“Lexi was a clinger, and I couldn’t shake her. Believe me, I tried. I swear I had—have—absolutely no interest in her, and I gave her zero encouragement.”
She’s silent for a long time, and I wish like hell I could think of something else to say that didn’t involveI want you so badly it hurts to breathe. Because while it might be true, it’s also not helpful.
“And what happens when you do hook up with someone? Or I do?” Greer asks. Ouch. That was a nine iron to the balls.
“I won’t like it. But I guess it’s inevitable.” She’s a catch. No. Scratch that. She’s more than a catch. She’s the kind of woman every man aspires to and only a few deserving souls ever find. She’s not going to be single for long if she doesn’t want to be. And I’m going to have to suck it up and deal. Somehow.
Her hand smooths rhythmically over the velvet of the cushion and she gnaws on her plush bottom lip for what feels like an eternity. I’m nearly hopping out of my skin by the time she answers.
“You know what, Josh? I’ve heard it all before. This is what you said after we hooked up the first time. And the second. And the awards night. And you’ll probably say it again next time. Because there will be a next time. There’s something between us that’s bigger than that. More than that. You can try and put a lid on it, but sooner or later, it’s going to burst out the sides.”
She’s understandably angry at me. Hell, I’m angry at me. This back and forth between my head and my heart is giving me the screaming shits. And I’m scared she might be right about us. Maybe it is inevitable. Unstoppable.
“It can’t. It won’t.” I wish there was less hope and more conviction behind my words.
She’s about to answer when the door opens, and Jessie pushes through with a tray holding three takeaway cups and a brown paper bag, butter stains already showing through. It’s not until Jessie glares at me that I realise how close we’re sitting on the couch and how my hand is a hairs-breadth from Greer’s bare leg.
Greer leaps up and heads to the kitchen for plates, leaving Jessie and me to give each other the stink eye.
“Don’t worry. I haven’t told Ethan what’s going on. And I won’t. For now. Unless you keep messing her around. She deserves better.”
“I know. She deserves way better than I could ever give her.”
“Well, then. We agree on something. Unfortunately, she doesn’t think so. Now here, take your coffee.” She thrusts the tray towards me. “Long black, no sugar, yeah?”
It surprises me that Jessie knows how I take my coffee, but I guess it shouldn’t. It’s the sort of thing Greer remembers, and they’ve been tight since they met way back in early high school. I’m even more surprised she bought me a pastry. I hope it’s not poisoned.
By the time I finish what’s now my third coffee of the day and wolf down one of the best cinnamon scrolls I’ve ever eaten, the mood in the room seems to have settled, along with my headache and rolling stomach.
“Do you want to head down to the house today? Check out the progress?” Greer asks. She’s all business now. Her tone is cool, and I can’t blame her. “It’ll give you a chance to catch up with Ty too.”
A quick look at Jessie tells me we won’t be going alone, and before I know it, the three of us are in Jessie’s SUV, swinging past Will’s to pick him up too.
Things are moving fast at the house. The backyard is now less like a hole in the ground and more like the bones of a garden. Matt and his team are working hard in the tiny front yard when we arrive, and Ty is working right along with them, shovelling bark into a wheelbarrow. He appears to be having the time of his life.
Predictably enough, Will and Ty hit it off when I introduce them.
“So, this is the famous younger brother, following in big brother’s messy footsteps, hey?”
“Following? Nah. I’ve got him well and truly beat,” Ty responds. Another shovel full of bark flies through the air and misses the barrow, only to land on my shoes. Accidentally.
“You’ve got a lot to learn, kid. You and I need to have a little chat sometime,” Will suggests, shaking the stray bark off his shoes.
It’s lucky Matt is the slave driver Ty claims, and tells him to stop chatting and start working, heading off what could’ve been an embarrassing conversation. We leave them to it and troop into the house.
The external walls and roof are now up, so we can do a walk-through of the ground floor and even get upstairs via a ladder and scaffolding arrangement. Part of Greer’s design was to incorporate traditional stained-glass windows, from the same period the house was built, in the new section, and there are about half-a-dozen leaning against the wall in the new section of the house, all in various states of disrepair.
“I went to a recycled building materials yard and picked up a few windows I thought you might like. They look pretty ratty right now, but a good sand back and a coat of paint and they’ll look fantastic. What do you think?”
Some are round and some square, but there’s a theme running through them in terms of design and colour. And she’s right. They do look ratty. But I have complete faith in Greer’s vision.
Before I can answer her, there’s a shout from the back-yard.
“What the actual fuck? The pool is already in? This is so cool.” Will is beyond excited and with good reason. The pool is amazing. I leave Jessie and Greer inside discussing paint colours and benchtops and head out the back to chat with Will about how the back-yard will look.
“This place is going to be amazing. I couldn’t see it when you first brought me here, but this is epic.”
“Yeah, Greer’s done an incredible job. And the way she manages the tradies is mind-blowing. I can’t wait for it to be finished.” I pull up one of the folding chairs the tradies have left behind and sit down in the sun, close my eyes and lean my head back.
