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My brows furrowed. “You’re not going to ask me about the attack?”
He offered a small smile as he closed his laptop and tugged his recording device into his bag. “I was going to,” he said honestly. “My boss really wants the scoop on what happened to you back in New York. But the truth is, it’s not my place. It isn’t my business to ask what you went through. I mean, it is my place because I’m a journalist and this is what I do, but I can’t put you on blast like that. Shit,” he ran his hands through his hair and shook his head. “Maybe I should have let Briggs do this interview after all. He would have beat you with questions.”
I laughed and put a hand to my heart, emotional at the fact that Caleb was risking a great story just to make me comfortable. I’d never be able to explain how much that meant to me. His support, his gentle kindness had me floored.
“Thank you, Caleb,” was al
l I could manage with tears in my eyes.
Chapter 15
The next night I was tucking myself into bed when my phone went off. I assumed it was Caleb again thanking me about the interview for the millionth time. But when I grabbed my phone off the nightstand it wasn’t my high school friend who had texted me.
I’m here. Can you come outside?
I froze, my fingers hovering over my phone. Slinking out of bed and crawling across the floor I peeked over the window sill and pulled the curtain aside where, lo and behold, Knox was standing in the driveway. He was leaning against his truck with his head tilted back, chin pointing towards the sky. Clad in a pair of baggy sweats and sneakers he was sans a shirt. I was half tempted to scream, “What kind of douchebag drives without a shirt on?” but thought better of it.
What do you want?
I hit send and it couldn’t have been less than thirty seconds before he responded.
I just saw the curtain move. Can you please come outside so I don’t have to apologize over text?
Growling, I marched down the stairs and threw open the front door. Careful as not to wake Robbie, I slipped out quietly and trotted down the front steps. Knox met me halfway with one hand behind his back. Once he was in front of me he brought his hand around revealing a familiar bag with an even more familiar logo on it.
“I’m an asshole,” he offered.
I made a small noise of agreement and looked down at my bare feet. When I didn’t take his gift, he dropped his arm and sighed. “Look,” he started and then paused until I looked him in the eye. “I made mistakes when I was younger and I’ve said things I didn’t mean. I can be a mean bastard sometimes, Abbs, and I’m sorry for the things I’ve done to hurt you. But I can’t apologize for defending myself to Logan. I’m not the same man I was five years ago and I hope someday he can see that. But I honestly don’t give a fuck what he thinks. I give a fuck what you think.”
I worried my bottom lip and thought carefully before I responded. “I’m glad we can agree that you’re an asshole.”
He laughed and reached out, tucking a hair behind my ear. “I never should have used you as a pawn to piss him off. It was childish.”
“Knox, I don’t care if my family doesn’t like you. I don’t care if your family doesn’t like me. I-”
“My mother loves you.”
“I only care about us being on the same team. Just me and you,” I gestured between us. “We’re on the same side. You can’t just shut me out for days when you get pissed off because things didn’t go your way. I… I know I have things to work on, too. But I want to know that this, us, will always be a sure thing when we’re doubting everything else.”
Knox nodded his agreement and then cocked his head to the side. “So you don’t want the muffin?”
“Of course I want the muffin.”
He bit back a smile and when I reached for the bag he grabbed me and pulled me flush against him. “You’re still kinda cute when you get all pissy.”
I couldn’t hold back the laugh that escaped but quickly tried to cover it up with an icy glare. “No, I’m mean and cold.”
He dropped the bag and tucked his big hands into the waistband of my shorts. “So mean and cold,” he whispered as he leaned down and kissed me softly.
I wrapped my arms around him and rested my chin on his shoulder. “Can I ask you something?”
“Anything.”
“What kind of douchebag drives without a shirt on?”
I was standing in a kitchen I’d stood in a million times helping bake cookies I baked a million times and it all felt like the first time all over again.
Knox’s childhood home was different without John’s presence. Everything smelled the same, like fresh air and clean cotton, and the light stained wood floors were the same. But there was a sense of loss, of quiet. The air was different without the man around and I was genuinely baffled how Amy could stay in the house all alone.
