“Just tired.” I try to keep my voice steady, but he’s not buying it.
“Cole,” he says, his voice gentler now, cutting through my defenses. “We all know you’ve got something going on with Ivy.”
I stiffen, feeling a spark of irritation rise up in my chest. “What’s it to you?”
Knox raises an eyebrow. “It’s nothing to me, but it sure as hell seems to be something to you. And maybe to her.”
My jaw tightens. “She deserves better.”
“Better?” He frowns, crossing his arms. “What does that mean? You think you’re not good enough?”
I shrug, my frustration simmering just beneath the surface. “She’s sunshine and Christmas lights, Knox. She’s…more than what I can give her.”
Knox watches me for a moment, then he sighs, shaking his head. “That sounds like your insecurities talking, man, not the truth.”
“It is the truth,” I snap, my voice a little too loud. I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. “She’s better off without me. I’m just a guy with a workshop and a cabin up the mountain. I’m not what she needs.”
Knox’s gaze sharpens. “You think you’re the only one around here with doubts? We all have them, Cole. But the thing is, Ivy sees something in you. She wouldn’t be sticking around if she didn’t.”
I sigh, glancing down at the wrench in my hand, my grip tightening. “Maybe she just doesn’t know any better.”
“You know,” Knox says, his tone a little lighter now, “Perry once told me that a good woman sees right through a man’s walls. Even the walls he doesn’t realize he has.”
I scoff, my chest tight with the truth I’m not ready to admit. “And what, I’m supposed to just let her tear them down?”
Knox smiles, giving me a pat on the shoulder. “Something tells me she’s already started, brother.”
I grunt, unable to shake this dark feeling.
Knox’s gaze narrows before his grin twists into a smirk. “You love her–that’s why you’re all twisted up like this. Betty’s gonna have a field day with this match. The grump and the school teacher.”
“Shut the fuck up,” I throw back.
His laugh fills my shop. “Tell you what, you old dodgy bastard, if you love her–trust her. It sounds cliché, but just follow your heart on this, andignoreyour head.”
“Did you just come up the mountain to give me bad advice?”
He shrugs, eyes swinging around my shop. “She’s really left her mark on you–it’s festive as fuck in here.”
I shrug. “I kinda like it.”
“Because it reminds you of her.” He says, sager than he’s ever been.
“Damn, Perry has really done a number on you. You’ve gone soft, bro.”
“And I wouldn’t have it any other way. Ivy is a good woman–maybe she deserves better, but take my advice and don’t let this one get away. The good ones are hard to come by.”
I grunt, unwilling to admit how right he is.
“You comin’ to Christmas Eve at ma’s place?” Knox shifts subjects. “That’s why I came here, she sent me because you’re not answering your damn text messages.”
I roll my eyes. “Got shit to do.”
He chuckles. “I figured. She’s makin’ prime rib, she needs a head count. Said to bring your new girl if you want.”
I nod. “I’ll ask her.”
“Good, I’ll let ma know.” He turns, then pauses when he reaches the doorway. “If you fuck this up with Ivy I’ll never let you forget it.”
