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We spend the remainder of the day inside this wee cabin, naked for the entire time, while we chat and laugh and generally bask in the afterglow of incredible sex as well as our newly forged bond. I've never felt this deeply for any man, not even the ones I dated for several months. Gavin Douglas is not like anyone else, and I know I never want to say goodbye to him.
After our third round of hide-and-go-seek, during which Gavin pretended to hide under an invisible bed, we decide it's time to return to Calli's house. Gav looked bloody ridiculous when he curled up as if he actually were under a bed. I laughed so hard that my eyes watered. And when he crawled out of his supposed hiding place, he acted as if he had bumped his head on the imaginary bed frame.
And I laughed even harder.
We stroll back to the house hand in hand, glancing at each other often, smiling in the way couples in love do. I've seen that happen with other people, but never with me. Not until I met Gavin. Now everything has changed, and I'm beginning to see a future with him, unfolding from this moment on.
As we walk through the sliding glass doors, I sense that something isn't right. We both halt just inside the doorway, exchanging confused glances. Aye, he must feel the difference too. What is it, exactly?
"The puppies aren't bounding around," Gavin says. "I don't hear any noises at all in here. Aidan and Calli should be talking while Mandy and Misty try to slather their tongues all over them."
"Aye, something is different. I feel it too."
He grips my hand more firmly as we shuffle across the living room.
Calli and Aidan emerge from the hallway. Their expressions prove our suspicions were correct. Calli seems completely forlorn, while Aidan wears a stoic mask. I have never seen my brother look that way. Never.
"What's happened?" I ask.
"Pack your things," Aidan tells me. "We're going home first thing tomorrow."
I gawp at him. "Home? I don't want to leave yet. If Calli's going with you, then Gavin should come with us too."
"You and I are flying home. Calli and Gavin will stay here."
"But---"
"No arguments. Go pack your things---now."
Gavin's hand has tightened around mine so much that it almost hurts. He aims his steely stare at Aidan. "Tell us what's going on. We deserve that much."
Aidan sighs, and his shoulders sag. "Aye. Let's all sit down, and I'll explain everything."
Chapter Eleven
Gavin
I lead Jamie over to the sofa while Aidan and Calli sit in armchairs positioned at opposite sides of the sofa. They don't look at each other, except for the occasional furtive glance. The last time I saw my sister looking so dejected had been right after our parents died in a car crash. Now, Aidan and Calli explain everything to us.
Calli has a husband she never told me about. I knew she'd been friends with a guy called Rade back in college, but now I learn that he tricked my baby sister into marrying him so he could get a green card. That's marriage fraud, and he's held it over her for years. I never had a clue. After my time in Afghanistan, and our parents' deaths, I'd been useless. Calli's dilemma is my fault.
"No, Gavin, it's not your fault," Calli insists. "I made my own mistakes and believed the wrong man."
"But I should've been there for you. Instead, I made you handle all the funeral arrangements and deal with the life insurance company. I'm your big brother, and I failed you."
I can tell Calli wants to argue with me, to convince me I'm wrong. But she must realize now isn't the time for that. She keeps quiet.
Aidan tells us about his rock-climbing accident, and how the girl he'd taken up a big mountain with him had nearly died in the rockslide that injured them both. She suffered the most severe wounds, though. He blames himself, of course, just like I blame myself for Calli's dilemma. Seona, the woman who was involved in the accident, now claims she's pregnant with Aidan's child. That's why he and Jamie need to go home.
Though I want to argue about that, I realize Aidan is upset about the Seona situation. He wants to take Jamie home with him because he needs to be with his family. I get that. But the thought of Jamie flying away from me makes my chest ache and my throat tighten. She means more to me than a casual fling. I want to spend the rest of my life with her.
We all try to sleep that night, but given our haggard expressions in the morning, I know none of us managed to get any rest. Breakfast becomes a silent movie. Might as well have turned the world into black and white. Jamie and Aidan spend most of the morning packing up their suitcases and stowing them in the trunk of Aidan's rented Mustang. Then they spend a while arguing out in the yard while Calli and I sit on the sofa, at opposite ends, watching them.
Jamie doesn't want to leave. I can tell that much just from watching her argue with Aidan.
Though I make lunch for all of us, we don't eat much. We avoid looking at each other too.
Now, it's time for Jamie and Aidan to leave.
