Page 95 of Against All Odds

I get outside and walk over to Vi’s house. I have with me some of the things the Mommy Blogs said help with morning sickness.

Inside the bag is ginger candy, ginger tea, ginger ale, some peppermint aroma therapy shit—not sure how that is going to work, but they all swore by it—and salt. Like a shaker. I wrote out some suggestions they had on how to use them because the salt one was a bit of a mystery to me. Apparently, she’s supposed to lick her hand, like she’s doing a shot, shake the salt on, lick it, and lay there for ten minutes. No clue, but since she’s still miserable, I figure it can’t hurt to try.

Not wanting to wake her, I put the bag on the porch and start heading back, but when I get halfway down the drive, I hear someone yelling my name.

“Everett!”

I turn and see someone rushing from Violet’s porch, but it’s not her. It’s Analeigh.

I walk toward her, worry filling me. “Is everything okay with Violet?”

The way she’s moving has my chest tight with worry. What if there’s something wrong and she needs help? I find myself moving a little faster as the fear mounts.

She smiles. “It is. I’m getting ready to head back to the airport, and Vi is in the shower, but I wanted to talk to you and saw you leave something on the porch.”

I clear my throat and wait for the lecture that is sure to come.

The wholedon’t hurt my friend or I’ll kill you.

Not that I want to hurt her friend.

Not that I’d ever try to do that.

“Okay,” I say, once I’ve steeled myself.

“Violet ... well, you knew her as a kid, and I’m sure you know all about her parents, so I won’t bore you with that, but she’s gota lot of trust issues, and I’m afraid Dylan hasn’t made that any better.”

“I’m sure not.”

Ana nods. “You can breathe, you know. I’m not going to threaten you. I really just want to thank you.”

“Thank me?”

“Yeah, when I got here, I had no idea what mess I was walking into. Violet isn’t prone to hysterics, so when she texted me that she needed me, I was terrified about what happened to her. She’s my best friend. My upbringing didn’t leave me with a lot of people who liked me for me. It was always about my father or what I could get them, but Violet isn’t that way. She practically comes unglued when I do things for her.” Ana sighs and then looks down. “She’s like a sister to me. I love her and would do anything for her. When she told me she was going to move to Ember Falls, I’m not exaggerating when I say I sobbed. My husband had to hold me for hours the night she left, because I was a mess, but then I got here and I found she wasn’t falling apart, and I think that’s because of you.”

I rock back on my heels, not sure what to say, and then step back. “I haven’t done anything that a man shouldn’t do.”

“I know a lot of men, and trust me, they’re not doing these things.”

“Then they don’t deserve a woman like Violet, even if she doesn’t feel the same way.”

Ana shakes her head. “Violet is afraid to be hurt. She’s afraid Dylan is going to force her hand, and right now it’s too new to see it doesn’t have to be that way. She just needs someone to show her that.”

One more day.

That goes through my mind again and again.

I hear my mother saying how she would grab it with two hands.

Violet may leave again. She may walk out of my life, leaving me, but ... I will regret not spending every single day I could have with her now.

Analeigh steps closer and gently touches my arm. “I guess what I’m trying to say is that I can leave here and not feel sick to my stomach every day. She has people who care about her. Maybe even love her enough to fight for her.”

I nod because I don’t trust myself to say anything aloud.

She smiles. “Also, please, do me one favor.”

“What’s that?”

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