"Good. I'm about a week ahead of schedule."
"Does that mean you'll be moving back sooner than September?"
"I'm not sure. It's too soon to tell." Honestly, if all goes as planned, the house will be done by the third week of August. But I don't want to hurry back to Chicago. I don't want to leave Callie.
"Anything else going on?" he asks.
I shouldn't tell him, but then I do. "I found photos of Mom in one of the boxes."
He's quiet, then says, "How many?"
"Just two so far. She was a teenager in one of them and probably around 20 in the other one. She was pretty."
"Yes. She was."
I wait for him to say more but he doesn't.
"Well, I should get going," I say.
"I'll talk to you soon."
"Bye, Dad."
Just as I end the call, my phone rings again. "Hello?"
"Nash. It's Katie."
"How'd you get this number?"
"It's not that hard to get a phone number." She sounds annoyed, but then switches to what she considers her sexy voice, which is slightly lower. "So I want you to meet me at The Grand tonight." The Grand is a historic hotel along the river in a town about twenty minutes from here. "Some friends and I are having a party there, and afterward I'll have my own private room for the night."
"I'm not interested."
"But there's going to be—"
"I said I'm not interested. And don't call me again. Goodbye, Katie." I hang up and hear a knock at the door. It must be Callie. Maybe she wants to go to the bar with me. I hope so. I miss spending time with her. I want things to go back to how they were before.
"Hey, Cal—" I stop when I open the door and see it's not Callie. It's Marissa. You've gotta be freaking kidding me. What the hell is she doing here? Wearing a tight black dress and heels?
"Nash!" She hugs me, her perfume overwhelming me. Did she always wear that much perfume? "I've missed you."
I pull her off me. "What are you doing here?"
"I told you I was coming."
"And I told you not to come."
"You didn't mean it." She saunters past me. "So is this the house?"
No, I'm just living in someone else's house. Seriously, what kind of question is that?
"This is it." I hold my arms out. "What do you think?"
The living room isn't as cluttered anymore, but it still looks like shit, which is why I'll be tackling it next, after I finish the kitchen.
"It's um...very quaint."
"And who doesn't love quaint?" I'm being sarcastic but it's hard to be polite when she just shows up here after I told her not to.
She sets her purse down on the coffee table. "You look good, Nash." She smiles. "Really good."
I know that smile and that tone. She came here for sex.
"So you broke up with your boyfriend?"
"Not completely, but it's basically over." She slinks over to me and runs her hands over my chest. "I always loved your body."
I take her hands and pull them off me. "We're not having sex, so if that's why you came here, you need to leave."
She frowns. "Do you have a girlfriend?"
"That's none of your business. We're not together anymore."
"You must not, or you'd be out with her tonight." She smiles. "Come on. Just one night? Think of it as a little reunion."
"It's not happening. You need to leave." I take her hand and lead her to the door.
She yanks her hand from mine. "I can't drive back in the dark! It's dangerous. I could get killed."
"You should've thought of that before you left to come down here. Use your headlights. You'll be fine."
"You'd really make me drive home this late? After what happened to Beth or Bella or whatever her name was?"
Marissa used to say some inappropriate things, but not remembering the name of my dead best friend? That's just wrong. I dated Marissa for two years. She knows Becky's name. She's just being a bitch to get back at me for sending her home. I must've been in a coma when I was dating this girl, and on some mind-altering drug when I proposed to her.
"Her name was Becky. And she died in the afternoon. It wasn't dark. All things you already know because I've told you the story many times."
"Still, I can't drive home in the dark. I have to stay here."
I can't have her staying here. What if Callie sees her? I don't want her thinking I'm back with Marissa. I'm still hoping I have a chance with Callie. She's all I can think about. The only girl I want.
Cat walks into the room and rubs against my leg.
Marissa jumps back. "You have a cat?"
I smile, remembering she's allergic to cats.
"Yeah. His name is Cat." I pick him up. "You want to pet him?"
"No! You know I hate cats and you know I'm..." she sneezes, "allergic to them."
"Then you should probably get out of here. If you drive down the main street in town you'll find a couple hotels."
She narrows her eyes. "Now I remember why we broke up."
"Because you cheated," I say casually.
"No! Because you don't know how to treat a woman." She gets her purse from the table. "And who names their cat Cat? Like you couldn't come up with anything better?"
"I didn't name him, but I actually like the name." I keep hold of Cat as I open the door. "Bye, Marissa."
She storms out to her car, tripping a little on her heels. I watch her drive away, then shut the door.
"I don't really feel like going out now," I say to Cat. "You want to grab a beer, put on some tunes, and hang out on the deck?" He meows, which I take as a yes. "Should we ask Callie to join us?" No meow this time. "You're probably right. She needs more time."
We go out to the deck and I'm trying to relax, but my mind won't shut down. It's stuck on Callie, who's over at her house right now when she should be here with me. My dad's right. I can't give her too much space. If I do, I might lose her. Or even worse, she might lose herself. I can't let that happen.
"You know what?" I say to Cat, who's sitting in the chair next to mine. "I've changed my mind. I think we need to invite her over."
I go inside and grab a beer from the fridge, then return to the deck and pick up Cat.
"You need to be the one to invite her. If I ask, she'll probably say no." As I'm walking to her door, I say to Cat, "Be nice. Purr or meow when you see her. And if she acts surly, which we both know she will, don't run off. You need to give her a chance."
When we reach her house, I set both Cat and the beer bottle down in front of the door, then ring the bell and back up against the side of the house so she can't see me.
Cat looks at me.
"Stay right there," I tell him. "And remember, be nice."
Callie turns the porch light on and opens the door just a crack. "Who's there?" She doesn't notice Cat. "Is anyone there?"
Cat needs to make a noise. He is not cooperating with the plan.
She starts to close the door, but then Cat meows, a loud meow that catches her attention.
"Cat?" She opens the door. "What are you doing here? And why do you have a beer?" Callie hears me laughing. "Nash?"
I show myself, appearing next to Cat. "Hey."
"What's going on here?" She cracks a smile.
"Cat and I were hanging out on the deck, shootin' the breeze, and he thought we should invite you over."
She cocks her head. "Cat's inviting me over?"
"Why else would he be over here on a Friday night with a cold beer?"
She laughs, but then stops herself.
I look down at Cat. "I told him it wouldn't be appropriate for you to come over, given our strictly professional relationship, but then Cat darted over here before I could stop him."
"With a bottle of beer?" She's trying not to laugh.
"Yeah. You should've seen him. He had to walk on his hind legs while carrying that bottle with his front paws. I should've recorded it. That's the kind of thing that'd get millions of views
online. You know how people like cat videos. We could've paired it with some advertising and made millions."
"I didn't know he was so talented," she says.
"I didn't either until tonight." I pick him up. "So what do you say? You coming over?" Cat meows. "See? He really wants you to come over."
She smiles. "Okay. But just for a little bit."
She picks up her beer and the three of us return to my deck.
"Do we have to listen to country music?" she asks, sitting across from me as I reach over and turn the radio on.
"It's the only kind of music there is." I smile and swig my beer.
"There are other kinds of music."
"That other shit's not music. It's just noise."
She rolls her eyes, but there's a smile on her face. And that's all I wanted for tonight. I don't need her to pour her heart out to me or even talk about anything at all. Getting her to smile is enough. For now.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Callie
Nash's attempt to get me over here was very sneaky. Using Cat? Very clever, and it worked. I'll never forget that image of seeing Cat at my door, sitting next to a beer. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. He had his neck craned up to me and then he meowed, like he really was inviting me over. Now he's curled up in the chair between Nash and me, sound asleep.
"I thought you were going out tonight," I say to Nash.
"Changed my mind. Cat wanted to stay in."
"Cat was going to go with you to the bar?"
Nash nods. "I didn't want to tell you that earlier. Thought you might be jealous that he was going instead of you."
"You didn't invite me." I swirl my beer around in the bottle.
"I'm not allowed to, according to your rules for a professional relationship."
"I might've made an exception." I take a drink of my beer.
"Then maybe we'll go some other night. Cat really wants to go on Ladies' Night, which is Tuesdays."
I nearly spit out my beer, laughing.
"What?" Nash asks. "You didn't know Cat dated? You don't know much about your cat, do you?"
"I guess not," I say, wiping my hand over my mouth.
"He said he's been cooped up in the house so much, it's been a while since he went on a date."
I set my beer down. "For me too."
"Maybe it's time you start dating again. You're not getting any younger."
"Oh, thanks. So now I'm old?" I smile.
"I'm just saying..."
"You're older than me."
"But I go on dates. You don't."
"So who was over here earlier?" I ask, because the dating topic was making me uncomfortable.
He leans back, smiling. "How'd you know someone was over here? Are you watching me out your window?"
"No." That's a lie. When I heard a car drive up, I ran to the window to see who it was, but it was too dark to tell.
"Marissa was here," he says, as though it's no big deal.
"Marissa, your fiancé?"
"EX-fiancé," he says emphatically.
"What did she want?"
"Sex," he says casually.
My jaw drops, but I snap it shut. "She drove all the way down here to have sex with you? Doesn't she have a boyfriend?"
"Yeah, but apparently he's not meeting her needs." He swigs his beer.
Sex with Nash must be really good if she was willing to drive two hours to get it. And cheat on her boyfriend.
"So why'd she leave?"
"Because I told her no. Did you really think I'd have sex with her?"
"Maybe. You two have a history, and it's been a while so maybe—"
"No." He shakes his head. "I'm not that desperate. I'm holding out for someone I actually want to be with." He sets his eyes on mine. "Unfortunately, she's not interested."
Does he really think that? Because the truth is, I am interested. I'm more than interested. I just can't let myself go there. There are too many things I need to deal with right now and a relationship is last on the list, although having sex with him wouldn't necessarily mean we're in a relationship.
I glance away, because his intense stare with those gorgeous blue eyes is arousing urges inside me that are getting harder to resist. Every time we're together, my attraction to him builds, my body longing to be with him.
I quickly change topics and tell him about my dinner with Lou the other night. We continue to talk, and the hours pass, and before I know it, it's almost midnight.
"I need to get to bed," I say, getting up from the table. The movement startles Cat and he sits up. "Goodnight, Cat." I pet his head. "Thanks for inviting me." He rubs his head on my hand and purrs.
"Told you he likes you." Nash picks Cat up and sets him just inside the door. "Go upstairs to your bed," he tells him, and Cat slinks off.
I stand there in awe. "I can't believe he listens to you."
"Come on." He goes down the deck stairs. "I'll walk you back to the house."
When we get to the door, he waits for me to unlock it, then says, "I had a good time tonight. Maybe we could do this again."
I look up at his rugged face, his well-defined jaw, his scruffy beard that he's let grow out a couple days. I feel that urge again. It's so strong, begging me to be with him, even if it's just for one night.
"Goodnight, Callie." He leans down like he's going to kiss me, but then stops himself and slowly backs away. "Habit." He smiles.
"Yeah." I bite my lip, fighting the urge to kiss him. "Goodnight."
"One more thing." He reaches over and loosely holds my hand. "When you're ready to take this beyond a professional relationship, I'm all in."
"But what about—"
"Callie," he says, interrupting me. "I don't care about whatever it is you were going to say. None of that matters to me. I just want to be with you. I want to go back to how we were before. I miss you." He leans down and kisses my cheek. "So when you're ready, you know where to find me."
He leaves, and I'm left wondering if he really means it. Would he really want to be with someone like me? Some days even I don't want to be with me. But I want to be with Nash. I really want to be with Nash.
The next morning, I get ready to meet Trina at the coffee shop. After we have lunch, I don't know what we're going to do. I guess we could go to the mall on the other side of town. Trina and I used to go shopping all the time back in high school. Now I never go.
As a fashion major, Trina always comments on my clothes so I put on something simple but nice, hoping she won't pick apart my outfit. I'm wearing a pair of black shorts, a white short-sleeve cotton blouse, and black sandals. I wore my hair down and put on silver hoop earrings.
The doorbell rings. It must be Nash. Or maybe it's Cat. I laugh as I picture him at the door. Maybe today he brought me coffee.
I open the door.
"Surprise!" It's Trina, in a red sundress with a big floppy hat on her head and sunglasses covering her eyes. She gives me a hug. My mind's racing so fast I can't even hug her back. I'm too busy trying to figure out what to do. She can't come inside. Shit.
"It's so good to see you!" she says, stepping back to look at me. "Did you lose weight? You look thinner."
"Why are you here? We're supposed to meet at the coffee shop."
"I got here early so I thought I'd just come over." She takes off her sunglasses and drops them in her purse. "It's been forever since I've been to this house. I almost forget how to find this place. Let's go inside. I really have to use the bathroom."
"Why don't we just go to the coffee shop? You can use the bathroom there."
"I can't wait that long. I really need to go." She pushes past me and runs in the house, dropping her purse and hat on the couch, then scurrying off to the bathroom.
I sigh and shut the door. When she's done in the bathroom, I'll have to steer her out the door before she notices anything.
Moments later, Trina comes down the hall and goes straight to the kitchen. Trina is like Nash in that she jus
t makes herself comfortable wherever she goes.
"What are you doing?" I ask.
"I need a glass of water."
I remain at the door. "We'll get water at the restaurant. Let's go."
"I need it now. I feel a migraine coming on and I need to take a pill."
"If you're not feeling well, then maybe we should reschedule."
"I already drove all the way down here. I'll be fine." She opens a cupboard and takes out a glass. She pauses after closing the cabinet, then opens it back up. She takes out a green plastic cup with a dinosaur on it. She holds it up. "Isn't this Ben's cup?"
"Yeah. I thought it was cute so I use it sometimes."
She looks at me a moment, then puts the cup away and fills her glass with water.
"Ready?" I ask after she takes her pill.
"It's too early for lunch. Let's sit and talk a minute." She walks over to the living room.
I brace myself, knowing she's going to overreact. "Trina, let's just go. I have to—"
"What is all this?" she asks, her eyes slowly scanning the room.
"It's the living room. You've seen it before. Now let's go."
"Callie." I see her throat move as she swallows. "Why is their stuff still here?"
"I just haven't gotten around to putting it away." I sound calm, but inside my heart is pounding. "Now come on. Let's go." I hold open the door, but she's frozen in place.
"You told me you packed everything up." She turns to me. "You lied. Why would you lie about that?"
"It wasn't a lie. I packed up some things, just not all." I shut the door, knowing we won't be leaving any time soon.
She goes over to my mom's knitting basket and holds up the scarf. "This is your mom's. And it's still sitting here."
"I thought maybe I'd finish it."
"That's a lie, Callie, and you know it."
My hands form tight fists as I work to suppress my anger at seeing her holding my mom's scarf. It hasn't been touched since that day, and now Trina is touching it.
"Put it down," I say, my jaw clenched.
She sets the scarf back in the basket and walks over to the plastic bin in the corner. "Oh my God." She covers her mouth with her hand. "Callie, why are these still here?"
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