Page 27 of Worth the Want
“With your boyfriend?” he cuts me off.
“No, I had a fight with my s-sister,” I explain.
“Ah, fights with your siblings can be brutal,” he sympathizes.
I nod slowly, even though he isn’t facing me. The fact that he isn’t makes it easier to talk about. I try to be as honest as possible. “Yeah, well, this was—more than brutal. I said some things…somereallyawful things.” I close my eyes against the onslaught of words.Just because I’ve always let you get your way doesn’t mean the whole world revolves around you, Hana. I’m so done with your shit. Just fucking grow up.
I open my eyes and hurry to catch up to Knox. “Anyway, we had this fight, although she also didn’t ever really like that I was with my boyfriend.”
“That’s rough. I love all my siblings’ partners—at least fornow. I’m not sure I’ll ever like the guy my baby sister decides to settle down with.” I snicker at that.
“Ohh, so you’re the overprotective big brother, huh?”
He grunts. “We all are. She had no chance with three of us.”
“Are you all these huge, hulking men?” I ask, and it gets me a huffed laugh.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever heard us described quite so eloquently, but we’re all around the same size, yes.”
“Damn. That’s some intimidation there. Poor baby sister.” We reach the shed, and he opens the door, holding his hand out for the paddle. This time I give it to him.
“Did I mention we call her Baby Lo?” he offers.
“Oh nooo. I mean my sister and I had nicknames for each other growing up, but none that were spoken outside the house. That was agreed on once she hit middle school,” I tell him, laughing.
“What were they?” I notice he hasn’t flipped the light on in the shed, so I lean my back against the doorframe, and he walks to the peg where the paddle belongs.
“Weren’t you listening? We swore an oath,” I tell him seriously.
“Oh, of course.” I like this side of him. I like all sides of him. He’s a walking fantasy. But I like him being more open with me; I decide to take advantage. My curiosity won’t let up.
“So, the last we spoke, you were going to meet me for pizza. Did you get lost on your way there?” I ask, laughing a little. It’s not like we’re old friends, but I would be lying if I hadn’t thought about this man on occasion over the years. I slide my hat from my head, letting it fall to my back, and I fidget, running a hand throughmy messy hair.
“Okay, let’s just get right into it,” he says, blowing out a breath, reaching for the back of his neck again. “First of all, I want you to know that I had every intention of meeting you. I had a lot of intentions where you were concerned,” he tells me, eyes boring into mine, and I think I see a glimmer of the man I met in that bar. “I got a phone call on my way home that night. One that sort of rearranged my schedule.”
I’m on the edge of my seat, dying to know more about these intentions, but what I need is his reason for not showing up right now. Wondering what you did to make someone stand you up is hard to get over, and being stood up by Knox was one of the biggest pills I’ve had to swallow.
“Rearranged your schedule? So what, a work thing popped up?” I ask, a little miffed.A work call? Really?
“No,my daughterpopped up. Or her mother did, letting me know about her,” he tells me pointedly.
Oh.“Holy crap on a cracker. That’s a big schedule rearranging.”
He hums. “It was. One I’m grateful for every day. I do regret not being able to get a hold of you though. If you recall,youhadmynumber. I had no way of contacting you.”
“That’s valid. Wow, playing the adorable daughter card so soon. I guess I have no other option but to lay all the resentment I’ve held for you over the years down.”
“Have you held that much resentment? Have you thought about me that often?” he quips. I’d like to play hard to get, but if Knox istryingto get—he’s going to get.
“I’ll admit to the occasional thought of you. I’m not ashamed.”But I might be embarrassed now that I’ve told him. Hard to get is looking more appealing.
“I may have been harboring some curiosity of my own.” His admission has me taking in a deep breath. “So this is a big change from Atlanta, are you settling into small-town life okay?”Whoa. Subject change.
“It’s been an interesting introduction. But now that I feel a little stability in my living situation, thank you for that, yes. Being here, in the mountains, is starting to feel like an adventure to me, and nature makes me feel small. Manageable,” I confess.
“Youaresmall,” he points out.
I roll my eyes. “I don’t mean physically. Although looks can be deceiving. I may be small, but I’m pretty tough.”
