“Point taken—you don’t want me here. Can’t imagine why…” She very pointedly glanced between Everly and me, her grin wide.
I blew out a long-suffering sigh. “What the hell do you want, Addison?”
“Right. Well, I had a little break in my schedule, so I came up to see if maybe Everly wanted me to take her shopping to pick up a few things since she…”
Addison let the words trail off, and I slid my gaze to Everly, watching as realization dawned on her face.
Since she didn’t have anything left.
When she’d moved to Starlight Cove two years ago, she’d only done so because her aunt had bequeathed her the clinic and attached home. And now, those things were ruined. Who knew if the clinic could be salvaged. If by some miracle, her home was able to be, it would still take substantial remodeling to get it livable again.
Her entire family was clear across the country, and I knew how much she missed them. Washington to her was like Starlight Cove to me. I didn’t make sense anywhere else. Would it be worth the effort for her to fix up a home, a business, she hadn’t planned on in the first place? To plant roots when she no longer had anything holding her here?
CHAPTERTWELVE
BECK
I shouldn’t have worriedabout hurrying down to the diner after Addison stole Everly away because Ford was having the time of his life. He was made for this job, greeting customers with a smile as he oozed charm, and everyone ate it up. Well, everyone but Quinn Cartwright.
He and the doctor had been oil and water since we were kids, and it hadn’t eased any in our adult years. Even when she’d moved back after college and her residency, their friction was still very much alive and well. Though that wasn’t too hard to understand. Quinn was always serious, was driven and focused on taking over the town clinic—well, if Dr. Clark ever retired, anyway—and Ford didn’t take much of anything seriously, least of all life.
“Well, isn’t this a pleasant surprise.” He shot Quinn a smile that had most of the women in town melting at his feet. Most, but definitely not her. “Don’t usually see you out here.”
“I try to avoid it as much as possible.” She turned to me. “No offense.”
I grabbed a to-go cup and poured her a coffee, the only thing she ever swung in here for. “None taken. I try to avoid him as much as possible, too.”
Ford snorted. “Sure, Doc. Whatever you say. I just think it’s convenient, is all.”
She blew out a long sigh and hung her head. “I’m going to regret this, but what’s convenient?”
He shrugged. “You obviously figured I’d be working in here today after the night Beck had, so you had to swing by. But don’t worry. Your secret’s safe with me.”
She just stared at him blankly, not taking the bait, and sipped her coffee. Then she dismissed him completely without a word and turned to me. “How’s Everly doing?”
I opened my mouth to respond and realized I couldn’t answer the question because…I didn’t know. Sure, I’d given Everly two orgasms before breakfast, so it wasn’t all bad, but I hadn’t even asked her how she’d been feeling this morning. Hadn’t asked her if her throat was sore, if she was hungry, if her hands hurt from the scrapes.
The only thing I’d done to even acknowledge the fact that she’d been in a fire last night was shove a water bottle in her face when her voice got scratchy and demand she drink.A+ behavior, asshole.
I cleared my throat. “As good as can be expected.”
Quinn’s eyes softened, nothing like the daggers she’d been shooting Ford’s way. “I can’t imagine how difficult this is for her. But let her know she can call me anytime if she has any questions or concerns or is just feeling off.”
“What?” I snapped my gaze to hers. “Why would she be feeling off? Is there something I should be looking for?”
Quinn huffed out a laugh and shook her head. “No, nothing like that. Just…if she needs someone to talk to, I’m around.”
My brows drew down, but I gave her a short nod, trying to hide how much I hated the thought of Everly seeking comfort from someone other than me. “Right. Sure.”
“Well, I need to head out.” She dropped some cash on the counter and held up her coffee. “Thanks for this.”
“I’ll text you my schedule for the coming week,” Ford called after her retreating form. “So you know where to find me.”
Her gaze was cool and disinterested as she stared back at him, but her middle finger twitched on her cup. I’d bet all the money in the register that if there weren’t other people in here and she weren’t vying for the town physician role and needed to play a part, she would’ve sent him a one-finger salute as she marched her ass out of the diner.
“Smooth,” I said to Ford as the door closed behind her.
He snorted. “I wasn’t trying to be smooth. Believe me, if I laid on the charm, she’d be putty in my hands. But why should I waste the good stuff on her?”
