Page 55 of Spurred On

“Hey, I spilled my guts out to you with Mav.” I raise my eyebrows at her expectantly.

She lets out a deep sigh that is far too dramatic. “Okay, fine.” She fidgets with her sleeve, heavily avoiding eye contact. “We’ve been messing around for…” she worries her lips and turns her face away before answering, “a year. Or so.”

My mouth falls so far, I worry it’s going to hit the table. Not serious, my ass. “That’s longer than most relationships last. You know that, right?”

“He’s great, and he’s so good to me. But it can never happen. Weston would literally blow a gasket. They’ve been friends forever.” She nervously flails her hands through the air, and my heart breaks alittle for her. It must be painful to have someone but not actuallyhavethem.

My voice softens a little. “What does Rhett say?”

“Rhett just goes along with whatever I want.” That answer gives it all away. “Seriously, Weston can’t know. I’m sure Rhett will meet someone, and it will be in the past anyway.”

Not wanting to push her anymore, I settle for, “Well, if you ever decide to make the jump, I’ve got your back. And so does Mav.”

She drags her hands across her face before throwing her head back. “Oh my god, Mav knows?”

“I’m going to be honest with you, anyone who has eyes can tell something is going on. The fact that Weston doesn’t know is a miracle. But you don’t need to worry about Mav. He is good at minding his own business.”

“Maybe I need to work on my stealth.” I don’t know how to tell her you can’t hide chemistry like that. But I’ll let her live in her little land of delusion. “What other juicy gossip does Mav know about?”

We continue sipping coffee while spilling the tea. My heart feels so full. I’ve missed having girl time. Not to mention, making friends at this phase of life is plain hard. But with Aspen, it’s easy. It feels like I’ve known her forever, and there’s something about her that feels genuine. Having a friend like her is just what I needed.

Chapter 31

Maverick

Walking back to the bed, I fluff the blankets for the millionth time, wanting to get this right. Ava’s texted a couple times that work was a rough one, they had to fly out a patient, another one puked on her. Needless to say, she deserves a night to get her mind off it all.

I went to town earlier today and picked up a frozen pizza, and every single candy I could think of because I don’t know her favorite but I wanted to have my bases covered.

Laying out all the snacks, I take a look at the spread and hope it’s enough to turn her day around. I’ve got bowls of Reese’s pieces, Swedish fish, sour patch kids, and red hots sitting in a line on the counter. An empty bowl for the popcorn I’ll pop when she gets home and then let her pick out whatever movie she wants.

Walking back into the kitchen, I light her favorite candle, making the house smell like lavender. I grabbed her a bouquet of flowers when I was in town too, every pretty girl deserves some pretty flowers when the day gets the better of her. I pull them out of their packaging and into the brand-new vase I bought. Their sweet aroma fills my nose as I lean down and smell them. Pink, red and white roses, baby’s breath and lillies make one hell of a smell.

Selfishly, I think I’m also looking forward to this. I love nights alone with her. The simpler the better. I’ve lived a busy life, and the thing I value most now is spending time with the ones I love.

Ava’s headlights shine through the front windows, letting me know she’s home. My heart thumps a little wildly in my chest, I get excited every time she comes home. It has me feeling like a damn dog.

The front door swings open, and I can tell it’s been a day by the look on her face. There are dark circles under her eyes, and the girl just looks exhausted. Her hair sits lopsided on the top of her head, little strands of blonde hair shooting everywhere.

She looks around the room a little, her cute little brows furrowing in confusion. “What’s all this?”

Walking to her, I place a peck on her full lips and grab the lunch bag and water bottle out of her hands. “Well, you said you had a rough day, and I want to make it better.” I smile sheepishly, knowing that when it comes to her, I’m about as pathetic as they come, but I don’t give a damn. I’m obsessed with the woman in front of me. “Go hop in the shower and I’ll get dinner in the oven.” I place another quick peck on her cheek before I nod my head toward the bathroom, making sure she takes the hint.

“Well alright, don’t have to tell me twice. I probably reek.” She looks down at herself and shakes her head.

“I’m just glad you said it so I didn’t have to be the asshole.” I shoot her a wink and she slaps my shoulder before rolling her eyes and walking to the bathroom.

After dropping her stuff off on the kitchen counter, I turn toward the bathroom as soon as the water starts to run to snag her towel and throw it in the dryer.

Before long, the smell of pizza overpowers her candle, and my mouth is watering. I pull open the oven to see the cheese bubbling and pull it out as the buzzer on the dryer goes off.

The dryer is probably from the 90s, and it’s small as hell, but it does a good job of warming up her towel.

The water turns off as I open the bathroom door. Steam encases me as I step in and close the door behind me. The shower door whips open, and Ava practically jumps out of her skin.

She places a hand over what I can guess is her thundering heart. “Maverick, what the hell are you doing?”

With the towel still in one hand, I hold my hands up in defense. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. I was just bringing your towel back.” I hold it out to her, getting an eyeful of my wife. Her body flares at all the right places, my hands itch to touch her but tonight isn’t about that.

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