The scent of grilled hamburgers and smoked brisket should’ve cheered Gunner up. But he hadn’t looked forward to this last meal with Gavin before he headed out of town.
“You’re leaving?” Thought lines formed between Gavin’s brows.
Must be a family trait. What would happen between Charlie and her brothers when Craig finally got around to telling them the truth? Gunner hated that he wouldn’t be here to support her when it all went down. “I’ll be heading to Lexington tomorrow. My new job starts there the first of the month.”
“But I thought since you and Charlotte were together...”
“Yeah.” Gunner glanced down. “That didn’t work out.” Such a generic thing to say. But he wasn’t going into all the painful details. He didn’t need sympathy—it was his own doing, after all.
“This doesn’t have anything to do with...?”
Gunner’s gaze darted to Gavin’s face. “With what?”
“I was pretty rough on her the other day. I mean, sheshouldn’t have done what she did—I’m still upset with her. But I hope that didn’t somehow cause problems between the two of you.”
Gunner blinked at him. “Wait. What are you talking about?”
“She didn’t tell you? I caught her out with my dad Tuesday night.Ourdad, as it turns out.”
Oh no. It had already come to a head. On Tuesday night—and Gunner had broken up with her the next morning. A fist tightened around his gut. So much for supporting her. She’d never said a word. Then again, he really hadn’t given her the opportunity. Was she going through this all alone? Emerson was no fan of Charlotte’s new family, and Brianna had her hands full with her grandma.
“—and all that time she kept it from us.”
Gunner had missed a few things while his mind was spinning.
Gavin’s gaze zeroed in on him. “But you already knew that, didn’t you? You’ve known she was our sister for months and you kept it from us too.”
Gunner held up his hands. “I didn’t like it, but it wasn’t my place to say anything.”
Gavin fell back in his seat, lips pressed into a firm line, fixed stare steady and formidable.
“She really struggled with this decision. Come on, she was in a hard place. Craig wanted to be sober a year before he approached you and Cooper. The last thing he wanted to do was to reappear in your lives and surprise you with his love child. And Charlotte had just found the biological father she’d always wondered about, and she didn’t want to ruin her relationship with him.”
Gavin waved his words away. “I already know all this.”
“Well, maybe you could cut her some slack then. She was navigating difficult terrain.”
Gavin studied Gunner for a long moment. Then his lips tipped in a knowing smile. “You realize you’re in love with her. It’s all over your face, man.”
The words were a punch to the heart. “Charlotte’s a great girl. If I were ever gonna settle down...” No reason to go down that road. “She deserves someone she can put down roots with. But that’s not me.”
“Maybe if you stopped moving from town to town long enough, you’d find out differently. You fit in here.”
Gunner shook his head. “I’m not like you. I’m just not built for the long haul.” Something inside him reared at the thought.
“Don’t know what you’re missing.”
“I’ll have to take your word for it.”
The teenage server chose that moment to set down their plates. “Here you go, guys. Two brisket specials, extra barbecue sauce. I’ll be back with refills.”
“Thanks.” The savory smells assaulted Gunner’s senses, making his stomach turn.
“Let’s dig in,” Gavin said. “If I can’t change your mind about leaving, maybe Lonnie’s brisket will.”
The next afternoon Gunner’s feet dragged as he returned to his cabin. He’d visited Mr.Dixon one last time to say farewell. Paid him till the end of the month even though he was leaving early. Gunner had also assured him some monthly financial support would be coming his way soon via HealthServe.
It was the only positive thing Gunner had to focus on right now.
