by Nash, Willa
And the guilt of lying to my best friend began to sink deep. For the first time since Friday, I regretted this decision.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”
“Why?” She blinked a sheen of tears from her emerald-green eyes. “Why didn’t you?”
“It happened fast. Maybe I was worried that you wouldn’t understand.”
“I don’t understand.”
Yeah, me neither. “You would have tried to talk me out of it.”
“Hell yes, I would have. Are you pregnant? Is that why it was a rush?”
It would be easier if the answer were yes. A lot easier. But there were enough lies to keep up with and I wasn’t going to add that one to the mix.
“No. I’m not pregnant.” And I wouldn’t get pregnant. Hux kept up with his condoms. Meanwhile, I was taking my pill like clockwork every morning.
“Oh.” She dropped her gaze to her feet. “Is this a real thing? Do you love him?”
If Lucy was questioning the authenticity of our marriage, others would too. A jolt of panic raced through my veins but I pushed forward, because if I was going to convince the town and a judge, I’d better be able to convince my best friend.
“It’s real,” I told her. No, it wasn’t love. But there were lots of married couples who weren’t in love. “I met Hux a while ago. I went to Jane’s one night and he was there. We hooked up and hit it off.” Which wasn’t entirely a lie. When it came to our physical relationship, we’d hit a home run.
“Couldn’t you have dated for a while? How well do you know him?”
“You didn’t date Duke for very long.”
She frowned. “I knew you were going to say that.”
“Sorry?”
“What is going on with you, Ev? You’re not the type to rush into a relationship. I mean, you’re the pickiest woman I’ve ever met.”
She wasn’t wrong. When it came to my dating past, I’d kicked plenty of men to the curb for superficial reasons. That, and because most had been assholes.
There’d been the investment broker with not enough muscle. The physical therapist with too much muscle. Cal Stark, the professional football player who had the body of a Greek god and a face made for billboards. But Cal’s arrogance had killed any chance of a relationship an hour into our first date.
“I know it’s rushed and out of the ordinary, but it feels right with Hux.”
I spoke the truth.
Maybe because I knew our arrangement had an expiration date—Savannah’s eighteenth birthday—but I hadn’t needed to search for imperfections with Hux. He let his show. I didn’t try to hide mine. There were no pretenses.
“You stopped singing,” she said. “Now this.”
My beautiful friend could not understand why I’d quit something she so loved. “I don’t want to sing.”
“Are you sure? Because—”
“I’m not like you, Lucy. It’s not part of me.”
“It was your dream,” she whispered.
“No.” I gave her a sad smile. “It was your dream. And it was time for me to let it go.”
“But you’re so talented.” Her eyes pleaded for me not to quit. “You are an incredible singer. Take the label up on their offer. Do an album.”
“I don’t want an album.” I searched for the words to articulate this better than I had since Nashville. To say the right thing so she’d understand. “I liked the excitement. I liked the thrill of the stage. I liked that it was a fun job and paid the bills. But then everything changed. I don’t want the excitement or the thrill anymore. I never loved the music like you do, so the rest is . . . empty.”
Her shoulders slumped but understanding crossed her face. “I didn’t know you felt like that. I thought it was your big dream and it was your fears holding you back.”
“No. I don’t need a big dream. I’d rather accomplish a small one,” I admitted. “I want a happy life. A simple home. I want to be around people who aren’t afraid to belly laugh and tell me they love me.”
“I don’t think that’s a small dream. Sounds about perfect to me.”
I closed the distance to my friend and pulled her in for a hug. “I’m sorry.”
“I feel like I’m losing you,” she confessed. “We live in the same town but . . .”
Everything had changed since that fateful day at the farmhouse. If we were being honest, everything had changed when Lucy had left Nashville. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. I’m just . . . I don’t know. Trying to find my safe place.”
“Isn’t marrying a stranger a bit of an extreme solution?”
“Yes.” I laughed, letting her go. “But Hux makes me feel safe.”
Saying the words out loud made me realize exactly how true they were. I didn’t fear the doorbell. I didn’t fear a restaurant or going to a basketball game. Not with him by my side. “I’ve been scared. It was easier to hide in that apartment and shut out the world than face it. But we both know that couldn’t last forever.”
“Okay.” Lucy blew out a long breath. “I hope you two know what you’re doing.”
So do I. “Can we go shopping now?”
She nodded and walked to the driver’s side, climbing into the truck.
I went to the passenger side and clicked on my seat belt. “How did you know I was at the gallery?”
“I didn’t.” She turned the key in the ignition. “But since you didn’t call me all weekend, I gave it a few days to sink in, then I decided to come and find you. I went to Hux’s place first, then your apartment. Here was the next best guess.”
“Thanks for hunting me down.”
She leveled me with a glare. “Don’t make me do it again.”
“Yes, ma’am.” I laughed. “I’m sorry for avoiding you all weekend.”
“Please don’t be scared to talk to me.”
“To you? Never.” I stretched across the cab, pulling her into another hug. Lucy was my confidant, my sister of the heart. I might have worried about this conversation, but I wasn’t scared to confide in her. There were simply times when I needed a minute to prepare. Not for her. For myself. “Love you.”
“Love you too.” She squeezed me tighter before letting me go to back out of our parking spot. “What are we shopping for?”
“Shelves. I’m organizing the gallery.”
“Ahh. Making your mark.”
I nodded. “Yep.”
We spent an hour at the hardware store buying shelves. There weren’t many options, but we made do and when we returned to the gallery, Hux emerged from the alley door as we parked.
“Where is all this going?” he asked, surveying the boards and brackets in the back.
“The storage room.”
Lucy and I left Hux to haul everything inside and I escorted her through the gallery and out the front door to her car. I gave her another hug and promised to meet her and Kerrigan for lunch soon.
Kerrigan hadn’t been like Lucy, leaving me to myself after the basketball game. She’d texted relentlessly yesterday while Hux had been in his studio and I’d finally given in and texted her back.
I waited on the sidewalk, waving as Lucy reversed away. Then I blew out a breath and went inside.
Katie’s frigid expression did its best to ruin my mood.
I bit my tongue and gave her another fake smile, passing through the showroom for the hallway. Hux had just hauled the last load into the storage room.
“I need a drill and a level so I can hang these,” I said. Not that I’d ever hung a shelf before but I knew how to YouTube. Worst case, I’d call my DIY lifeline, Kerrigan.
Hux opened his mouth but before he could respond, I held up a hand.
“If you tell me to ask Katie, I’ll smother you in your sleep.”
He chuckled. “How about you tell me where you want these and I’ll hang them for you?”
“Nope.” I shook my head. “My project. Now go away.”
He grinned and walked closer but didn’t pass me for the door.
Instead, he snaked his hands around me, pulling up the back of my coat so his hands could dive into my jean pockets. One fantastically firm ass squeeze and I was pressed into his chest, leaning into his strong lines. “Tools are at home. We’ll bring them in tomorrow.”
“Fine.” I wiggled out of his hold, then pointed for the door. “I’m going to organize for an hour. Then we’re going to the café for lunch.”
“They deliver.”
“Yes, but you need to be seen around town with your new, loving wife.” I rolled my eyes. “Buh-bye.”
And I needed that hour to remember I was his new, loving wife.
This bluff was harder at moments than I’d thought it would be.
It would be easier to have a late lunch in a nearly deserted restaurant and tease Nelson about his eating habits, but forcing Hux out in public was important. I’d have to catch Nelson next time.
Hux chuckled again, shaking his head as he disappeared into his office. He was supposed to be organizing today so I could start on the bookkeeping tomorrow, but given the piles upon piles of paperwork, I doubted he’d finish in a day.
So while he attempted to make sense of that mess, I tackled the one before me, shuffling paintings into piles and sorting them by size. Finally, with them quasi-arranged into the genesis of an inventory system, I went in search of cleaning supplies. There was no way in hell I was asking Katie.
By the time lunch rolled around, sweat beaded at my temples and I suspected this room was as clean as it had been in years. The spiders would have to find a new home. Hux hadn’t come to collect me yet, so I stayed in the safety of my storage room and made the call I’d been dreading.
The phone rang three times before she answered. “Hi, Everly.”
“Hi, Mom. How are you today?”
“It’s March.” Meaning she was busy and I was interrupting her workday.
Deep breath. One. Two. Three . . . “I got married.” Ouch. Yeah, that announcement wasn’t getting easier.
“What did you say?”
“I got married.” I held my breath, cringing at the squeal that had leaked into my voice. “Just wanted to let you know.”
“Married.”
“Um . . . yes. His name is Reese Huxley.”
“Congratulations to you and Reese.” Was that sarcasm? I wasn’t aware Mom knew how it worked.
“Thanks?”
“You’re welcome.” Okay, that was a new tone. And whatever it was, there wasn’t an ounce of excitement included. There also wasn’t any shock or censure or any other emotion for that matter.
She just . . . didn’t care.
I’d gotten married, and my mother didn’t care.
Tears welled in my eyes. What had I expected? This was the mother I knew. Distant. Numb. Cold. I was a distraction. A disappointment.
Who cares that I’d dropped out of college? Lots of kids chose not to pursue higher education. And hadn’t I been a good kid in high school?
I hadn’t rebelled. I’d kept good grades. I’d treated the Buick they’d bought me like a gold-plated Cadillac. The one and only time they’d grounded me was when I’d snuck out after dark to kiss a boy in my driveway.
Why was it so hard for her to give me some fucking slack?
“Why don’t you love me?” The words weren’t supposed to come out of my mouth. Luckily, they were so quiet I barely registered them myself.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing.” I dried my eyes. “Please pass along the news to Dad.”
Without waiting for her to hang up on me, I ended the call and stared at one of the blank walls. Assholes. I was surrounded by assholes today. Except for Lucy. And the hardware store guys.
But everyone else was on my shit list.
I sucked in a breath, willing the hurt to go away. I had a lunch to attend and a community to bluff. But the tears blurred my vision until one of them fell. I caught it quickly with my fingers.
Mascara streaks would give Katie something to smirk about today. She’d probably think they were her doing.
It was the desire to prove her wrong that made me pull my shit together. I could have a pity party later when I was alone at home. In this gallery, I was Hux’s happy wife.
I sniffled and swiped under my eyes. Except before I could straighten my spine and go about my work, two strong arms wrapped around me.
“Your parents?”
I glanced over my shoulder and scowled. “Were you spying?”
“Maybe.”
“Then you should know your in-laws suck and I doubt they’ll send us a wedding gift.”
His arms banded tighter. “Your in-laws suck too.”
“Good to know.”
One of these days, we’d have to swap childhood stories, but today was not that day.
I stepped out of his arms, expecting him to be the gruff and grouchy man from earlier. But his expression was soft. His eyes were so full of concern that it melted any frustration that lingered from our argument earlier.
The change was surprising. Care was a good look on Hux.
“Come on, honey.” I grabbed his hand and dragged him toward the door. “I’ve got the company credit card. I’ll buy you lunch.”
Chapter Twelve
Hux
“Before we go to dinner, I need to run an errand.”
“Okay.” Everly pulled her coat and purse from the hook beside the door in my office. A hook I’d hung up yesterday.
In the past two weeks, she’d transformed the gallery. The storage room had never looked better. I could actually see how many pieces I had completed, all organized by size. The couch in my office was free of clutter and usable for a change. Not that I spent much time there, but last night after Katie had left for the evening, Ev and I had broken it in. An orgasm was the least I could give her for all her efforts.
When I’d asked her about a salary, she’d waved it off, saying it was her contribution to the Huxley household. Still, I’d called the bank and ordered her a debit card to my account. And her own company credit card. She’d mentioned running low on savings, so if she needed more, she could take it.
Given all she’d accomplished in only two weeks, I was getting the better end of the bargain. She’d done more around the gallery than I had in a year. While she’d bustled around, I’d spent hours going through the piles on my desk. I was about done, sick to death of paperwork, but with it somewhat sorted, she’d have an easier time taking over the books. It had all been a welcome distraction, preventing me from harassing Aiden hourly about the petition.
We hadn’t heard back yet from the court as to when my proposed amendment to the parenting plan would be reviewed, but we hoped it would be scheduled soon. Until then, I would work.
Everly and I came to the gallery every morning after it opened at ten. At first, she’d insisted on hanging the shelves and hooks and whatever else she’d wanted on her own. But after those first couple of days, she’d announced she wasn’t handy and forked over the drill. So I’d taken over installation while she’d organized and filled a spiral notebook with inventory notes ready to be keyed into my bookkeeping program.
I’d gladly hand over control of that nightmare. If she thought this building was a mess, just wait until she opened my laptop.
It would keep her busy though while I spent some overdue time in the studio at home. Katie had lined up three more custom pieces for me to do in the next six weeks. Then there was getting ahead on inventory for summer.
“Tomorrow, I’m probably not coming down,” I said as Everly shrugged on her coat.
“Good. That will give me time to get familiar with your books without you hovering.” She nodded to the desk.
“You good to drive my truck?” I hadn’t missed how Lucy had been the one to drive my truck on Ev’s first trip to the hardware store. And since, she’d paired her shopping trips with our lunch hour so she could drag me along—all in the name of public appearances.
“Uh . . .” The look of panic on her fa
ce made me chuckle.
I dug the keys from my pocket and handed them over. “You can practice tonight.”
She frowned but took the keys, then led the way to the back door, going outside for the truck while I went to talk to Katie.
It hadn’t escaped my notice that the two of them didn’t get along. Yet. But they’d figure their shit out eventually. At least, I hoped. I sure as hell wasn’t stepping in the middle to play referee.
“We’re taking off,” I told Katie. “You good?”
“I’ve run this place for years, Hux.” There was a bite to her tone. It had everything to do with my wife.
“Ev’s just trying to help, Katie, find her place here.”
She shot me a flat look.
“She’s doing stuff we both hate. Might be nice to take some off your plate.”
Katie had never complained about the hours here. I’d offered to hire someone years ago, to spare her some time off, but she’d insisted on being here herself, that it gave her the chance to connect personally with buyers. So six days a week, she was here from ten to seven.
In the winter, we were closed on Sundays, giving her a day off. But once the tourists rolled into town, we were seven days a week. Sometimes I’d man the place, though normally it was Katie’s domain. She might not clean and organize beyond the showroom, but the showroom was immaculate.
If Katie would chill, she’d see that Everly’s contribution was a good thing for the gallery.
“Give Ev a chance,” I said.
“I have been nothing but polite.”
If polite meant cold and unwelcoming. “Be polite-er.”
“Okay, boss,” she muttered.
“Hey.” I sighed. “Don’t be like that.”
“You don’t even know her, Hux.” Katie threw out a hand. “Why would you marry her? I’ve heard you say on more than one occasion you’d never get married again, that you didn’t want a relationship. Then she shows up and has a monster ring on her finger. The entire thing screams gold digger.”
“She’s not a gold digger.” Everly didn’t need my money, right? She’d said she had her reasons to get married, but could money be one of them?