Garrett winced. “Maybe.”
Exhaling a whistle under his breath, Davis ran a rough palm down his unshaven face. “Not again. You gotta stop messing with that girl. She has real feelings for you, and I think it’s damn obvious you don’t.”
Garrett stood. “Hey, that’s not fair. Maddie is…Maddie…well, she’s different.” He paced along the work bench.
“Yeah? Because if she’s different enough for you to sleep with her not once, but twice, then I think you have real feelings for her. So who are you trying to fool? Me? Her? Yourself?”
“I didn’t come here for a lecture. You’re the one whose been hung up on some chick for the last ten years, but you’ve been too much of a pussy to do anything about it!”
“I have not been hung up on her for ten years.”
“Now who’s trying to fool who? You talk a lot of talk about me, that I’m managing my grief in an unhealthy way. But you’re the one who’d rather let an entire town believe a rumor instead of admitting you’ve got real feelings for Kelsey.”
“It’s not that,” he hollered.
“No, then what is it, try to make me understand.”
He pushed both hands through his messy hair. “Because, what if…what if she thought it was you?” he yelled.
Garrett’s brows squished together, and he scratched at his chin. “What?”
Davis exhaled. “What if she thought she had sex with you?”
“You serious?”
His chest deflating, Davis gave a curt nod.
“Wouldn’t she know? I mean, you two are best friends.”
“But we’ve never been intimate.”
“Didn’t she scream out your name? Or oh, hell, was it not good? Do people in town think it was me and it wasn’t good?”
If they’d been in closer proximity, Davis would’ve smacked his brother. “That’s what you’re worried about?”
“I mean, I do have a reputation to uphold.” He smirked.
“If it’s any consolation, the rumor is it was the-best-sex-Kelsey’s-ever-had.”
A smug expression overtook Garrett’s face and Davis had to look away. “That does make me feel better about this rumor. But, look, I’m sure she knew it was you. We don’t look that much alike. And we don’t act alike.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” He chewed on a thumbnail. “Except that last night…I wasn’t really myself. I mean, you said it yourself, I harbored feelings for her for ten years before I finally did something about them.”
“You haven’t heard from her since last night?”
“Nope.”
“You need to check in with her. You need to know.”
Davis interlocked his fingers and wrapped them against his neck, staring at the cement floor scattered with a film of sawdust.
“I heard she was at the Fall Festival. Go find her and talk to her.”
It would be easier to text. Easier to call. But doing this in person carried a heaviness of importance to it. They owed it to each other to clear up this rumor, didn’t they?
* * *
It was almostdark by the time Davis made it to the Fall Festival. Dressed in jeans and a thick fleece jacket along with a beanie, he braved the crisp fall air. Main Street was crowded, and his chest fluttered with concern over if he’d even find Kelsey. He didn’t want to give in and text her, but he also wasn’t planning on freezing to death over pride.
