I chuckle and go back to working, “I wasn’t fat shaming... He’s just looking a little chubby.”
He huffs, but I don’t get to tease him further because my phone vibrates in my pocket. I’m not really a phone guy. I’m not someone who needs to check their phone constantly, but I do insist on keeping it on me at all times with the volume up, just in case Amber needs me.
I stop what I’m doing and reach into my pocket, groaning when I see who it’s from.
“What’s wrong?” Dakota asks. And I’ll be damned, he actually sounds concerned.
I can see the message without having to unlock my phone, so I left it unread and tuck it back into my pocket. “My ex texting me to remind me about trivia tonight.”
Dakota frowns, a little wrinkle between his eyes. “You don’t like trivia?”
I laugh slightly. If only it was just trivia. “I don’t like being set up.”
His frown only deepens now, his bottom lip poking out slightly. He looks cute like that, I can’t lie. And when have I ever thought a guy looked cute? I’m pretty sure it’s never happened before, but whatever. “Your ex is trying to set you up?”
“Weird, right?” I chuckle and add some of the framework over the glass I installed yesterday. This greenhouse is going to be badass, if I do say so myself. From the way it’s going today, the roof will be ready to go on tomorrow. Monday at the latest.
This is going really fast, and I don’t miss the way my gut twists when I think about that.
“Really weird,” he confirms.
“Yeah. I think she’s thinking if she can get me laid, I’ll be happier about her having another baby or something.” I don’t look over at him because it’s a little embarrassing to admit, but I’m almost positive that’s what Shelly’s doing.
“You aren’t happy for her?” he asks, handing me more wood for the frame.
I take it and go about nailing it in place, unable to really look at him right now. “I am. It’s just...” I sigh heavily. “It’s strange. I thought it would be us having another baby to make Amber a big sister.”
“Are you still in love with her?”
I nearly shoot a nail into my own hand when I jerk at the question. Luckily, I didn’t pull the trigger on the nail gun. I look over at him, fully surprised those words came out of his mouth. “Now who’s getting all personal?” I joke.
“No. I...” He looks downright adorable as his cheeks pink up, and he shuffles his feet slightly where he’s standing. “That’s not...”
Though I do kind of enjoy watching him squirm, I let him off the hook before he has a coronary. “I’m teasing you. I’m an open book. You can ask me anything.” I go back to my work, paying even closer attention after the almost mishap. “And no. I’m not still in love with her.” I can tell he wants to ask me more, which I find intriguing, but he snaps his mouth closed. So I decide to go on, “We were a terrible match. Fought all the damn time. I know that now, but when she told me she wanted a divorce, it hurt like hell. Guess it left me kind of bitter.”
Though I shouldn’t have been so surprised, looking back on it.
“What happened?” he asks, and I smile at the realization that he’s letting me in, little by little, even though I’m sure he doesn’t even notice it. Why I want to be let in, again, I’m totally at a loss.
But I always did like a challenge. “She was my best friend in high school, and then we started dating. It only felt natural to marry her, but we fought.” I let out a not so funny laugh. “All the time. Until one day, we just stopped talking because we didn’t want to fight anymore—or at least that was my reasoning.I guess that’s why she stopped talking to me too. And then she fell for someone else.”
“She cheated on you?” He sounds a little angry, and I can’t deny that’s a little intriguing too.
“Nah. I mean, maybe emotionally, but we were both checked out by that time.”
“Emotional or not, that would hurt.”
I nod my head grimly, not really wanting to think too hard about her telling me she’d fallen in love with another man. She promised over and over that no physical lines had been crossed, but that she was in fact in love with him.
I thought I was going to die.
But also, I got it. I wasn’t exactly there for her, emotionally or in any other way. I’d given up and had just been resigned to a life of either fighting or being silent. We butted heads on every single thing. It was exhausting.
The conversation fades then as I work in silence, but he stays there by my side, assisting in whatever way he can. Oddly enough, the silence is actually peaceful, and I don’t feel the need to speak.
When lunchtime comes around, I grab mine from my truck, and Dakota surprises me by sitting on the porch with me. It’s a nice March day, around sixty degrees and sunny. It’s far too nice to eat in my truck or inside.
When I offer Dakota half my sandwich, he surprises me again by actually accepting it. We eat quietly, and when we finish, I’m not quite ready to get back to work. It’s nice sitting here on his front porch, looking out at the vast amount of trees and plants surrounding his property.
