Page 84 of When You're Home
“What do you mean?”
“I mean we’re going away. Leaving Hampton. Just the two of us, if you want to go. Do you have finals this week? Do you have anything else you have to do for school?”
“I already turned in all my final projects for the semester. I just have a take-home final I need to submit, but it’s already done. I was supposed to work tonight and Sunday.”
“Perfect. I can text Jake and Lia right now and get your shifts covered. I’m sure your dad will take care of Penny. I want to get you out of here, and I want to be alone with you. But only if that’s what you want, too.”
She ran the pad of her thumb over his knuckles. “That’s what I want, too.”
He was equal parts relieved and excited she was willing to trust him and go along with his plan. “Why don’t you take a shower and start packing? You won’t need much. Just bring comfy clothes. We’ll be gone until Monday, if that’s okay with you?”
Tori shifted in his arms, leaning forward and turning her head to catch his gaze.
“That sounds perfect,” she confirmed, biting down on her bottom lip. Her face had a bit more color to it now. She placed a hand on his arm. “Where are we going?”
Rhett smiled down at her. “Where do you think we’re going?” he asked, resting his forehead against hers. Recognition flared in her eyes as a content smile crossed her face. Rhett placed a gentle kiss on her forehead before pulling away.
“I’m going to give you some privacy and make a few calls. I assume your dad will be home soon, so we can talk to him before we go. Let’s try to leave here in the next hour if possible. We can be at the cabin by dark.”
Tori smiled up at him and nodded. He rolled out his shoulders, encouraging the tension of the last twenty-four hours to melt away now that he was here. He made his way to the door, already thinking through everything he needed to take care of before they could leave for Michigan.
“Everhett,” Tori whispered just as he reached for the handle of her bedroom door.
“Yeah, beautiful?” he asked as he turned back toward her.
“Thank you for coming home. I know it might seem silly since it’s just bloodwork, and I have my Dad and my friends here… but as soon as I got the call, the only person I wanted was you.”
Chapter 45
Rhett
“SoyouandTori,huh?”
Rhett’s head snapped in response when he heard Fielding address him from across the living room. The other man was sitting on the floor, legs stretched out in front of him, Penny wiggling and squirming between them. He hadn’t expected Fielding to still be here when he came downstairs. His presence was almost as surprising as his question.
“You’re still here,” Rhett accused, making his way into the kitchen and leaning back against the counter by the sink.
“Of course I’m still here. I’ve literally been here for six hours. I wasn’t going to just take off without saying anything.” Fielding refused to make eye contact as he talked, instead smirking down at Penny as she rolled back and forth in front of him.
Rhett wanted to smack the smirk right off his face. He was comforted by the fact that he had walked in on Fielding at Tori’s desk when he arrived. That told him two things: Tori and Fielding’s friendship was strictly platonic, just like Jake had claimed, and Fielding knew where things stood, whether he liked it or not.
Rhett chose his next words carefully. He wanted to communicate the seriousness of their relationship to the other man without oversharing.
“Yeah, me and Tori. We’ve been together on and off for the last ten years. For me, it’s always been her.”
Rhett kept his eyes locked on Fielding, willing him to look up and see the sincerity in his gaze. Fielding finally turned his attention away from Penny and shoved up to his feet in a quick, fluid motion.
“Good to know,” he said, brushing off his pant legs and giving Rhett a curt nod.
He couldn’t help but notice the skepticism on the other man’s face. This wasn’t last month, though. There would be no back and forth, no defiant banter between them. Rhett wouldn't stand to be challenged on Tori this time or ever again.
“You don’t believe me?” he retorted. Fielding must have picked up on the gravity in his tone. The other man took two steps toward the kitchen and closed some of the space between them. He rested an arm on the back of one of the kitchen chairs, then methodically opened and closed his fist. There was an uneasiness to the room now.
“Oh, I believe you. I just witnessed it with my own eyes up there.” Fielding tilted his chin toward the stairs for emphasis. “But it’s still news to me. I’ve spent more time with Tori over the last month than I’ve spent with my own brother. That’s saying something because I live with that guy. I guess you could say we’ve gotten pretty close.” Another smirk.
“She hasn’t mentioned you once. She doesn’t talk about you. She doesn’t call you. Your number wasn’t even in her phone when I tried to find it yesterday.” Fielding looked directly at him then. “I’m just surprised by how things have played out. Like I said: news to me.”
Rhett analyzed the man challenging him as he debated how he wanted to proceed. No, that wasn’t right. He knew exactly how hewantedto proceed. He wanted to throw down, to stake his claim, and to make sure this guy never tried to contact Tori again. But ramming horns with Fielding wasn’t going to do anything except make Tori mad and spur Fielding on. He needed to think about how she would want him to proceed.
