Page 19 of Chalk It Up

I walk August and Emmett around the stage of the multipurpose room and do my best to help them see my vision for the space. The big picture of it is pretty simple but it shines in its details. August’s eyes have not dropped from me since the second I walked in and he seems to be hanging onto every word out of my mouth. That thought makes me nervous and sends my blood coursing through my body. But I am loving having his undivided attention.

I pull my sketch pad out to see how we can turn it into finalized schematics and I suddenly feel itchy and exposed in my tanktop. It’s then I notice that my shirt has the full attention of Emmett. August seems to notice at the same time with the scowl that’s etched into his face.

I feel bad and pull back a little, although I don’t know why. I don’t belong to August, and Emmett is perfectly single, gorgeous, hardworking, and to top it off, kind. It’s then I decide I want to work more with Emmett on this project. He seems like he’ll calm my nerves and be a good support.

“Does that set design seem to make sense?” I end my little presentation to the two of them but direct the question to Emmett.

“Evie, this set is going to be the best this town has seen! You’ve created serious art here.” Emmett encourages and suddenly a huge weight feels like it just evaporated off of my entire body, like this program is possible and will be great. I beam back at Emmett feeling accomplished and we haven’t even touched a hammer or nail yet. I don’t miss August stiffen in my peripherals at this interaction.

Content that my explanation went well, August heads over to the rest of his crew members to delegate their tasks, leaving Emmett and I alone.

“Hey, we can get some work done tonight.” I suggest. “Want me to help you start on those Christmas tree stands you guys were talking about earlier?” It seems like a simple enough job that we could maybe even finish tonight and by the way he’s still smiling, Emmett seems to love that idea.

“Yeah, Evie. That sounds great. Mind helping me get a few things out of the truck that we’ll need? Then we can get started at the stage.”

“I’d love to.” We start across the room to Emmett’s truck in agreeable silence, but I can feel his gaze on me every so often so I decide to start up a conversation so I can look at him too. Even if a slight pang of irrational guilt hits me at the thought. “So, how long have you known the Vons?” Seems like a safe topic, and I’m nosy.

“I’ve actually known them since I was a kid.” This surprises me because I genuinely thought Emmett wasn’t from here. “My family used to vacation here every summer when I was growing up,” oh, “and I met the Von family while swimming at the lake one year. We hit it off, and my parents fell in love with Pine Lake. We moved here when I turned seventeen.” I’m shocked by how much of an open book this man is. It is so refreshing. “Once I graduated, my parents realized that they only really like to vacation here, not be stuck up here. So they left and I stayed, and even though I was eighteen at that point, the Vons kind of took me in as an adopted brother. The rest is history.” Adopted brother is right, especially since he looks nothing like them. He has a similar build, especially for all the manual labor I assume he does for work, but where the Vons are all brown hair and green eyes, Emmett has dark black hair and crushing blue eyes I could take a deep dive into. But even with how gorgeous and sweet he is, he doesn’t turn me into putty like August does. Emmett somehow already feels like a kindred spirit. Like a really good, reliable friend. And I’m very hopeful about that prospect.

chapter 13

August

I think if someone asked me what my personal version of hell was, it would be this moment right here. Not only is Emmett polite and all smiles, but what in the seven circles is with him calling her Evie? The fact that she hasn’t asked me to call her that has me reconsidering if I want to call Emmett my brother or bury him. From the second she walked through those double doors and Emmett started smiling and staring at Evangeline, I’ve had to reign in every ounce of self-control I have. I want to bash his face in.

I have a temper, but I’m not a violent man by any means, so these irrational thoughts are entirely out of my nature. Evangeline sends me into emotional spirals with visceral reactions I’ve never felt before. And having to remind myself I have no claim to her outside of her being my daughter’s teacher is the purest torture. But it felt like something had changed last night after I carried her. Which I can’t even believe I did. I may have eventually set her down, but I didn’t let her go. All of the spots where I held her feel like they’re mine now. When I helped her with her car I thought she felt it too. I guess I am worse at reading women than I thought. Maybe there is some validity to Larissa leaving us.

And the cherry on top of it all is them deciding to work on something together, all the while having an amicable conversation that Evangeline is thoroughly engrossed in. Emmett can’t stop talking. He’s always talked so much he could rival a parrot and it’s never bothered me until right now. It feels like the yank in my lower stomach and chest I have for Evangeline is being violently ripped out and squeezed.

The hardest part is watching them work together and knowing that she deserves someone exactly like Emmett. He’s not a Von, but he might as well be for the love and memories all of us have shared since childhood. I know what I’m talking about when I say he’s a good man through and through. Definitely a huge flirt, but that somehow only makes him even more attractive to the ladies. I can’t deny that he is the perfect man for any woman, and I hate that I’m watching that play out with the one woman who has started to ignite something in me.

I head back to the rest of the crew who came with us, hoping they can provide enough of a distraction from what’s happening in front of me. My men don’t need babysitting. I keep them at Von because they’ve proven themselves reliable, but I like to be hands-on with things as well, so it doesn’t surprise any of them when I make my way over to help out.

It’s been thirty minutes. Thirty minutes of me and the guys working in silence with only Emmett’s voice and Evangeline’s laughter filling the gym. I’m trying so hard to keep it together, but I’m half tempted to call it a night and pick up Addie early from Ms. Wilma’s house. But the idea of not being able to keep my eyes on Emmett and Evangeline is somehow worse. I know my imagination will torture me with “what if’s” if I don’t actively have eyes on what the two of them are doing. Especially for the way Emmett was appraising her when she got here. I’m fairly certain it doesn’t get worse than this.

And then it does. They’re working on what looks like the Christmas stands and Evangeline just brought a hammer over for Emmett to use. Or that’s what I thought she was doing until she gets down on her knees with Emmett and he sets his hand on top of hers, wrapped around the hammer to show her the pressure she needs to hit it with.

Evangeline seems like a very independent woman, there’s no way she needs help with a hammer. Emmett will seriously go to any lengths, I swear. All the while neither of them look at the nail, but smile at each other and I’m unequivocally done. I don’t even know what I’m holding or working on, and it doesn’t matter because I drop it unceremoniously to the ground and my tunnel vision engages. Everything around me is blurry except for the complete sharpness with which I can see Evangeline and Emmett laugh and look at each other. All I see is red. I’m tall enough that it barely takes any strides for me to eat up the space across the gym to where they are working. I know the heat building up inside of me is irrational. I know Evangeline is not mine. I know I haven’t done a single thing to deserve feeling as possessive about her as I do, but I can’t continue to watch this. There’s a weight on my chest and I can’t pull a deep enough breath to relieve it. This gym is full of people, but right now there's only Evangeline. Smart, beautiful, hardworking Evangeline with the most melodic laugh I’ve ever heard. I want it directed at me. And I’ll pack it up and move before I have to hear her laugh because of another man again. Even if that man is one of my best friends.

I have to remind myself to not be mad at Emmett. He hasn’t done anything wrong. They’re both single and free to do whatever they want, except each other. I refuse to let that happen, and I feel like that’s exactly where the night is going.

Thankfully, I’ve calmed myself down enough to remember that Emmett is not the enemy here, which is good because I was seconds away from physically disengaging my best friend from this woman and that is not my place.

But luckily, I’m still his boss, so I can separate them easily enough. I stand right over them, and clearly I’m invisible because neither looks away from the other until I clear my throat. They fumble away from each other like I just caught them in the act. That thought definitely has the anger rising back up inside of me, because that could eventually be a very real possibility. Emmett might actually be the enemy here.

“Emmett, since the guys weren’t with us when Ms. Jake did her run through of her vision for the set, I’m going to need you to head over and give them a quick run down and walk through of the plan so we’re all on the same page.” I know this demand is rude and unnecessary because that’s something I could have easily accomplished on my own earlier, but if I have to hear Evangeline laughing at this man for even another second, I’m going to lose my mind.

Emmett gives me a look, knowing full well that this attempt at separating the two of them is a load of crap. “Oh, is that right, boss?” he chides back at me. “Well, since I’m the only one who was listening to Evie well enough to be able to relay the info, I’ll happily fill them in.” He knows just the right thing to say to get under my skin. Bounding up from the floor where Evangeline still kneels, he turns back to her to drive just one more dagger into my chest.

“So tomorrow still works for you?” Emmett directs the question at Evangeline. “I can pick you up at around seven.” Oh absolutely not. He can’t actually be taking Evangeline out on a date. He keeps talking but the blood is pounding so hard in my ears that I can’t zero in on what he’s telling her.

“I can’t wait. I’ll be ready then. Wait, what should I wear?” Evangeline beams back at him and I’m beside myself.

“It’s a surprise. But feel free to wear anything comfy and casual. It’ll be a relaxing, chill evening.” Emmett bends down and pecks her on the cheek and bounds away to do the menial task I gave him. The task, which now seems like it’s bit me in the butt, since I just had to watch my best friend of over a decade, who is dead to me now, give a peck on the cheek of the woman who courses through every vein in my body.

Yeah, this isn’t going to happen. I turn back to Evangline who’s looking at me with incredulous eyes. She can’t possibly know my motives for doing this. And if she does, it’s only because she feels the same way. We stare each other down for longer than necessary. It does nothing to help me because she’s still kneeling down by the Christmas tree stand that her and Emmett were working on. And she has a knowing fire behind her eyes.

“Well…” I begin.