Page 36 of Every Sunset
“Anna, you know you don’t have to pay us the rent if you’re struggling. We don’t even need it...”
“Don’t Logan!” I cut him off. “I have always paid my way, and I always will. We don’t need charity, and things aren’t really that tight. We’re fine.”
“Well if you ever aren’t….”
“I know. Thank you, but I’ll find some more work soon.” I told him firmly.
“You should ask Cat. She might have some shifts at the diner,” he suggested as Maddox reappeared with a glass of white wine for me, and two beers.
“Ask me what?” We all turned to see Cat walking hand in hand from around the side of the house, with a tall, blond guy, who I guessed was Tate, her husband.
“Hey guys,” Logan greeted. “Come take a seat. Maddox is on drinks.”
“Anna! I’m so happy I can finally talk to you for more time than it takes to make your boring coffee order,” Cat cried with a huge smile as she hurried over to me and wrapped her arms around me without warning.
Except for my son, who I liked to shower with affection and always had, I wasn’t much of a hugger. I never had been. Growing up with an abusive father and little in the way of friendships made you that way, but after what Callum did to me, I really didn’t like to be touched, except, it seemed, for when Logan and Maddox touched me. They’d both held me several times now and I’d never felt anxious or even really jumped at their contact. It was a fact I was very much aware of, but choosing not to question too deeply.
It seemed the fact I knew Cat didn’t make her immune from my ‘cringe when touched’ freakiness though, because I froze thesecond she made contact with me, my heart pounding way too hard almost instantly and my breaths getting faster and faster the longer she held on.
I reached a hand around to her back and tentatively set it down in what I hoped seemed like a human response to being hugged, but I knew I’d failed when Cat pulled away and looked to me with a little confusion. I was eternally grateful she didn’t say anything though, instead stepping back to introduce her husband to me.
Tate stood just behind his wife, shaking hands with Maddox in a friendly way that made it clear they knew each other pretty well.
“Hi,” I offered quietly as Tate released Maddox and turned his full attention on me. I knew my instant reaction to him was ridiculous. Tate was Cat’s husband and clearly a friend of Maddox and Logan. He was smiling and relaxed in the way he stood, but he had too many features that reminded me of Callum, and with my adrenaline already rising from Cat holding me, I was starting to lose it and I knew it. Callum’s image flashed through my mind – short, blond hair, a trim, tall frame – all the same as the man before me.
“It’s good to finally meet you, Anna. Cat’s been proclaiming you’re gonna be her new bestie for weeks already,” he joked with a gentle chuckle. I watched as he stepped over to Cat and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her into his side. I tried to focus on the differences. He looked more muscular than Callum, and his eyes – they were dark, not those cold gray ones that had haunted my every thought ever since…
“Not sure that’s a good idea.” Maddox’s voice cut through the fear I was trapped in and I felt his strong arm slide over my shoulders, surrounding me in the familiarity of his spicy,almost citrus scent that I was sue was a mix of the body wash he used, and his cologne. “You gotta watch out for Cat, Anna. She’s nothing but trouble,” Maddox laughed, but I knew he was covering for me, because I could hear the tense note in his voice, and the way he slowly and carefully pulled me closer and closer into his side. He knew I was freaking out and he was worried.
Much to my relief, having him so close did the exact opposite to Cat hugging me. Instead of freaking out I relaxed and moved the last tiny gap between Madd and I myself, sinking against his side and taking the breath I had been fighting to get in at the feel of his warm body pressed against mine.
“Maybe I am, but it’s the best kind,” Cat told the guys, turning to me with a smile and a wink.
I moved my shaking hand up to where Maddox’s sat on my shoulder and placed it over his, needing more contact with him. I wrapped the other arm around his back until I was clinging to him as tightly as I could without making it obvious. Thankfully, Tate had moved over to the grill, to chat with Logan so he was out of my eyeline as I fought to just get myself together.
“I…I might like to get into the oc-occasional bit of trouble,” I told Cat, hoping it came off as playful as I meant it. The stuttering didn’t help, but Cat smiled widely anyway.
“See babe! I told you she was the perfect bestie,” she cried loudly.
“Why don’t you ladies grab a seat and I’ll get some more drinks,” Maddox offered. I panicked at the idea of him releasing me, but I knew I had to let him go if I didn’t want to seem entirely crazy to Cat and Tate.
Cat took a seat at the large round table on the patio, and Maddox led me over to the chair opposite her, with the table between us.My hands were shaking as I forced myself to release my grip and reached for the table to steady myself as I sat.
“Breathe, baby,” Maddox whispered into my ear, leaning down so no one else would hear. “You’re safe. I’ll be right back, promise.”
I nodded subtly, then watched as he stood with a smile and turned to Cat. As Maddox asked what they wanted to drink I looked to my left to where I knew Logan stood. I found him watching me, and he smiled reassuringly, obviously having noticed my near breakdown too. I gave him a nod in an attempt to tell him I was good, but he simply raised an eyebrow, making it clear he didn’t believe me. It was so strange the way I could read them both, and it seemed they read me too, when we’d only known each other a matter of weeks. I’d never had that with anyone before, but it felt so natural.
“So, what did you wanna ask me?” Cat asked.
“Oh nothing,” I answered, relieved my voice sounded less shaky. “Logan was just saying I should see if you had any shifts at the diner.”
“Funny you should bring that up actually. I was going to ask you if you’d work a late shift for me tomorrow. Carol, one of my servers, took a spill when she was out hiking. She called me on the way here to say she’d be out tomorrow, and maybe for the next few days. She thinks she sprained her ankle pretty badly.”
“Ouch. I’ll happily take any shifts you can give me though, Cat. I can work anytime over the weekend, then mornings and evening during the week,” I told her eagerly, relief sweeping over me at the opportunity to earn a little more cash.
“Really? That would be amazing. Carol is my best server and I’m gonna be rushed off of my feet without her.”
“I’m grateful for any work you can throw my way, Cat, so thank you.” At least that would ease one of the weights trying to crush me, even if just for a short while.
