“Are you some sort of masochist?”
“I must be if I want to go out with you.”
The song, blessedly, came to an end, but he didn’t let go of her.
“Um, the song is over.”
“So?”
“So let go. Stop being a creep.”
He smiled down at her.
That arrogant little smirk made her want to smack him. She couldn’t stand how he always looked at her as if he knew her better than she knew herself. When she’d joined the running club, she’d nearly quit when she discovered he was a member, too. Now she was wishing she had quit—so she wouldn’t have to see him every week for six months and so she could sleep in tomorrow.
Running a marathon had been a stupid idea after all. If putting up with Tyler’s knowing smirk every week for the next six months was part of the deal, she might have to reconsider her new life goal.
Long after the song ended, long after he should’ve let go, he finally released her but managed to snag her hand before she could get away. “I’m not giving up on you, Charlotte. And P.S., I don’t buy all your abrasive bullshit. Underneath all that bluster, there’s an interesting woman lurking. I’d like to get to know that woman.”
He released her hand and walked away, leaving her standing in the middle of the crowded dance floor, her mouth hanging open in shock.
What. The. Hell.
* * *
Gavin felt like a dick for leaving the way he had. The image of Ella’s astonished expression as he turned away from her on the dance floor refused to leave his mind. He shouldn’t have left like that, as if he couldn’t control himself for a couple of hours to support her when she’d been so damned supportive of him.
“You’re a fucking loser,” he said as he drove home through the darkness that had descended over Butler and its outskirts. With no moon to guide the way, the roads were darker than usual tonight.
He’d never told her that Ed had been the guy he’d fought with, so how was she supposed to know? It had been a shock to see him sitting among the Abbotts’ employees like he belonged there after what he’d said about the war. Surely they wouldn’t want a guy like that in their midst. Would they?
“Shit,” he muttered to the darkness. Every time he took a step forward something smacked him backward. Every goddamned time.
This was exactly why he’d told Ella he was a bad bet. He never knew when the shit would rear its ugly head to set him back.
He approached the one-lane covered bridge and slowed to a crawl as he drove across the bridge, slamming on the brakes when he saw something big and black blocking his way. Flipping on the high beams, he saw Fred the moose standing across the road and groaned. At least he hadn’t run into Fred the way Cameron had.
Gavin laid on the horn, trying to get Fred to move along, to no avail. He remained stubbornly still. Gavin opened the window. “Fred, come on, give me a break, will you?”
“Moo.”
“Seriously? Can this day get any more fucked up?” He sat there for twenty minutes, but Fred never budged. When it became clear that Fred wasn’t going to move, Gavin put the truck in reverse, backed up over the one-lane bridge, turned around and headed back into town. He’d have to take the long way home.
As he drove through the quiet town, he began to wonder if Fred hadn’t actually done him a favor, for he was now driving toward Ella’s house rather than away.
For the first time in an hour, Gavin had reason to smile. “Freaking Fred. He’s better at this shit than I am.”
A glance at the clock on the dash indicated it was after ten. He probably had an hour or more to kill before Ella would be home, which gave him just enough time to run a quick errand. He had some groveling to do, and he needed all the reinforcements he could get.
* * *
Thirty minutes after the DJ played the last song of the evening and everyone had left, Ella was almost finished stacking chairs and breaking down tables. Colton and Hunter were sweeping the floor and her sisters were in the kitchen with her mother, Cameron, Lucy and Megan wrapping up leftover food. They’d sent Hannah home to bed, and Lucas and Landon had left with the young women from the store.
“Another great time,” Lincoln said when he stacked the last of the chairs on top of the cart that held them. “Well done, honey.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“What were they saying about the new product line?”
“Everyone’s abuzz over it,” she said with a smile. “That joke isn’t going to get old for a while.”
“I suppose I deserve that.”
“It’s what you get for being so progressive.”
“I couldn’t help but notice that Gavin left somewhat abruptly, and there was some sort of scuffle between Landon and Ed Sheehan.”
Ella nodded, not surprised that her dad had tuned into the drama. “Ed was the one who told Gavin we wasted our time in Iraq, which led to the bar fight last summer.”
Lincoln’s face tightened with outrage. “I hope Landon fired him.”
“He did.”
“Good. People have a right to their opinions about war and politics and religion, but to say that to someone who lost their brother . . .”
“It’s obscene.”
“On that we agree, my dear.” He put his arms around her. “You’ve gotten involved with a complicated man. A good man. A man I respect. I ache for what he’s lost, but I love you far too much to watch you be hurt by that good, complicated man. I just hope you’re being careful to protect your heart.”
Ella laughed even as she blinked back tears. “I’m not being careful at all. I’m crazy in love with him, and I have been for longer than I can remember.” She wiped away the tears that spilled down her cheeks. The emotional reaction irritated and embarrassed her.
Her dad smiled down at her, his love shining through the way it always did. “You’re our practical child, the one who always thinks before she acts, who plans everything with meticulous attention to detail. Those qualities make you exceptionally reliable and good at what you do for a living, but they aren’t necessarily the skills you need in this situation with Gavin.” He pressed his lips to her forehead.
Comforted by his love and words of wisdom, Ella said, “What skills do I need?”
“Besides patience and fortitude?”
Ella laughed again. “Yes, other than that.”
“I don’t know, honey, but I do know that you’re more than up to whatever challenge he presents. If anyone can lead that boy out of the darkness and back into the light, you can.”
Touched and bolstered by his confidence in her, Ella looked up at him. “You really think so?”
“I know so. Just don’t let him be less than what you deserve. You hear me?”
Ella nodded. “I won’t.”
“Good.” He hugged her again. “Now go on home and get some sleep. I’ll lock up here. You did great tonight, but then you always do.”
“Love you, Dad.”
“Love you, too.”
On the short ride home, Ella thought about what her dad had said about the complicated man she’d fallen in love with. It helped to know he respected Gavin and liked him. That made it easier to tolerate the hurdles they were sure to encounter.
She wanted so badly to go to him, to seek him out. But she couldn’t do that. She’d done that too many times already. Ella had no doubt at all that he cared deeply for her, as deeply as he’d ever cared for any woman. However, she couldn’t keep this relationship going on her own. He had to meet her halfway.
Though it pained her greatly, she drove to her home rather than his. She would drown her sorrows with Ben and Jerry and get back to work on the blanket she was knitting for her new niece or nephew. It wasn’t like she didn’t have a life separate from him.
Ella trudged up the stairs, mentally and physically exhausted from the week at work and the emotional ups and downs of her time with Gavin. She made a beeline for the freezer, where her pint of Cherry Garcia sitting next to his pint of Cake Batter made her miss him fiercely.
She pulled the lid off her pint and dug a spoon into the creamy goodness. Taking the ice cream with her, she went into her bedroom, kicked off the heels she’d worn to work and changed into flannel pajama pants, a long-sleeve T-shirt and her favorite moccasin slippers. Tonight was all about comfort anywhere she could find it.