Page 76 of Fight
I nod.
“Fuck Dave!” she shouts. “And he insinuated we slept together? God, no wonder you were freaked out.”
“Scottie, I never should have listened to him. I’m sorry for how things ended between us.”I’m sorry they ended, period.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you?—”
“I should have communicated with you better, at least confronted you. Instead, I cut and ran.”
“You reacted the way anyone would, seeing Dave leave my place must have drudged up a lot of painful memories. I should have told you about Jonathan. Looking back, I understand how messed up it was to keep that a secret… I should have waited for the divorce, I know that. It’s easy to say that I’m waiting to get established, but it only kicks the can further down the road. I’ve been avoiding it. Marriage is final in accordance with the church. It’s a covenant. But I can’t hide from them forever like a coward.” She sweeps her fingers under her eyes and clears her throat. “Anyway, how’s the caviar coming along?”
I shove off the counter, lifting the lid on the pot, and stirring the soup. “I think we’re ready to eat.” I still feel like shit, but I’m not about to make this about me.
She must sense my emotions, because she hops off the bed and crosses the room, wrapping her arms around me from behind while I dish out the soup for us.
Scottie rests her cheek against my back and whispers, “Are you going to feed it to me with an open palm?”
I bark out a laugh, appreciating the levity. I hand her a mug and one of the protein bars sitting out on the counter. We settle on the bed across from each other with our hot meal.
“Found a route for us to take back,” I say. “The storm is slowing down, we might be hiking in two days.”
She nods, swallowing a bite.
“Are you nervous?” I ask.
Her brow furrows, and she shakes her head. “No. I trust you… Besides, your life depends on me just as much as mine does on yours.”
I blow on a spoonful of soup. “Why’s that?”
She pauses, bringing her spoon to her mouth. “Seriously? Your face would be plastered all over the news networks, they would think you off’d me.”
“You’re fun.”
“I know,” she replies. “So, what do you want to do for the rest of the day? I don’t think I can play another round of Battleship with you. No offense.”
My mouth tips up in a smile. “Too boring?” I ask.
“It’s not enjoyable if there’s no challenge.”
I push my tongue into my cheek with an amused grin. “Such a smart mouth,” I mutter, tangling my legs with hers.
“Maybe you should do something about it.”
I cock my head to the side and smirk, enjoying this sassier version of her. “I’ve got no problem training your mouth.” I drop my spoon in my mug and lean forward to lift her chin and press my lips to hers. I pull back, our gazes meet, and I study her face. My hand drops, and I return to my meal, but not without first noticing the pink that fills her cheeks.
“What, um…” She wavers.
I eat while she collects her thoughts.
“What happens when we get home?”
“Well,” I say on a sigh. “We gotta contact your boss. I had Matt try to call you when I couldn’t get through, but I never explained why. I’m not sure if he’s going to try to reach out again and worry about you. You mentioned you’ve got work in a couple days, right?”
She nods.
“I have a feeling you’re going to be quite popular when we make it back. We’ll need to get that cut on your forehead checked out too.”
“Do you think I’ll get fired?”