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ChapterThirty-Two
SPENCER
All day at the car wash, I keep my head down and do my job. Earbuds in, music blasting. I tune out the rest of the world. I don’t think about Milo or Caden or Troy. I don’t think about the bet. I don’t think about Tess. Okay, yeah. I think about Tess. But I still manage to detail three cars and an SUV add-on, without taking a break. Not beyond chugging water and scarfing a couple protein bars.
And thinking about Tess some more.
But that’s better than worrying about what I’m planning to say to Frank before I leave here today. Or about what the words might cost me. Because it’s gonna happen either way.
A half hour before the shop’s set to close, I head over to Frank’s office. I’m going to admit to my brother that Tess knows about the bet. And that I’m the one who told her. And if this means I have to surrender my entire down payment? So be it. I owe the truth to her.
To myself.
“Hey,” I say, standing in the doorway, filling the frame. “You got a minute?”
Frank doesn’t look up from his computer. “Not really.” His voice is flat. He’s used to me coming in after I’ve finished a wash to check on what else he might want me to tackle. When it’s not a fresh scrub of the bathroom, sometimes he has me look over his books. I offer feedback on the shop’s bottom line. I’ve even made recommendations about tax withholdings and retirement accounts. My brother’s smart, but he’s not a numbers guy.
To him, the future’s just another F word.
“We need to talk,” I say. He’s hunched over his desk, eyes skimming an excel spreadsheet. His expression is glazed over. I’d assume the guy skipped his morning coffee. Except my brother doesn’t drink coffee. “You okay, man?” I ask.
He finally glances up, staring at me like he didn’t know I was there. But that’s impossible since his office is more like a shoebox than an actual room. I’m literally ten feet away and talking at him. I’m also wearing cologne. Because I wear cologne now.
“Frank?” I repeat. “What’s going on?”
This time he blinks and gestures for me to come inside. When he blows out a breath, a receipt wafts across his desk. “It’s Alice,” he growls. This isn’t a tone he uses to speak about his girlfriend. Ever.
“Everything all right?” I ask, hoping nothing’s seriously wrong. I saw Alice in here earlier, right around lunchtime, but I was too busy with the SUV and didn’t get to say hi. She’s always been nice to my family. Nice to Frank. I like those two together. I thought things were good with her. With them.
“She left.” He runs a hand across his chin. The hollow look in his eyes isn’t normal. “And by that, I mean she leftme.Alice is moving to Arizona.”
“Oh, no.” I shift my weight. My throat is thick. “When?”
Frank’s sigh is big. Strange. Sad. “Soon.” He shakes his head. “Her sister, Twyla, lives in Flagstaff. She got married a couple years ago, and she’s pregnant now. Whatever.” He rolls his eyes, then shifts his gaze back to the computer screen.
“I’m sorry,” I say. And I am. I lean back against the wall, waiting for Frank to tell me more on his own time. Eventually he does.
“So Alice came in here today, offering to stay longer. Here. In Apple Valley. But her staying came with an ultimatum.” A low grumble sounds in the back of his throat. “I don’t do ultimatums.”
I cock my head, still waiting. If Tess has taught me anything, it’s that a little patience will get you a lot more answers than pummeling someone with questions.
“Apparently she wants to get married now too,” he mutters. “Like yesterday. The whole marriage and family thing must be contagious.” Frank releases another long breath. “And I care about Alice. A lot. But I just couldn’t force myself to drop to a knee, you know?”
I nod. Yeah I do know. Truth be told, my brother’s so unromantic, I can’t picture him proposing to anyone. Even to someone as sweet as Alice. Maybeespeciallyto someone so sweet. I think part of the reason they’ve stayed together this long is because she challenged him zero times. Must’ve been saving it up for now.
“No one shouldhaveto drop to a knee, Frank.”
“That’s what I said.” He frowns. “Butshesaid she can’t waste any more time. The wordsmy biological clock’s tickingmight’ve made an appearance.” He picks up the receipt, crumples it, and tosses it into the trash. “I told her we’ve got years to think about ticking clocks. But she toldmeshe’s not getting any younger. Apparently, she wants to have something like a dozen kids.”
“Whoa.”
“Yeah. That was a bomb all right. I laughed out loud. But Alice didn’t think it was funny.”
I run a hand along the back of my neck. “You two never talked about stuff like that before? Stuff like marriage and kids?”
Frank scoffs. “Talking’s not my brand.”
“Right.” My gut clenches. Tess and Ihavehad a conversation like this. And now I’m remembering she doesn’t want a husband or kids. Ever. Still. This moment isn’t about me. And as emotionally closed off as my brother usually is, he’s clearly hurting now. So bringing up Tess—not to mention our bet—just feels wrong.
