudges.”
“Well, that’s good to hear. I feel sorry for her, but at least you’re not actively hating her anymore,” Jamie says.
“She still has the biggest crush on you, and it was heartbreaking seeing you act so cruelly toward her.” She pushes back in her chair.
“I have to check on the pies, and I forgot the yams.”
“I’ll help you,” Maren says, following Jamie into the kitchen.
When they’re around the corner, Fitz points his fork at me. “Did you fuck her this weekend?”
I narrow my eyes at him for a second before looking at Ozzy. His unblinking gaze pings between Fitz and me. “Don’t get me involved.” Ozzy quickly shakes his head.
Fitz knows too much. There’s no fooling him.
“Semantics. Right?” Fitz says. “Jamie asked if you slept with Everleigh, and you have not closed your eyes and fallen asleep with her. Did you have sex with her this weekend?”
I chuckle and shake my head as if it’s a ridiculous question.
“It’s fine, Will. You can hate her and screw her. No one would blame you for needing a quick release. There is a lot of shit going on in your life.”
Instead of acknowledging Fitz, my attention returns to Ozzy for a few seconds. He holds up his hands and shakes his head. “Nope. Still not getting involved.”
I sigh when Ozzy refuses to offer any help.
“You and Jamie weren’t exactly best buddies at one point,” I remind Fitz.
He nods slowly. “True.”
“Sometimes the easiest way to deal with a problem is to . . .” I shrug.
“Stick your dick in it?” Fitz asks.
Ozzy coughs to hide his laugh.
“Well”—I shake my beer bottle, searching for even a few drops of alcohol, but it’s dry—“I don’t solve every problem with my dick. It’s not like I put out fires with it.”
Fitz cracks a smile. “Good to know, buddy.”
I like Maren and Jamie. Hell, I love them like sisters.
But women feel the need to dissect everything until it’s ruined.
Men skim the surface and move on. Fitz knows I had sex with Everleigh, and I didn’t have to say the words.
And he won’t bring it up again. Diplomacy has its place, but so does bluntness.