Oh, Evan.
I knew the moment I found out he was coming to Bellevue that I wanted to get to know him and take my shot. What I didn’t know at the time was that I was taking my shot for a chance with a man who needed me as much as I wanted him. A man to inspire, to remind who he is, and to support at every turn as he does for me. A man who has taught me what love truly is and has made me laugh more than I could ever have imagined.
A man I’ll truly love for the rest of my life.
thirty-eight
Evan
“So, what you’re saying is, I can’t beat Nico’s ass?”
I give my brother a dark and annoyed look. “No. We are moving forward. He doesn’t like me or want me with Callie, but we will respect each other.”
Owen doesn’t seem to understand or want to understand. “Are you sure he doesn’t like me? I’m a hoot and not fucking his wife’s sister,” Owen says, and when I glare, he laughs. “I kid. If he hates you, he hates me because I hate him.”
“There it is,” I say, shaking my head.
“And I still might hit him with my stick—on accident, of course,” he admits, and I roll my eyes.
“Don’t. Just let it be. I don’t want to make anything worse for Callie.”
Owen blows out a breath. “Fine, I’ll refrain because Callie is sweet and is good for you. I can’t believe she canceled the adoption.”
I shrug. Honestly, I can’t either. The whole breakfast this morning has played on repeat in my head. I’m trying to figure out if everything I said was good enough and if I truly fought for myself and for Callie. I think I did, but the outcome is so shitty. Callie doesn’t get a mom and a dad, but she says it’s better this way. “She had good reasoning, not wanting to blur lines and to keep the roles the way they should be.”
“True, because what if Aviva and Nico divorce. Then what? Ya know?”
“I hadn’t thought of it that way,” I say, surprised I hadn’t. “You’re right, though.”
“Yeah, it sucks. I know Callie’s hurting over the whole thing, but I think she made the right choice.”
“I do too. I just hope she doesn’t regret it if anything were to happen between us.”
I feel his gaze on me, and when I meet his eyes, he has a serious expression on his face. “It wasn’t about you, Ev. It was about the reasons she gave. Don’t get in your head about this.”
I swallow hard; I forget how well he knows me. “I know. I just… Ugh, I hate that he doesn’t like me.”
“Evan, come on. He can’t hate you forever. You’re a cool dude.”
“He was dumped by our sister,” I remind him, and Owen makes a face.
“I mean, I wouldn’t have been mad. Shelli’s too high-maintenance for any other man but Aiden.”
I splutter. “Says the guy with a fiancée who has a jungle in their house. Owen, I just helped you set up a water system for her plants, but Angie isn’t high-maintenance?”
Owen doesn’t even seem fazed by my accusation. “No. Angie’s plants are high-maintenance. My baby is perfection.”
I laugh at him as I lean into the counter while he hooks the watering system that we spent an hour on to the drain outside. He actually made me build a barrel to collect rainwater for Angie’s plants. I came to spend time with my brother, not to be Angie’s plant caregiver, yet here I am with a watering can in my hand. “She is a pretty cool chick.”
“The best,” Owen says, making sure everything is connected correctly. “And Callie is great. I knew that before, but I like how much she’s helped you open up again. I can’t take credit since I’m all the way over here, but she’s kicked ass.”
I smile, my heart kicking up in speed. “She has.”
He watches as the water moves through the tubes and nods before looking back at me. “All done. Thank you for the help.”
“No problem,” I say just as the door opens and Angie comes in with a huge, leafy green thing in her hand.
“Owen! Publix had this sucker on sale!”
“Oh goody,” he says, and I hold back my laughter.
“I know! Callie has the rest,” she says, and I notice my love coming in with plants in both of her hands. She wasn’t supposed to be here yet. She was going to have dinner with Nico, Aviva, Jaylin, and Kirby.
“What happened to dinner?” I ask, and Callie’s shoulders drop.
“We had an early dinner because Jaylin and Kirby couldn’t come. Jaylin has been really sick with her pregnancy.”
“That sucks,” I say, and she nods as Owen looks at the new plants.
“Publix had multiple sales on plants?” he asks, and Angie is basically dancing around, finding places for her plants. I enjoy seeing her this happy.
“Oh, the whole department!” she gushes as Callie hands them to Owen.
“I think she has this one already,” Callie mentions, and my brother sighs.
“She does,” Owen says to her. “But she says they need friends of the same species.”
Callie’s eyes widen. “Should I be scared?”
Owen nods. “I am.”
“And I am too,” I call out, and Angie gives me a disgruntled look.
“Hush. You are breathing such beautiful, clean air. It’s good for your mental health. I’ll send you guys back with some plants for your rooms.”
“Goody,” Callie and I say together before sharing a smile. She comes to me, and I take her in my arms. I kiss her temple as she hugs me, and I decide I want to be alone with her.
“Let’s go before she makes us move plants.”
Callie looks at me with horror on her face. “I’m scared to touch them.”
“Me too. I almost knocked off a leaf, and I knew I would be done for.”
“Oh, for sure,” she jokes, and I take her hand, leading her out the back.
One of Owen’s guitars is lying on the table, so I grab it before we head to the beach. It’s not as cold as it was last night, so I don’t think we’ll need a fire. Especially when we have each other.
“They are so funny,” she says as we hit the beach.
“They are. I’m so glad they’re together. They’re good for each other.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” she says, leaning into me, and I hold her close. “Though, she has a lot of plants.”
“So many fucking plants,” I laugh as she giggles with me.
We find a spot under the moon, and I sit down first before she sits in my lap. I kiss her cheek, and she leans back against my chest, sighing loudly.
“We’re good for each other,” I find myself saying, and she rolls her head to the side and looks up to see me. “I think so.”
“I know so,” she says, cupping my jaw.
“Was everything okay with Nico and Aviva?”
“Nico blamed you for me not wanting to be adopted, but Aviva set him straight. The more I think about it, the better I feel about everything. I thought I would be more upset since I almost had everything I thought I wanted, but I truly believe this is for the best.” When I tell her what Owen said, her eyes widen. “Oh my God, not that I think they’ll ever split up, but would they have to have a custody battle over me?”