“Yeah, I guess I’m a lot like him in that way, huh?” I crack, ducking behind the door as he looks around like he’s trying to find something to throw at me.
“Hey!” he calls out before I can get too far, and I look back at him. “I have better snow tires on my truck, so take that and I’ll get yours upgraded.”
Catching the keys he tosses to me, I smile, simply thanking him before turning to go.
“You check in every day.” I hear that loud and clear through the door.
Looking through the windshield just hoping to see a color other than white or light grey, I look down at the speedometer and consider pushing it harder. Thunder was right, his tires were in better shape than mine, on the other hand, he’d be pretty pissed if I ended up in a ditch out of stupidity.
Besides, this trip is about slowing down enough to convince Everly I was worth taking a chance on. I know that if I lose her, I’ll spend the rest of my life regretting it.
Up until now, I’ve lived my life in high gear.
The moment I saw her, something in me shifted. I didn’t recognize it at first, but even when I was caged, beaten, and freezing my ass off, I couldn’t stop picturing the wink and smile she gave me before she walked out of the bar that night.
Taillights ahead of me have me tapping the brake, happy to have the company and something else to focus on other than what I could possibly say to get her to relocate back to South Dakota.
“Your type might be the ‘girl next door’, but maybe because that’s where the grass always looks greener,” she had said. And she wasn’t wrong.
I’d always been better at fighting than at feeling. As a kid, I was so angry at how the man I thought was my father could barely spare me a glance; lavishing all of his attention on Lincoln.
That anger turned to simmering rage that could ignite at the slightest provocation. I quickly learned how to break a man down, but never why I felt the need to do it or how to share my feelings.
Everly didn’t want the happy-go-lucky, pretend version of me. She wanted all the pieces of myself that I’d spent years hiding away from everyone except my brother.
I need to fix this. Not by clinging. Not by letting my temper talk for me. I need to show her something real.
A few days of me on my best behavior, promising her all of her dreams isn’t going to cut it. Even as I lay healing the past couple of weeks, some part of me knew that my weakness was my greatest strength with Everly.
And that scared the shit out of me, making it harder and harder for me to talk to her.
Thunder always said I was a big softy, no matter how I presented myself. And he’s always been right about that. For all that woman looks at me like I’m the only water in the desert, she’s also a realist and naturally cautious—worried about placing her trust in the wrong person.
And that’s when another thought hits me. How Rob is a huge part of her life; they’re a package deal in a way so I need to treat it that way from now on.
“Call Dindak,” I speak after hitting the voice command button.
“What’s wrong?” Just before the fourth ring, a voice blurry with sleep answers, sounding completely worried.
“Dindak, it’s Rage. Jessup, I mean. Everything’s alright,” I tell him, pausing to give him a second to get his bearings.
“Doesn’t anyone ever sleep anymore?” he grumbles before I hear him drinking something. “Okay, I’m awake. What can I help you with Mr. Nerella?”
“I love Everly and I want to make it work with her. Knowing how close you two are and wanting to do the right thing, I am asking for your blessing,” I explain, the words coming to me easier than I imagined.
“My blessing?” he asks with a chuckle. “This isn’t the sixteen hundreds. You don’t need my blessing to court her.”
“I know. She’s very much her own person. I guess what I want to know is if you have any problems with me being with her and if you do, what can I do to change your mind?”
“If my daughter’s happy, I’m happy,” he answers me. “What’s that noise? Are you on the road? In this mess?”
“Yeah, I wanted to see her and put the time in to convince her how serious I am,” I tell him.
“Good man,” he says. “What time should I expect you?”
I pause at that, not understanding why he wants to see me and wondering if he misunderstood the point of my call. “I’m about halfway to Everly’s.”
Then there’s a beat of silence on his end.
