Page 25 of Returning to Everton

“So, the movers will be here tomorrow and after they leave, Logan and I are meeting Rowen and Violet at the park down the street. I think Violet believes it’s just a regular park, so that should be fun.” I chuckle as I think of what her reaction will be to the magic playground.

“Well, damn, I’ve gotta work in the morning, so I can’t stop by and help her move in and welcome her home,” Hudson grumbles.

“Yeah, us too,” the twins gripe at the same time.

“Well, I for one, don’t have to be at work until seven tomorrow night. So, maybe I’ll stop by and help out. Welcome her to the neighborhood,” Nate gloats.

Everyone turns and looks at him in concern. We’re all a little worried about what he might say to Rowen. He’s been the most vocal about his feelings for Rowen and how much it upset him that she left the way she did. We don’t need him to lose his cool and scare her away before everyone else has a chance to talk to her.

“What? Oh, come on, I’m not going to do anything that could jeopardize this for us. Besides, since our conversation with Quinn the other night, I’m not as mad as I used to be. If she was spelled, it’s not her fault she never came back to us. I’m going to get to the bottom of that too by the way,” he declares.

We all nod in agreement. It’s hard for me to believe someone would do that, but we do need to find out if there’s any truth to that particular conspiracy theory. I leave the guys to figure out what they’re going to do now that Rowen is here and we know she’s staying since she signed a lease with me. I think Logan has probably been in the tub long enough. Surely, the water has gotten cold by now.

I get to the bathroom, only to find it empty. The tub has been drained and there’s no Logan in sight. So I move on to check his room. I find him quietly playing with some cars on his floor.

“Hey, bud, let’s clean up your cars and get in bed. We stayed out late tonight and it’s past your bedtime.”

He picks up all of his cars and puts them away, then climbs in bed. I tuck him in and tell him goodnight. As I’m leaving his room, he stops me.

“Do you like Ms. Rowen, Dad?”

“Yeah, bud, I like her. She was pretty nice wasn’t she?” I ask him.

“Yeah, I guess... but I mean is she going to be your new girlfriend or something?” he asks me.

It’s been a while since we’ve had a chat like this. Most of his friends at school have a mom and a dad, so he feels like he’s missing something because he doesn’t have a mom.

“I don’t know yet, bud. We just met, it takes time to get to know one another before you can decide if you want to be together like that,” I explain. “But you know, even if Ididstart dating Rowen, she won’t replace your mom. I know she’s not here for you and you never got a chance to meet her, but your mother loved you very much. I don’t want you to ever forget that.”

He seems to accept that answer, for now at least. I’m sure it’ll come up again. I close the door and head to my room. I could go back downstairs, finish my beer, and hang out with the guys, but I just wanna be alone right now. I take off my clothes and throw them in my hamper then crawl in bed.

As I’m lying there, I think about Rowen and all the things I learned about her tonight. Whether it was intentional or not, I still learned a lot about her. For instance, she embarrasses easily, she has a dirty mind that she tries to hide, and she doesn’t know how unbelievably sexy she is. If I learned all of that within hours of knowing her, I can’t wait to get to know her even more.

10

Rowen

Iwake up early Tuesday morning. I want to check out that bakery and get some breakfast for us and some snacks for the movers. Quinn and Violet are still asleep, so I leave them a note telling them where I’m going and that I’ll be back soon. I lock the door on my way out and head down the road toward town. The weather is really perfect for an early morning walk. The sky is cloudy, so you can’t see the sun, just the brilliant orange and pinks of the sunrise. It’s a little chilly, so I’m glad I remembered to grab my jacket. It’s July, so I won’t need it often, but I remember early mornings can get pretty chilly even in the height of the summer.

As I walk down the quiet, empty streets of the town, I think about what life was like here before I left for college. We were a close group back then, Hudson, Nate, Ayden, Kayden, Quinn, and me. Practically inseparable, always running the streets or taking turns hanging out at each other's houses. Being such a big group we had to bounce from house to house or our parents wouldn’t be able to handle us. As it was, they often kicked us out and told us to find somewhere else to be loud and obnoxious.

I remember one day we were wandering around town trying to find something to do, and Ayden suggested we go explore the woods on the other side of town. The rest of the guys didn’t really want to go traipsing through the woods like a bunch of little kids, but Quinn and I were all for it, so they reluctantly agreed.

We walked through the woods for a good twenty minutes before we suddenly came to a clearing. After looking around, we could tell no one came out here. There wasn’t really a trail or anything through the woods to get here and we didn’t see any signs of activity, besides the forest animals.

I remember looking at Quinn and sharing a conspiratorial grin. We told the guys this would be our new hangout spot. There was plenty of room and we’d be left alone. So, we all worked out what we each wanted in a hangout spot and magicked the best clubhouse ever. I swear we spent every day there after that. No one ever knew where we went, but all of our parents were happy that we weren’t at their houses anymore, so they didn’t ask questions.

I wonder if it’s still there. If the guys ever went back there after I left. Hell, I wonder what the guys have done in general since I left. It kills me that I lost touch with them. Though, I guess that’s not exactly what happened. I just disappeared on them. One day I was their best friend, the next, I was just gone.

I still don’t understand how I could have done that. That’s just not like me at all. I’ve never been the type of girl that let people walk all over me. I wouldn’t even let someone mistreat my friends, let alone me. I’ve been thinking about that a lot since Harris died. Why I suddenly decided to give him a chance after I turned him down multiple times. Why I stayed with him for so long despite not being truly happy.

I know I wanted to stay and work it out for Violet, but would that have really been best for her? Both of us were miserable whenever Harris was around. We always had to pretend to be someone we weren’t. That takes a toll on a person after a while. I hate to even think this, but I’m glad Harris died. It gave Violet and me the out we needed. I think being in Everton is going to be good for both of us.

I look up and realize I’m almost at the bakery. I was so lost in my thoughts I didn’t even realize I had walked this far already. I try to get out of my head by looking around downtown and seeing all of the new businesses. Well, new to me at least. I’ve always loved the town square, all of the buildings were made of brick, and it just felt so homey to me. I’m glad to see that it hasn’t changed. The businesses in them may be different, but at least the overall atmosphere is the same. When I get closer to the bakery; I see the lights are on. I hope that means they’re open.

I stop in front of the door to the bakery and take a deep breath before I pull the door open. Luckily, the door actually opens. Pulling on a locked door is never fun. It jerks your arm and you feel like an idiot for trying to open it. I’m glad I didn’t have to suffer that embarrassment today.

I walk in and look around. The bakery has tall ceilings with long hanging pendant lights. It has this nice welcoming, cozy feel to it. There are tables and chairs to one side and a glass display case with a menu hanging on the wall behind it on the other. In the back is a cute little seating area by a fireplace, that has comfy couches and chairs with coffee tables and side tables. The whole thing just screams sit and stay awhile. There’s a wall across from a couch that is painted purple, with little flowers stenciled on it. I absolutely love it. I can see myself spending a lot of time here. Whether that will be on this side of the counter or the other, only time can tell.

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