“Go for it.”
“You can have a bite if you want.”
“Mighty generous of you.”
They walk into the restaurant and are seated by the river, since Owen called in advance to make a reservation. It’s a warm evening, and the water is calm in this part of the river. The golden lights hanging between the trees give the yard a fairyland feeling. It’s beautiful, but Owen is too anxious to appreciate it. He shouldn’t be, since he knows in his heart that he’s doing the right thing, but he worries he might have overstepped. He’ll find out soon enough.
They order food and make light conversation, but there’s tension between them that Owen can’t ignore. Now that Will is doing better, the excuse of waiting for his recovery becomes less relevant, leaving no real reason for him to stay.
“Can we go sit by the water until our food comes?” Owen asks.
“Sure.”
Will needs to lean on Owen so he can sit on the ground. Once they’re both seated with their feet in the water, Owen exhales, wishing he was less nervous. “I’ve been thinking.”
“I can tell. You’ve been tense for a few days now.”
“So were you.”
Will nods, his eyes on the water. “True. I think you can guess why.”
“Because Julie’s dead and you’re still in Van Buren?”
“Yes.”
“That wasn’t your plan.”
Will smiles. “Many things weren’t in my plan, Owen, you being at the top of the list.”
“Sorry.”
“Hey.” Will gives him a stern look. “You weren’t in my plan because the possibility of someone like youappearing was so out of the question that I didn’t even consider it. But you are here now, which means my plan is no longer only mine, and I need to reevaluate things. If there is even one brain cell in that pretty head of yoursthat is worried about me leaving you behind, you better tell it to think again.”
“I’m not worried about that, but I need you to listen to what I have to say until I’m finished, okay?”
Will frowns and nods. “I’m listening.”
“I really like this town, despite the bad things I’ve experienced. I love my aunt, and Francie, and Bradley, and Esteban, and some of the regulars in the library are great. This place isn’t my personal hell, and I’m not going to pretend otherwise.” At Will’s look of concern, Owen hurries to say, “And despite all that, Van Buren to me boils down to you. A happy you, with no compromises or regrets. You won’t be happy here, no matter how hard I try to make you. That is why we will be leaving.”
“Owen—”
“To New Orleans. My parents have an old house there, not far from a lake. They’re renting it out to tourists, but I spoke with them, and the house is ours for as long as we want.”
Will’s Adam’s apple bobs. “New Orleans? What about your probation?”
“I spoke with my probation officer. He’ll transfer me to someone he knows over there.”
“I’ve never been to New Orleans.”
“I think you’d like it. It has a lot of history and culture. I can sign up for art school again, and you can figure out what you want to do. You’ll have time to decide.”
Will takes a deep breath. “And this isn’t a compromisefor you?”
“A compromise?” Thinking of anything involving Will as a compromise is laughable. “It won’t be a compromise; it will be our next chapter. If you’re willing, that is.”
“Oh, sweetheart. I’m so fucking willing.”
Chapter 26
