“Sounds on-brand for her. What’s on the docket this week?”
“These stupid welcome baskets for all the guests. Since when do we do welcome baskets? It’s fucking ridiculous. They’ve got a whole goddamn ocean to welcome them. My blueberry oatmeal bars aren’t going to push the experience over the top.”
“I don’t know. Those bars are fucking delicious. You got any leftovers?”
I rolled my eyes but reached into the cupboard and grabbed one of the wrapped bars I’d stashed for him before tossing it his way.
“Nice.” He grinned. “Be glad that’s all she’s had you working on. For the past three days, she’s had me sanding decks. By hand.” He shook his head, face drawn. “She’s becoming too powerful. We should probably do something about that.”
We stared at each other, both taking a sip of our respective drinks, then shrugged at the same time.
“Not worth the fight,” I said.
“Nope. So I guess it’s a lifetime of servitude to our baby sister.”
“Beats a lifetime of payback from her.”
“That’s the truth. So…” he said, drawing out the word. “You think maybe Everly’s purposely keeping this guy from you?”
“How’d we go from talking about Addison to talking about that guy again?” I thought we were done discussing the shithead.
He shrugged. “Just wondering.”
“She brought him to the diner, so your theory’s flawed.”
“She brought him, yes, but she never mentioned him. Didn’t set anything up with you to meet him or hang out. And she’s weirdly been busy this week…”
I didn’t want to talk about this. Mostly because I didn’t want to face the war going on inside me over the fact that I couldn’t decide if I hated or loved that she hadn’t told me anything about him. While I had no desire to find out any more about that guy, it was odd not knowing absolutely everything that was going on in Everly’s life. She told me everything big or small—if Chuckanut kept her up an hour later than usual or when she got her IUD replaced or if she stubbed her toe—hell, I knew her damn cycle—but she couldn’t tell me she was dating someone? That shit hurt, whether or not I’d admit it aloud.
“But it’s probably better that way,” he said.
I snapped my head in his direction. “What? Why?”
He lifted a shoulder. “So you don’t go all jealous caveman on him and ruin her new relationship.”
Those last two words in reference to Everly made something dark twist in my gut. I hated the thought of her with someone… No, not withsomeone. Withthat guy. If it’d been anyone else, I would’ve been okay with it if it made her happy because she, more than anyone, deserved that. But that she’d picked such a jackass who didn’t pay her an ounce of attention didn’t sit well with me. She deserved a hell of a lot better than what he was giving her.
“I don’t know why no one else can see that he’s not the right one for her,” I snapped. “He’s a dick. You think she belongs with a dick?”
Ford stared at me, one brow raised, and for once, I had no idea what he was thinking. “Well…you’ve been called a dick a time or two.”
“What the hell does that have to do with—”
But before I could finish my question, the radio crackled to life, the disembodied voice on the other end calling for all available units to an address I knew by heart, and my whole fucking world stopped.
* * *
The driveto Everly’s house was the longest six minutes of my life, especially because Ford had taken my keys and shoved me in the passenger’s seat so I couldn’t control the speed or the route. I’d never felt fear like I had when he’d confirmed that I’d heard what I thought I had—a possible structure fire with unknown occupancy at Everly’s home. Well, maybe once… Almost a decade ago, during the storm when Mom went missing and then the subsequent hours until the boat was found. Empty.
I couldn’t handle another outcome like that. Not now. Not with Everly.
I wasn’t a glass half-full kind of guy. I was atell it like it is, don’t sugarcoat it, and keep your rose-colored glasses ’cause I don’t need themkind of guy. And right now, I hated that that was who I was. Because though I wanted to believe everything was fine, that she was okay, an image of her house, engulfed in flames, played on a loop in my mind, and nothing I could do put an end to it.
“Can’t you drive any fucking faster?” I barked, clenching my hands into fists as my body vibrated with the urge to dosomething.
“Going as fast as I can, man.” How could his voice be so fucking calm when it felt like my entire world was spinning out of control?
When he finally screeched to a halt half a block away from Everly’s, thanks to the cluster of emergency vehicles gathered in front, I barely waited for the truck to come to a stop before I was out the door.
