“Well, what is it you want us to say, babe?” Lark asked.
“I don’t know,” I exclaimed, throwing my arms in the air. “Maybe agree with me that I was right and it was a colossal mistake.”
For the first time since the conversation started, Aurora grew serious. “We can’t do that, honey.”
My bottom lip poked out in a childish pout. “Why not?”
“Because I’m not sure it was. Yes, he hurt you, and he’s an asshole for that, but obviously something changed for him.”
Lark spoke up. “Or maybe it didn’t change, but he finally decided to stop lying to himself.”
I’d considered all of that myself over the past twenty-four hours. Problem was, it only made that storm of unstable emotions inside of me that much stronger.
“I saw it on his face when he came to talk to me yesterday,” Lark continued. “He was ravaged at the thought of someone hurting you. He looked like he wanted to tear the world apart and set it on fire. When I told him the whole story, it was like his heart broke right then and there. A man doesn’t react like that if the woman doesn’t mean something to him in a very big way.”
“The fact that he’d even go there and face Lark’s wrath in the first place, just to get the truth, speaks volumes,” Aurora stated. “Raging hot sex aside, there’s something much more there. But you’re the one who has to decide if it’s worth going after.”
God, why did my friends have to be so reasonable? “I put myself out there once already. You guys know what a big deal that is for someone like me. I’ve always been the girl who hides away in a corner.”
Lark gave me a sympathetic smile. “Yeah. Until now. You aren’t that girl anymore, Willow. Sure, you can still be shy and get flustered, but it’s totally adorable. And you don’t give yourself enough credit. You’re tough as nails. You can take a few lumps.”
Aurora’s expression grew fierce. “And if he’s a dick to you again, you can dole out a few lumps of your own.”
Lark nodded in agreement. “You aren’t saving yourself any pain by ignoring your feelings for him, sweetie. They aren’t going away. That kind of stuff doesn’t fade over time. All you’re doing is cutting yourself off from the possibility of anything good happening. Look at me and Clay. If I’d let the past dictate our future, there’s no way I ever would have given him another chance. And if I hadn’t, I’d be miserable right now.”
She had a point. She and Clay had the very definition of a rocky start. And Lark had endured the kind of heartbreak I couldn’t even imagine. What happened with Stone was peanuts in comparison.
“Look, it’s not like you have to make a decision today or even tomorrow,” Aurora told me. “You’ve been through a lot lately. Give yourself some time, sit with your feelings. You’ll eventually come to a decision.”
Sit with my feelings. That didn’t sound like bad advice.
“Have I mentioned lately that I love you guys?”
“Aw!” Aurora opened her arms wide. “We love you too, my little string bean. Now come on, bring it in for a group hug.”
And just like that, my two friends managed to lift a huge weight off my chest and make everything a little bit better.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Stone
I stood on Scooter and Caroline’s back deck, the neck of a half-full beer bottle dangling from my fingers as I rested my forearms against the banister and stared out at the trees and mountains beyond their property line.
I’d been summoned to another Sunday family dinner, and while this one had gone a whole hell of a lot better than the last, I was still feeling off-kilter. If my mind wasn’t replaying the scene with Willow on the hood of the Chevelle—it was guaran-damn-teed I was never getting rid of that car after that—I was thinking about everything Lark had told me.
I couldn’t imagine what she was going through, having to care for a loved one who sometimes didn’t even recognize her face. It had to kill her. She really was so much stronger than I’d ever given her credit for, which made me feel like even more of an asshole for what I’d done to her.
I’d convinced myself she had too much baggage, that she required someone to protect her from the big bad world, and that I wasn’t up for that much responsibility, when the truth was, she didn’t need anyone to take care of her. She had it in hand just fine. Hell, she was handling shit better than I would if the shoe was on the other foot, that was for damn sure.
And as far as protecting her went . . . well, that instinct wasn’t going away no matter how long I ignored it or how deep I tried to bury it. That baser instinct was pushing all others to the background.
And I’d fucked it all up by pushing her away.
On that thought, my chest clenched painfully tight. I massaged at the ache with my free hand as I silently berated myself for being a world-class dick.
“What’s got you standing out here, staring off into the distance like a broody teenage vampire?”
I’d been so lost in thought that I hadn’t heard the back door slide open, but at my sister’s words, I twisted my neck and shot her a bewildered look. “What?”
She joined me at the railing, letting out a frustrated sigh. “Why will none of the men in my life watch Twilight, for crying out loud?”
“Because we don’t want our balls to shrivel up to the size of raisins and sink back up into our bodies.”
She rolled her eyes and bumped her shoulder against mine before bending down to copy my stance and lean on the banister. “Whatever. So why are you out here alone, looking all stoic?”
“Just thinking,” I replied, turning my unseeing gaze back out across the yard.
“Let me guess . . . about a certain sweet brunette with a tendency to blush?” I shot her a side-eyed look, and she smiled smugly. “Jensen told me you went by his office almost every day last week to try and see her.”
“Goddamn it,” I grunted, lifting my beer and taking a swig. “That man of yours really can’t keep his mouth shut. He has to be the worst gossip in this fucking town.”
“I heard that,” Jensen called through the screen door. “And I am what I am. Town gossip keeps my woman happy and happy wife, happy life. You’ll get that when you and Willow settle down.”
Shane started laughing while I let out a mumbled curse.
“So? Am I right? You’re out here all messed up over Willow, aren’t you?”
I didn’t bother lying. After all, what was the point? “Yeah. I am.”
Silence enveloped us for so long that I figured she’d decided to drop the subject, but when she spoke next, her insightfulness took me by surprise. “You’ve spent so long letting the memory of our mom dictate every important decision in your life, big bro. Aren’t you tired of living in her shadow?”
“I’m not living in her shadow,” I insisted, but something about what she just said struck a chord deep within me.
Her voice grew low and gentle with what she said next. The teasing Shane who liked to give me shit just to be a pain in the ass was gone. “I’m not stupid, Stone, I remember what it was like for you when we were with her. You were responsible for everything. Most of all me. That wasn’t fair.”