Unbroken by Love (The Basin Lake Series Book 4)
Page 3
“You decide to quit the NFL or just visiting?” she asks me when I don’t say anything.
“Yeah… yeah I did, quit that is. But hey, that’s pretty cool about the house building thing. What made you decide to do that?”
With a voice devoid of emotion, she says, “Either trying to find myself or trying to forget myself.”
“And did you succeed… at either?” I ask, imagining there is far more untold detail behind her words.
Her lips move into a grin. “I’m still not sure about that, but I helped a lot of people, and that felt pretty good. How about you? People don’t just give up NFL contracts for nothing.”
I ease back into my chair, aware that I’m having an adult conversation with a girl who I mostly just remember being the littlest sister of the girl I’d been so in love with. “Ah, it just wasn’t for me. I love football, but that life can be brutal. I’m not sure I liked the guy I’d become.”
She appears to be studying me, and if we were sitting here eating, I’d be wondering if I had some food stuck on my chin and she was just trying to find a delicate way to tell me about it.
“And do you like the guy you are now?”
“I’m still not sure,” I say, deciding to use her same words, though I can’t really add that I’d helped anyone, except maybe through financial means, along the way.
“I’m sure you’ve heard about Paige and Evan,” she says, scooting right along to the topic of the girl I’d been willing to risk two friendships to be with.
I nod. “Getting married with a baby on the way. I’m happy for them.”
She angles away and wrinkles her brow. “Are you?”
“Yeah, I am,” I insist. “I got over Paige a long time ago, but I can’t say I’m over being out of their lives. I feel like I should be best man or something.”
“You should be the groom,” she says without an ounce of sarcasm. “I mean, I love Evan, but I was always in your corner. I thought Paige was a total idiot when she didn’t pick you.”
I dip my chin down and feel my ears turning red. “I guess Paige didn’t share your views, then.”
“No… but maybe it wouldn’t have worked out with you guys anyway. I can’t really see her being a football wife.”
That makes me chuckle as I raise my eyes to her. “Maybe not, but I’m not going to be playing football anymore.”
“So, what are you going to be doing instead? You’re not going to be all cliché and open up a used car lot or something, are you?”
That earns her another laugh. “You think I’d ever sell used cars?”
She shrugs. “Everyone has to do something.”
I lean in, clasping my hands on the table. “Between you and me, I put an offer on the old Murphy farm, and I’m just waiting to hear back.”
“The Murphy farm?” She crinkles her nose, an adorable nose, one that looks a lot like Paige’s but is still her own.
“You don’t remember Old Man Murphy? He used to dress up as Santa Claus at the Winter Carnival when we were kids.”
She looks at me, amused, and like she has no idea what I’m talking about. “Must have been before my time, Garrett. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a guy called Old Man Murphy.”
“Man, I feel old,” I say.
“Twenty-six in December, right?”
“Yeah. You remembered.”
“I’m good with birthdays, and I think very few people would say twenty-six was old.”
“Easy for you. You’re probably not even legal drinking age.”
“In less than a year, I will be,” she says, “but I’ve had my share of alcohol, so I’m not particularly looking forward to twenty-one.” A light fades from her eyes, as does the smile she’d been holding.
“Yeah, I don’t have the best history with it either,” I tell her. “But sounds like we’re both looking ahead. You just visiting or do you have something more long term in mind?”
Her shoulders slump. “No, not just visiting, but no plans as of yet. I’m a little clueless at the moment. Anyway, I should probably go. My Grandma is home alone, and I should make sure Lucille II gets fed.”
“Oh, okay,” I say, wanting to ask her what happened to the first Lucille, but mostly just wanting to talk to her more. But she’s already up, stuffing her ear buds into her bag and sliding it over her shoulder.
“It was really nice seeing you. I’ll let Paige know you’re back in town. Maybe she’ll see it in her heart to invite you to the wedding.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I say, standing up.
“It’s worth a shot… and you can always say no.”
“Okay, well, thank you.”
“Of course.” She smiles and turns, and then she’s gone.
I watch her walk outside, down the street, tall with long legs like her sister. The short dark dress she’s wearing is maybe something I’d have seen Paige in when she was younger, when she’d dye her hair all kinds of colors and find her clothes in second-hand stores. But she’d never rocked the kind of biker boots Kate has on.
When she’s out of sight, no evidence of her getting into a car, I could kick myself for not offering to drive her home. Then I’d kick myself again for not asking her if she wanted to get together for coffee again… or something.
“So, you met Kate… the grown up version.” Beth’s voice comes out of nowhere, but I don’t startle. You learn to control your reflexes when you play professional ball.
“She looks so much like Paige,” I say, turning to Beth, still reeling over their similarities.
“Looks, yes, but that’s where it ends. Kate can be really sweet, but she’s got this darkness to her I can’t quite put my finger on. Started when she was like fifteen, and I have no idea what happened to precipitate it.”
“I can see that.” I’d noticed it when the light in her eyes faded and her smile turned downward. “She’ll be okay though, right?” I find myself caring, more than I’ve cared about anything outside of my family and this shot at my own farm in quite a while.
Beth eyes me sternly, then warns, “Don’t you go trying to replace Paige.”
“You think I’d do that?” I don’t have much reason to look at Beth sideways, but I do now.
“I’m just saying, you loved Paige a lot, and here Kate is looking like Paige… a lot. That wouldn’t end well for either of you.”
Beth’s warning throws me, but I remind myself there was a time I was pretty obsessed, a long time ago for me, but a time that might be fresh in the minds of people here in Basin Lake. But still, it pisses me off, and I’m not in the mood for any further pleasantries.
“I better head back to the farm,” I tell her, stepping away. “Good to see you, Beth. Tell Ben I said hi.”
“Garrett…” She says my name like she’s thinking she was too harsh on me, but I don’t wait around for any apologies. I’m out the door and back in my truck without the coffee I’d gone to Pamela’s to get in the first place.
CHAPTER FIVE
KATE
I kept my mouth shut about running into Garrett on Thursday, not that I thought it was some big, awful thing to bring up, but because Mom, Grandma and even Clark were stressed about the wedding ceremony that would be held in the backyard on Saturday. The forecast was iffy, potentially calling for rain, and Clark had bought a couple of those pop up tent things, and we all spent the better part of Friday making sure we knew how to put them together, just in case. Poor Grandma had been trying to read the directions and had gotten so flustered that I’d had to take her inside and turn on some Dr. Phil for her.
“That man always relaxes me so,” she’d said, relief washing over her face as soon as she could see Dr. Phil tell some blubbering family how they needed to “get real.”
But now that it’s Friday night and I’m in Spokane for Paige’s bachelorette party, I’m running out of time to bring Garrett’s name up and convince Paige and Evan to give him a peace offering in the form of an invitation to their wedding.
I’d tend to agree with her—this gathering isn’t at all like the bachelorette parties spent bar hopping, playing ridiculous games or trying to keep the bride from getting too plastered or down on her knees, cheating on her soon to be husband. Instead, we’re at the restaurant Evan co-owns with his old high school friend, Reggie, shut down just for us, the women in the front half while Evan and his friends are in the back. It’s basically a combined bachelor and bachelorette party, relaxing but fun, lots of laughter and no real complaints about us staying in one place.
“There’s only so much partying you can do when you’re pregnant,” Paige says, touching her hand to the belly that is just starting to show. “And we got all that out of the way in Well’s Creek anyway, didn’t we?”
I find myself staring at Paige’s stomach, at the protective way she lays her hand on it. These are the moments I hate, the times when I’m angry and jealous of my own sister because she’s capable of having a child grow in her belly when I am not.
“You all right?” Claire whispers while Paige and Natalie start reminiscing about Well’s Creek, the college they’d both gone to in North Carolina.
“Mmm hmm,” I mumble, then turn to my sister when she puts her hand on my thigh. “I’m totally fine, Claire. You don’t have to keep worrying about me.”
“But I do worry about you. You know, if you wanted to come and live in Seattle with me and Tyler for a while, I could maybe help get you set up with a job there, and we could keep an eye on each other.”
“I don’t need you to do that,” I snap, then feel immediately guilty about it and lay a hand on my chest. “What I mean is that I’m really grateful for you, but I’d be miserable in a big city like Seattle.”
In working for Houses for Us, I’d spent my time in small, rural towns where you could really breathe, where if you walked down the main street enough times, people started to know who you were and would say hello. I should have wanted to disappear into a place like Seattle, considering how angry and lost I’d often felt, but small towns made me remember who I used to be and allowed that part of me to rise to the surface, even if there was still a hurt deep inside.
“Just know the offer is always there,” Claire says. “Tyler and I are getting a bigger place for when family comes to visit, so there’ll be room.”
I smile and offer her a thankful sigh. She’s as lucky as Paige has been when it comes to finding love. Tyler is in the back room along with Evan and Clark. He works for the fire department in Seattle, nearly died in a wilderness fire about four years ago, the mere mention of that enough to push my sister into tears. I’d been such a brat to Claire around that time, and when we all thought Tyler had died, I remember wishing I could take back every bad thing I’d ever said to her… or to him for that matter. He’d been as nice to me as Garrett had ever been.
“I ran into someone,” I tell Claire, okay with being left out of the loud conversation between Paige and Natalie that is now encompassing most everyone else at the table, Mom, Paige’s friend, Emma, Beth and a bunch of elementary school teachers, some that teach at the same school Paige does on Spokane’s South Hill.
She tilts her head to the side. “Okay. Who is it you ran into?”
“Garrett Hevener,” I whisper.
“Paige’s old boyfriend?”
“Uh huh. He just happened to be at Pamela’s on Thursday, and we talked for a little while. He wasn’t pushing for it, but I think he’d really like to be at the wedding.”
Claire shifts in her chair. “I didn’t realize he was back in town. I thought he was playing football in Minnesota.”
“He gave it up. He’s putting an offer in on some farm next to the one his family owns, so he’ll be sticking around Basin Lake for good apparently.”
Claire rolls her top lip over her bottom one, her eyes widening.
“Why is it such a big deal?” I ask, maybe a little too loudly, before she can answer me.
“What’s a big deal?” Mom turns, joining our quiet conversation.
“We can talk about it later,” Claire says.
“I think we should talk about it now,” I forge on, not especially wanting to feel like the youngest sister whose opinion about Garrett Hevener doesn’t have any merit.
“What should we talk about now?” Paige joins in, she and her friends settled down from their louder conversation.
My middle sister shakes her head in a last ditch warning.
“Why is she shaking her head?” Natalie asks, her Southern drawl more relaxed after she’d finished that glass of wine off.
“Claire doesn’t want me to say anything, but I think it’s important.”
Paige looks as concerned as Claire did a minute ago while I catch Beth looking away, like she knows just what I’m about to say.
I wave my hand in front of me like I’m trying to erase whatever worry may have sprouted up in her. “It’s nothing bad. It’s just that I ran into Garrett the other day, and I think it would really be nice if he was invited to the wedding tomorrow.”
The silence that follows is so pronounced that I might have just told everyone I’d been screwing Evan behind Paige’s back.
“The ex-boyfriend you had to drop to be with Evan?” Natalie asks with a gleam in her eyes.
“I’m not sure that would be such a good idea,” Paige replies, subdued.
“I think he just wants to be friends,” I tell her, leaning closer. “It’s been long enough, hasn’t it?”
Eyes turn toward the end of the table, and mine follow. I’m not sure how long Evan has been standing there with his arms crossed, but when nobody says a word about his sudden presence, he lowers his arms and walks over to Paige, putting his big hands on her shoulders. “Did I just hear something about an ex-boyfriend?”
Paige bites at her lip and sighs. “Apparently Garrett is back in town. Kate says he wants to come to the wedding.”
Evan is tall and can look a little intimidating, but his green eyes remain soft as he looks down at me, more curious than anything. “Garrett, huh? How’s he doing?”
“Good… as far as I can tell. But I really think maybe he misses you guys.”
Paige turns her head to look up at her husband, a silent language being spoken between the two of them with their eyes.
“I saw him driving through town,” Mom confesses, as if saying so were a deep, long held secret. “I think he means to stay here.”
“He does,” Beth adds in, almost guilty in saying it.
Paige offers a quick look to her friend, then returns her attention to me while placing her hand over the one Evan has on her shoulder. “Did he seem…” She glances down, as if searching for the right word and unable to come up with it.
“Do you get any sense he’s still hung up on Paige?” Evan fills in for her, a subtle anxiousness in his voice.
“No, not at all. If I thought that, I wouldn’t have ever brought this up.”
“I agree,” Beth says when Evan turns to her.
No, he hadn’t seemed to be still hung up on my older sister. If anything, there was a freedom in his eyes, like he wasn’t hung up on anyone at all.
Evan offers Paige a slight nod when she looks up at him again. She squeezes his hand, returns her attention to me and says, “I guess you can invite him then. Maybe it’s time we all got over this thing.”
I expect Evan to look jealous or unhappy, but instead he smiles, and it reminds me of the way he used to look when he’d come over to our house with Garrett, when they were both still friends with Paige, before romance got in the way of anything.
“Yeah, I think it might be good,” he says.
The still immature part of me wants to turn to Claire and tell her, “See, I told you so,” but I’ve been snotty so many times to m
y sister that it’s enough to last a lifetime, and besides, I don’t want to interrupt the smile she’s now got aimed at Paige and Evan.
* * *
“Garrett?” It had gotten loud enough in the restaurant again so that I’d had to take refuge in the bathroom in hopes of hearing him clearly on the phone.
“Yeah. Hey, is this Kate?” His voice is deep and masculine, yet friendly and warm.
“Uh huh. Beth got your number from Ben and gave it to me, so hopefully it’s not top secret or anything.”
“No, of course not,” he chuckles. “I’m actually glad to hear from you.”
“Well, good… because I wanted to let you know that I secured you a spot at Evan and Paige’s wedding tomorrow.”
There is silence, a silence I hear as hesitancy over the invitation. I just hope he can get over the past, as well as himself, like my sister and her fiancé had done just now.
“Everyone would be happy to see you there,” I add on. “Really, you’ve got nothing to worry about.”
“I don’t know… I’d like to,” he responds slowly. “It’s just been such a long time.”
For a big football player, Garrett sounds a little petrified.
“The worst thing that could happen is you feel uncomfortable for a few minutes, and as long as you aren’t planning on interrupting the ceremony during the forever hold your peace portion, then it’s going to be fine. Come on, Garrett. You can totally do this.”
His low, reserved laughter coming from the other end of the phone is unexpected. “You sound a little like my old coach there, Kate.”
“And I bet you listened to him, didn’t you?” I ask with a smile he won’t be able to see but might just hear somehow.
“Pretty much,” he says, amusement still in his voice.
“Then you have to listen to me I guess. Wedding is at two, reception immediately to follow. It’s in the backyard, and I’ll save you a seat.”