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I give her a sultry wink. “I know that, Rosie. I’m just fucking with you.”
“You’re insufferable.”
“That’s not what you said when I had my fingers buried inside—”
She releases a charming squeal and slaps me across the chest, pushing the air from my lungs in an audible Oof!
“You deserve it.”
Resuming her previous position, she rests her butt against the hood and leans back on her palms, tipping her face to the last rays of the sun. In a few minutes, the first stars of the night will peek out amongst the scattered clouds.
I mirror her stance, raising one hand to scratch the side of my nose with my thumb. “Currently, the woman who cheated on me after fifteen years together is trying to take everything I own—including sole custody of our son.”
Evie’s attention on my face feels physical, but I keep my gaze averted, not wanting to see the pity shining there. Not yet anyway.
My eyes burn, and my throat constricts like a vise clamps around the cartilage. “What she’s too stupid to realize is I’d give every cent I have if she’d just give up this fight. Our divorce already means that I’m guaranteed to miss half of his childhood. I don’t know how that’s not good enough for her.”
“Rhett.” Her gentle voice cradles my name.
“Love my boy.” I cough to clear the thickness in my throat. “Love him more than myself.” My revealing gaze holds her pinned. “I love him so much that I’m willing to give it all up and live out of my fucking car so she can have our house to herself.”
Concern creases her forehead. “That doesn’t seem right.”
“Of course it’s not right. None of it’s right. The fact I had a plan for our lives that she threw to shit isn’t right. But it’s life. I’m just out here doing the best I can.”
Needing a modicum of comfort, I seek her warm hand and thread our fingers together. “Just as you, Rosie. Doing the best you can.”
“We aren’t so different.” She repeats the phrase I said earlier.
It takes on a different meaning, hearing part of her story and sharing mine. I can’t put my finger on it, but I vow to myself. If I can sort this shit with Nora, I’ll help Evie out of her situation. Even if that means getting her a plane ticket to Germany.
As we sit under the starry sky, I can’t help but feel a little less alone and slightly more hopeful in this truck stop parking lot.
8
Evie
The shrill ring sounds through my speakers as I wait for my brother to pick up the phone. Excitement flows through me, and I twist my grip on the steering wheel. The tires spit gravel as I drive a little too fast back to the parking lot to meet Rhett.
“Are you finally calling to tell me to pick you up at the airport?” Eric splashes his mood across my enthusiasm.
“I’ll just hang up.”
“Wait! I’m only joking. How’s it going out there?”
I take a left onto the narrow road leading to my temporary home. “I was calling to tell you that it’s going really well so far, but if you don’t want to hear about it…”
He sighs. “I don’t want to hear about it because I wish my baby sister would just come live with me for a while.”
“You and I both know that’s not going to happen. However, after the client I secured this week, I might be up for hosting you in a month or two.”
“Why wait that long? We can come sooner and help you get settled.”
A frisson of anxiety races up my spine. “No.” I react a little too quickly. “I’m really busy working right now, and it wouldn’t be much fun for you guys,” I amend. “Once I’m a little more settled, I can take a few days off. Show you the town.”
Not that I’ve seen much of it yet myself.
I slide into my usual spot and tamp down the part of me pleased to see Rhett’s Jeep. He’s already crossing the space between our vehicles before I’m in park.
