“So, I’ve been gathering.”
There’s a long pause, both of us hanging on the line. Then Maggie speaks.
“Is one of those things the beautiful blonde I keep seeing you with?”
“It’s not what you think.” I don’t want to get into this with Maggie, but I also don’t have anyone else, which is pathetic.
“Hmm. Do you want it to be what I think?” Her quiet voice livens, and I can’t help the little tug at my lips.
“I’m not sure it really matters.”
She’s quiet for another moment. “You know, when I first met Shane, he made it very clear that he never wanted to get married or have a family. He wassoclosed off and tried pretty much everything to shut me out.”
I huff out a laugh. “I see how well that worked for him.”
“Right?” she whispers, but I know she’s smiling. “Really. He tried every single ounce of my patience. He just had to know thatI wasn’t going anywhere. That no matter what, I wasn’t letting him go.” She pauses. “I don’t know if it’s even remotely the same, but sometimes the people we care about need us to show them time and time again that we’ll stick around even when they screw up, piss us off, and push us away.”
Ryder has a force field around her, and when she feels threatened or uncomfortable, all her defense systems fire. I’ve seen it. Felt it. She retreats and pulls away. Maybe there is a bit of a similarity.
“If you care about her and think she’s worth it, don’t give up. We have to fight for the things we want to hold onto.”
Ryder is the one used to fighting, but I wonder if she’d ever let someone else fight for her.
“Cole,” Maggie whispers softly.
I clear my throat. “Yeah.”
“Kick some ass tomorrow and then come home. Just a day or two.”
“Maggie, I—”
“Just think about it. Maybe you need to clear your head.”
“I love you, Mags.”
“I love you, too.”
We hang up, and I think about everything she said. I didn’t know that Shane never wanted to get married. He agreed to marry Maggie so she could remain guardian of our siblings, but the two of them are so in love it’s sickening. They can’t get enough of each other, but they’re also partners and best friends.
It’s what I want someday. My parents, or at least what I remember of them, were the same.
I’ve never cared about someone the way I’m beginning to care about Ryder. I could force myself to let it go and try to return to the simple monotony I had before, or I could not give up.
I grab my phone again. It rings twice.
“Hey, everything ok?”
My nerves stand down at the sound of Ryder’s voice. “Yeah.”
There’s silence like she’s waiting for me to say more.
“Uh. . .shouldn’t you be sleeping?”
Yes. I definitely should be.
“Where are you?” I want her to say my apartment, but I also don’t want her to be there alone.
“I’m at home,” she says, like she thinks this is weird.
