“Well, as long as you make it yours, that’s all I care about,” he argues.
I actually hadn’t asked Ella for any more information on the details of her relationship with Tim. I didn’t see the need; she said he wasn’t the one—okay, good enough for me. So I thought. Cody’s kinda freaking me out. What if there’s a deeper reason, what if he didn’t want kids and Ella does? Or what if it was opposite, what if he wanted kids and Ella didn’t? No. No, that’s not right, Ella wants kids. I know she does. She’ll be a great mom.
Cody crosses his arms over his chest. “Got your wheels spinning now, don’t I?”
“You need to stay out of our relationship. Okay? You said your piece, now move on.”
He shakes his head, the tone of the conversation shifting when his voice comes out softer. “I just don’t wish that pain on anyone.”
“I can only imagine how that felt, but please.” I shake my head. “Don’t treat Ella like Bree.”
He doesn’t say anything for a minute, like he’s trying to battle his thoughts.
“Okay, I won’t,” he says when he looks back at me.
He walks back inside, and I’m not far behind him. I think the tension between us is a little better though not fully resolved.Cody is pretty hardcore, stubborn, the wild one of us brothers. He rarely opens up like this. Even if it’s not much, this just goes to show how much he genuinely cares about me.
Honestly, he did open my eyes up a little. I’d be interested in seeing what Ella would say about the engagement. More than just the run-of-the-mill “he wasn’t the one,” I want to know more. I need to talk to Ella.
Chapter 28
Jesse
After being in my head the last two days, I’m finally getting over to see Ella today after work. She’s on night shift for the next ten days, so we won’t see much of each other. I don’t know how she does it, alternating from days to nights like that. It’s crazy to me.
Fully planning on having a sit-down talk with her today about her past engagement, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. After Cody’s and my little tiff on Sunday, I feel the need to make sure the reason she left him isn’t going to be a reason she leaves me too.
It’s 8 a.m. when I get to her place. I let myself in with the key she gave me a couple weeks ago and settle on the couch. The silence is loud. Watching the time and waiting for her to get home, my nerves are getting twisted up with every second that passes.
Ten minutes later, she comes through the front door flashing her pretty smile at me, but under it, she looks tired. I get up to greet her, waiting for her to take off her shoes. Her movementsare slow, more than just an exhausted slow.
“How was work?” I ask.
When she looks at me, I see it in her eyes. She’s battling something. “Not great. There’s this seventeen-year-old kid that came in last night. Car accident. He was fine and then all of a sudden he wasn’t. He’s declining rapidly.”
“Oh.” I reach for her. “I’m sorry.”
“I just hope he pulls through. He wasn’t even driving and no one else from the car had more than a broken arm.”
I hug her. “Geez.”
“Yeah. Anyway, it’s fine. I’m fine. What do you want to do?”
“Hug you.” I squeeze her tighter.
“Thanks, Jess.” Her words are muffled in my sweatshirt. “I missed you,” she adds.
“Missed you too.” I hold her until she lets go.
Today’s probably not the best night to discuss my concerns and that’s okay. I can hold out another few days.
We ended up starting a movie after she showered. She fell asleep on me fifteen minutes in. Knowing she needs to sleep for most of the day before her next shift, I lay down with her and do the same. I love napping, am always down for one any time of the day.
Ella had an alarm set for noon, and when it went off, it was so loud it jolted both of us. She shot up so fast she nearly punched me in the face.
“Why did you set that?” I mutter.
She gets up. “Because I want to eat lunch, do some laundry, and pack my dinner. Then I’ll sleep until 7, leave at 7:40.”
