AllFreeNovel
Share Us
While her mother pestered Ellis about his wine selection, Everly scooched closer to Logan and whispered, “Are you sure you’re okay with this? This will all be fair game for the show. Plus, the stuff with my brother talking about marriage. Which, I amsosorry. I have plans to smotherhim with his cat tonight while he sleeps.” As if she’d heard her, Cream Cheese came sashaying through the room, stopping tomeowloudly at each of them. Ellis, though, got a hiss. Like the cat was already on board for Everly’s plan.
Logan pressed a reassuring hand to her knee. “This is what she’s asking for, right? So she’ll lay off the James stuff?” Sadyhadsaid she’d love to see more between Everly and Logan. And this felt like it was on their terms. There was no hidden footage or stolen audio. Just the two of them, deciding how they wanted the world to see them.
A smile that screamed trouble settled on his face. “Besides, better to give her a cute family moment than us humping each other in an alley.”
“We were n—” Everly clamped her mouth shut, her skin glowing red. Denying it would be a big, gigantic lie.
“What are you conspiring about over there?” Ellis chimed in.
“Just choosing the wedding date,” Logan deadpanned. Despite being an only child, he clearly understood the art of sibling warfare.
On cue, Ellis choked on his sip of wine.
Everly swallowed back a triumphant laugh. “I’m getting a tattoo,” she declared. Anything to stop further talk of weddings and prevent her mother from—god forbid—starting in on the grandbabies Everly had no plans on giving her. That was a conversation for her thirties. “In two days.”
“Wait. No way!” Becca’s mouth fell open. “I want one.”
Everly looked at Logan.
He shrugged. “If it’s small, and not something custom, Goro can probably squeeze her in, too. We have him booked for most of the morning, and small tats don’t take that long.”
“We’re leaving at the ass crack of dawn,” Everly warned. Becca, like Everly, was not a morning person.
“I don’t care. I’ll hook up an IV of coffee and sleep in the car.” Beccareached across the table (somehow managing to avoid the food spread) and grabbed Everly’s arm. “What are you getting and where?”
“On the inside of my left forearm.” Everly grabbed her phone to pull up the sketch she and Goro had recently finalized and set it on the table for them to see.
“Oh. My. God.” Becca pressed her hands to her face like she was re-creating theHome Aloneposter.
Ellis let out a long whistle. “This is badass, E.”
“It’s beautiful.” Her mother pointed at the screen. “You drew this?”
“In collaboration with the tattoo artist.” Everly ran her finger over the design. “It represents freedom. How I want to be myself and stop hiding. Get out of my cage, so to speak.”
Her eyes drifted toward Logan. He was one of the first people to encourage her to give in to this process.
To open Schrödinger’s box.
She’d had no idea she’d find him inside.
Logan’s hand was flat against the placemat, mere inches away from hers.
Everly thought about what he’d said. How they could choose what to show Sady. Control the narrative. She might not be ready to have her whole love life on film, but she could do something small. She could share something real with the viewers.
With the camera pointed right at them, and her whole family watching around the table, Everly pressed her palm over Logan’s knuckles and wove their fingers together.
Everly was working on some designs for Sundae’s Sanctuary on her lunch break when she heard a throat clear behind her.
She spun around in her chair. James stood there, looking uncomfortable, a hand extended to offer her a cup containing somethingfrozen and pink. “It’s your favorite smoothie from the place across the street.”
“Uh. Thanks.”
She accepted it hesitantly. What was this going to cost her? The two of them hadn’t exchanged more than an awkward hello in days. He must be desperate for help on a project if he was not only talking to her, but had come bearing cold drinks.
“No camera today?” His gaze skittered around Reception.
“They do postproduction on Tuesdays.”
