“Time,” Trevor replies. His fingers bite into my ribs for a moment, through my work shirt, and his shaky inhale vibrates through my chest. This man, what am I going to do with him?
“Always.” I kiss him softly and wish I could both rewind a year, and fast-forward a few years from now. Time feels so caught between us as we do our best to push forward.
“What time will you be home?”
I clear my throat as he pulls out of my grip. “Probably a little after six.”
“I’ll be waiting.” Trevor aims a devilish look at me through his eyelashes. “Still no chance of us doing the horizontal tango?”
I laugh, deep and loud. “Not for a while.”
Trevor makes an aggrieved sound. “Worth a shot.”
I walk him back over to my truck, hand in hand. With one last kiss from me, he climbs into the truck, and disappears off the property in a cloud of dirt. Never before have I been so excited at the idea of leaving work. For years and years this property has been my home, been my heart’s work. But now my life is driving away in my old Chevy truck, and I can’t muster an ounce of worry.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
TREVOR
An aggressive knock startles me from absentmindedly cleaning Beau’s kitchen. A wince stills me at the door because the only option is the boys. And I know I’m probably in deep shit. Sure enough, Eli stands with his arms crossed, with my duffle bag dangling from his shoulder. His eyes do their best to radiate rage, but it comes off more like a little kitten that’s been tossed in the tub. I’ve missed him so much. Jackson and Benji stand behind Eli, radiating less hostility, instead mostly radiating concern.
“You’ve got so much explaining to do,” Eli murmurs, a clear threat in his voice.
“I am so sorry.” Grabbing his shirt, I haul Eli into the house, enveloping him in a hug full of apology. “I didn’t tell anyone. Just so you know.”
“You should’ve told me. From the start,” Eli grumpily mumbles into my shirt.
“Us too,” Benji says from where he stands awkwardly by the front door.
Jackson tears me bodily from Eli’s arms to envelop me in one of his own warm, soft hugs. I allow myself a brief momentof comfort in his arms, leaning most of my weight against him. Benji’s hand rubs up and down my back as Jackson cradles me. After enough comfort, I pull away to look around at the three of my best friends.
“It’s so complicated,” I admit in defeat.
Eli frowns deeply, lines appearing on his forehead. The expression is so rare to see from Eli. The man is usually sunshine and rainbows, a joy to have as a friend. I hate that I’m the reason perpetual sunshine Eli is even close to upset, even annoyed doesn’t cut it for me.
“Sit down with me?” I sit on Beau’s sofa and pat the space beside me.
Eli joins me with a huff, but I can already tell I’m close to forgiven. Benji folds to the floor, sky-blue eyes focused solely on me. Jackson takes up residence by the back door, looking out at the yard as he waits for my explanation.
“Start at the beginning,” Eli demands.
That’s such a long story. But he’s right. We’ve all been friends for years, in close proximity, and I’ve never even shared about my parents. Only Claire and Beau know. Claire only knows because we were raised in the same circles in New York City. Both raised by distant, wealthy parents that thought money could erase their absence. Claire turned out normal enough, saving me from myself after my parents fell from grace.
Obviously, I had to finally tell Beau because… well. If I want to start a life here with him, then secrets aren’t much of an option anymore.
“My parents are Turner and Lyla Shaw.”
Eli just stares blankly at me. “Okay?”
“Those names don’t ring a bell at all?”
“Are they famous?” Benji bounces to his knees, perpetual sunshine.
“Not for good reasons,” I mumble sourly. “They’re more infamous than anything. They’re serving life in federal prison for a Ponzi scheme. They swindled a lot of innocent people out of their life savings… out of everything… and all of it just for a few mansions, some nice cars, and my private school education. I try not to think about that one too much.”
Eli’s nose wrinkles up in thought. “Were they bad to you?”
“Absent more than anything. Nannies raised me.”
