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“I’m OK,” I replied in what I thought was a peppy voice, but Cole read my body language and tensed.
“Did something happen while I was gone?” He spun me around so he could see my face.
“Um, nothing really. Just some woman came over to talk to me about Tanner.”
“What did she say?”
“She told me about Jessie-Lynn.” I chewed my lip. “She said I needed to be careful because I was fragile and I could get hurt.”
Cole swore under his breath.
Silas came over, having heard the tail end of our conversation. He frowned.
“What did she look like, Eva?”
“Um, tall, long black hair. Pretty. She didn’t tell me her name.”
He growled. “It was Nala.” Then he sighed. “Ignore her, Eva. She’s jealous and trying to get into your head. Jessie-Lynn died a long time ago.”
“Nala implied Tanner killed her.”
“And you believe her?” Tanner’s voice was ice cold. I hadn’t heard him approach. Like always.
“No, of course not!” I gazed up at him, but I could tell from the look on his face he thought I was lying. He tossed the two cups he was holding into the fire and stalked away.
My heart cracked in two.
Why did I open my big mouth? I should have just ignored the bitch. It was obvious she was trying to make drama for the sake of it. God, I was such an idiot. Now Tanner was angry and upset because I’d practically accused him of murdering his ex.
Silas pulled me close and cupped my face in his large hands. “Hey, it’s OK, sugar. Tanner will be fine. He knows you don’t believe Nala. Just give him some space to get his head sorted.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “The topic of Jessie-Lynn is a difficult one for him. Let him tell you in his own time, OK?”
Cole hummed in agreement. “Give him some space, sweetheart.”
Tears welled in my eyes, but I nodded. The plate of ribs in my hand had congealed in the cold. My appetite was long gone, and I was beginning to wish I’d stood my ground and refused to leave the cabin. Me being here was ruining the party for them all.
I wasn’t one of them.
Nala was right. I was just a fragile human.
Silas
“Is Tanner coming?” Rufus asked, his eyes flicking between me and Cole.
“Yeah, he’ll be along shortly,” I lied. In truth, I wasn’t sure where he’d gone. We hadn’t seen him since last night. After he’d overheard Eva asking about Jessie-Lynn, he had disappeared. Most likely he’d shifted and gone for a long run; it was his go-to coping mechanism when emotional shit got too much for him.
Fucking Nala. She was lucky I hadn’t crossed paths with her.
She was pissed about Eva. Damn stupid female had always had a torch for Tanner, and he’d fanned the flames by hooking up with her every few months. I’d warned him to leave her alone, but of course he didn’t listen. A woman scorned was the most dangerous kind of female.
While Rufus poured some coffee, I fired off a text to Tanner.
Rufus is waiting. Hurry up
Cole glanced at me and then at my phone. I nodded to indicate I’d sent a message, and he dipped his head in response.
Eva was with Cilla, helping in the kitchen. She was doing a great job of pretending like everything was fine, but I knew she’d had barely slept a wink last night. Nothing we said made any difference. It wasn’t her fault Tanner overreacted. Even after all these years, Tanner found it hard to talk about Jessie-Lynn.
I breathed a sigh of relief when the door opened five minutes later and he walked in, his usual mask of indifference in place.
