Montana Wishes

by Amy Vastine

  “I’m glad you’ll be safe,” she said with a hint of unease. “My mother’s fears have nothing to do with you getting into a car accident, however. She’s beside herself that I could be such a fool for having no qualms about your need to run off on vacation with your best friend. Your female best friend.”

  This was a conversation Blake had had at some point during every single one of his relationships. People didn’t believe that a man and woman could be friends without there being the constant temptation of romance. He had to inform those who asked that he and Amanda had agreed long ago not to cross that line with each other.

  Of course, what he didn’t tell everyone he ever dated was that if Amanda ever changed her mind about that, he wouldn’t need any time to also change his. When they were younger, he truly only thought of her as a friend. As they got older, though, some of the feelings got a little muddled. There were times he was sure the love he felt for her was a bit more intense than friendship, but after that fateful night a year ago, the one that led to The Incident, there was no chance.

  The Incident was something they swore to never speak of again, and the takeaway from that evening was Amanda wanted to be only friends. She had made herself very clear, and Blake respected her too much to ever think about crossing the line again. Being solidly in the friend zone meant Nadia had nothing to worry about.

  “First, this isn’t a vacation. We’re moving her sister’s stuff. Secondly, did you tell your mother that Amanda is basically like my sister? Would she be worried about me going on a trip with my sister?”

  “I didn’t think to describe her like that,” Nadia replied sheepishly.

  “Amanda and I are like family. You can sleep soundly, my dear.”

  “It would help if she was a little less attractive. Maybe she could not be so sweet all the time, too. Tell me she chews with her mouth open or something equally annoying.”

  Blake chuckled because Amanda would be shocked that she could make someone like Nadia feel so insecure. His best friend did not see herself the same way the rest of the world did. Amanda was perfect. She was the whole package—smart, funny, compassionate almost to a fault. Beautiful. It had taken some time to come to terms with the fact that some lucky guy would do what Blake had been unable to accomplish—sweep Amanda off her feet and win her heart.

  He stood up and went to the window. The sun was shining, and there were no signs that fall was on its way yet. The air conditioner was on full blast since both he and Amanda liked to sleep in an icebox. They were so perfect together that maybe the most annoying thing about Amanda was that she didn’t want to spend her life with him. “She’s super annoying,” he said. “In fact, Amanda is probably the most annoying person I know.”

  It was Nadia’s turn to laugh. “I know you don’t mean that, but thank you for trying.”

  The click of the door closing captured his attention. The crestfallen way Amanda looked at him made him want to punch himself in the face. He could tell she had heard what he’d said. “I have to go. I’ll text you when we get to the ranch.” He ended his call. “Nadia had a nightmare that you invited me on this trip to seduce me,” he explained to Amanda. “She begged me to tell her you’re annoying so she can sleep tonight.”

  Amanda stepped farther in the room and began to gather up her things. She didn’t say a word.

  “Her mom gave her a hard time about ‘letting’ me go on this trip with my female best friend. It’s so funny that people can’t accept that some men and women just have platonic relationships.”

  “Are you ready to go, or do you want to give me the keys so I put the dog and my bag in the car?”

  “Harrison,” he said, taking a step in her direction. “I was trying to make Nadia feel better. It was a joke. Why is it that she didn’t believe a word coming out of my mouth, but you do?”

  She turned her head and made eye contact. He could see the hurt there in her sapphire-blue eyes. That fake smile spread across her face. “I know. It’s fine. Are you ready or not?”

  “It’s not fine and I’m sorry.” He reached for her hand, but she pulled away. “Would I have entered into business with you or stayed your friend for this long if I thought you were annoying?”

  “I shouldn’t have walked in when I knew you were on a private call. You don’t have to make things up to try to make me feel better about something I was never meant to hear.” She didn’t bother to wait for him to offer her the keys. She spotted them on the dresser and took them, instead. “We’ll be waiting in the car.”

  She had successfully made him feel like the biggest jerk in the whole wide world. Maybe he deserved it. She left with her dog, her bag and his heart. She just metaphorically ripped that sucker right out of his chest.

  “The part I didn’t want you to hear was when I called you a terrible driver because that is true. And you’re only annoying because you won’t let me love you,” he said to the ceiling after he flopped down on the unmade bed he had slept on last night. Amanda’s bed looked as if no one had slept in it. She made her bed even in a hotel. That was Amanda. No one was allowed to take care of her. She did the caring and asked for nothing in return. Practically demanded it. That was also sort of annoying.

  Blake scrubbed his face. She would forgive him because she always did. Deep down she had to know that she was stuck with him, no matter what. He’d make this up to her by helping her get Lily to come back to San Diego.

  When he got to the car, she was sitting in the back seat with Clancy. That was not happening.

  “Now you really are annoying me,” he said as he got in the car. “Please come sit in the front with me. I can’t handle you being mad at me for the next six-plus hours.”

  “I’m not mad at you,” she lied.

  “You’re mad at me. You think I said you were annoying.”

  “Super annoying. The most annoying person you know, actually. And I don’t think you said it. I heard you say it.”

  He twisted in his seat to look at her. “My fiancée thinks you’re going to steal me away while we’re on this trip. You know this drill. Everyone I date does this. They get jealous of you. It happens every time.”

  Amanda folded her arms across her chest. “Your fiancée? The gorgeous, brilliant, successful lawyer who looks like she should be a supermodel instead of a prosecutor? That fiancée is jealous of me?”

  She never saw it coming no matter how many times this kind of thing happened. “Yes, Harrison. She is jealous of you. Just like Rebecca and Ariel were. Just like Kira was, too. She’s not at the completely paranoid level of Dana. She’s definitely not foolish enough to try it’s-her-or-me like Veronica, because she’s as smart as you think she is.” Nadia knew that an ultimatum like that would be the end of their relationship like it was for his and Veronica’s. Amanda trumped everyone. Period. “But she worries that one-on-one time with you will lead me to realize there’s no other woman I want in my life as much as I want you.”

  As soon as he said it, he felt it. Darn it, these feelings! His cheeks warmed and he shifted to face forward. If she knew how he felt about her, things would forever be awkward. Amanda didn’t feel that way about him. She loved him but was not in love with him.

  The back door opened and shut. The passenger door opened and Amanda climbed in next to him. “It was sweet of you to tell her I’m annoying, then. That probably made her feel a little better about things.”

  “It made her laugh, at least.” He quickly glanced in her direction. She was much more relaxed than she had been a moment ago.

  “I’ll never understand why people don’t get that sometimes a guy and a girl are just friends. It’s not that weird, right?”

  “I don’t think so,” he replied, starting the car.

  Amanda cleared her throat. “I love our friendship. It means everything to me. I hope you know that.”

  Blake reached over and took her hand
. How he wished it could be more. He gently rubbed his thumb across her knuckles. “Same here, Harrison. Glad we’re on the same page about that. Should we go get your sister?”

  “Please.”

  They got on the road again. The highway wasn’t very congested. There were a few truckers and a few people on their way from here to there. Hopefully, things would stay this way so they could get to the Blackwell Ranch before dark. He was excited to see the ranch, and it would be hard to get a feel for it at night.

  Amanda turned up the radio, and he could sense where that was headed.

  “For the record, I’m not singing or playing any games that have to do with the alphabet, license plates or I Spy. You need to come up with a different way to entertain yourself.”

  “Wow. Aren’t you a party pooper?” She pulled out her phone. “Well then, I’m going to do work, and you can sit over there not singing, ignoring license plates and refusing to look for anything I might spy.”

  “You forgot that I also won’t be thinking of words in alphabetical order.”

  “You’re hilarious.” She reclined her seat and received a friendly lick from Clancy in the back. She got busy making some calls and answering emails. The best decision he had ever made was going into business with Amanda. Her work ethic was second to none, and she cared so deeply about doing what was best for animals that it was easy to earn the trust of investors and customers alike.

  For two hours, they drove and talked business. A quick stop in Idaho for lunch gave them time to take Clancy for a walk.

  “You sure you don’t want to play a little bit of road-trip karaoke?” Amanda asked when they got back on the road.

  “Positive.”

  “What else is there to do in a car for the last four hours? If you don’t play something with me, I’m just going to go to sleep and you’ll be so bored,” she threatened.

  Few things were worse than having a sleeping passenger. When there was no one to talk to, even short drives felt endless, but he was not singing the rest of this trip.

  “I’m not in the mood for games, but we could talk about what I need to do to get you to become friends with Nadia.” His eyes left the road for a second to catch her reaction, which was...unreadable.

  “We are friends,” she said, fidgeting in her seat.

  “You’re nice to one another, but you’re not friends. Yet.” He desperately wanted them to get along. If they were friends, it would make it so much easier for him to keep Amanda close. Not that he’d ever let anything or anyone come between them.

  “I don’t know what you want me to do. I plan to continue being nice to her. Isn’t that how to be friends with someone?”

  “It would be cool if you two spent some time together even if I wasn’t around. Or if you texted her, offered to help with the wedding.” Nadia worked so much that she had already hinted that she needed some help. She had one sister, who lived in Boston. They weren’t as close as Amanda was with her sisters. In fact, Nadia didn’t talk much about her sister. Her parents were also across the country in New York.

  Amanda had her head turned, staring out the window. It was a beautiful view with the mountains in the distance and the big blue sky. The closer they got to Montana, the more he understood why it was called Big Sky Country. Still, her silence made him uneasy. What was it about Nadia that she didn’t like? Nadia was a good person. She and Amanda weren’t that different.

  “You don’t want to help us with the wedding?” he asked.

  She snapped out of whatever spell she was under. That fake smile was back and more concerning than ever. “Of course. I will do whatever you want. I’ll also try harder to reach out to Nadia. I want us to be close.”

  “Okay, so that’s what you know I want you to say. Now, tell me what you were really thinking about while you were staring out the window.”

  “That’s it. Why wouldn’t I want to be close to the person you’re in love with?”

  “That’s why I’m asking. I feel like the last week or so you’ve been off. Putting walls up. I can’t tell if it’s what’s going on in your family or if it’s that Nadia and I are getting married. Or is it that mole?”

  Her forehead creased. “Mole?”

  “The mole you’re having removed when we get back to San Diego.” He had a sinking feeling that she was not being completely honest about what was going on. “The one you swore wasn’t cancer.”

  “Oh, right.” She made direct eye contact. “I do not have cancer. I wasn’t lying.”

  There was something she wasn’t telling him about that mole, but as long as it wasn’t going to kill her, he had to let it go for the time being. “Okay, so what’s the issue? Ever since I told you I was engaged, you’ve been weird.”

  “Wow. Thanks.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “There is a lot going on, Blake. So much that it makes my head hurt. If I’m not acting like myself, maybe it’s because I recently learned I’m not who I thought I was.”

  He felt bad for being so self-centered and assuming the issue was his engagement. Amanda had much bigger issues on her mind. “Being a Blackwell doesn’t mean you aren’t still you. You’ll always be a Harrison. Until you get married, I guess. Even then, I’ll probably still call you Harrison.”

  “When I get married, right,” she said as if there wasn’t a chance. As if Amanda couldn’t have any guy she wanted. The only reason she wasn’t already married was that she had very high standards, which made Blake very happy. She didn’t let the wrong guys stick around for very long. Sooner or later, she would find Mr. Right.

  “I did it again. I am supposed to be here to keep you upbeat and I am failing miserably. Let’s play a game. I’ll play anything you want.”

  “Nope. I am not choosing. It made you miserable yesterday, apparently.”

  “Fine. I’ll choose. Let’s play Would You Rather.”

  She wrinkled her nose in the most adorable way. “Fine, but not the gross version.”

  “You mean like would you rather eat your boogers or mine?” he asked with a smirk.

  “You are such a child sometimes,” she replied with a shake of her head. He didn’t mind the insult because he had made her smile.

  “Okay, would you rather have animals understand everything you say or be able to understand what they’re saying?”

  This was right up her alley. She loved animals and had always wanted to be able to communicate with them. He was interested in which she would choose. She took a deep breath through her nose and let it out nice and slow as she thought over her answer.

  “This is an impossible question. I can’t choose between these two things.” She held her head in her hands. “Imagine if Clancy could tell me what he wants and needs. Oh, my gosh, I could go to the zoo and know for sure if the animals are being treated well or not.” Amanda had a love/hate relationship with zoos. Her passion for all animals made it one of her favorite places, but she also worried that certain animals shouldn’t be confined. “But what if I could communicate with animals? I could explain when things don’t make sense to them. Clancy wouldn’t sit at home, worried I’m never coming back when I leave the house. I really need both. I need to know what they’re thinking, and I need to be able to tell them things, as well.”

  This was more entertaining than he had thought it was going to be. Blake shook his head. “You are really bad at this game.”

  “It’s not me—it’s you! You’re the one who came up with the impossible question.”

  “It’s called Would You Rather. The purpose of the game is to choose between two things that feel impossible to choose between.”

  “Fine. I’ll choose.” She clasped her hands behind her head and resumed fretting over how difficult it was to pick only one.

  “At this rate, we’re going to make it all the way to the ranch before I get an answer,” Blake t
eased.

  “Shush!” She reached over and covered his mouth with her hand. “I would choose to be understood by the animals. No! Wait! I would choose to understand the animals. I think I need to know what they think more than the other way around. I’m going to trust they read my body language well enough that they get the gist of what I say.”

  “Is that your final answer?”

  “I think so. Wait—I don’t know.”

  Blake couldn’t help but laugh. “You are really overthinking this.”

  “Fine,” she said with a self-aware grin. “I would rather understand animals. Your turn. Would you rather...eat everything with a fork or eat everything with a spoon?”

  “Spoon,” he answered without a second thought.

  Amanda’s mouth fell open. “You didn’t even think about it. You need to at least consider both options before answering.”

  “It was too easy. Obviously, there are things that you eat with a spoon that can’t be eaten with a fork, but everything you eat with a fork can be eaten with a spoon. There’s nothing to really think about.”

  “I stink at this game,” she said with a pout. “New game.”

  “No quitters. Use your phone to look up better questions. Right after you answer this one. Would you rather be able to teleport anywhere you want to go or be able to read minds?”

  She dropped her head and groaned. Clearly he had picked another one she’d have to debate for much longer than she could handle. She often talked about how she wished she could read people’s minds because she was just nosy enough for that to be intriguing. She also hated traveling and would give anything to snap her fingers and be somewhere instantly.

  “Right now, I want to teleport out of this car because I hate you.”

  “Is that your final answer?” he asked, knowing it wasn’t.

  “No! I mean, I want to teleport, but I would obviously not need to use that as often as I would want to read people’s minds. But I need to know if I can turn it off.”

  “Turn off what?”

  “Do I have to read everyone’s mind all the time or can I choose to read someone’s mind only when I want to?”