Whipped (Hitched #2)(40)

CHAPTER 24





LACH


I'm sitting on the couch watching Raiders of the Lost Ark when Vi gets home from the night with her friends. I was invited but I had a show tonight and had to pass.

Vi looks nervous when she comes in, clutching her purse in her hand like she's scared of a mugger.

"What's up, babe? Did you have fun tonight?"

She nods and comes to sit next to me. "Yeah, it was fun."

I put my arm around her, expecting her to settle against my body, but she doesn't. Okay, I guess we're talking. I turn the volume down on the television and tilt my body to face her.

"I've got something to tell you, Lachlan," she says through pinched lips. "I'm not sure how you're going to react."

"Okay. I'm listening." If she's about to break up with me, shit will not end well for me. But I can't imagine that's the conversation we're about to have. I mean, shit, that would be so out of the blue. Still, I'm a bag of raw nerves as I wait for her to spit it out.

"You know how you have to decide soon about your contract and whether to renew and keep touring?"

"Yes." It's been on my mind more than ever lately.

"I don't want to tell you what to do with your own life, but I want you to know that I'd be really heartbroken if you left." She pauses, her eyes pained. "I'd rather you stayed."

I sigh in relief. "That's what you're worried about? Babe, I don't want to go either. And I'd be heartbroken, too."

She smiles, the tension in her shoulders easing a bit, but not entirely. "There's one more thing."

"Okay."

As she speaks, her words ramble together in one long sentence with no breaks or pauses or commas. "Lachlan I know you might not be ready to hear this or say it back and I don't want you to say it just because you think you should but—"

I stop her with a kiss, then I pull away, my hand cupping her head. "Vi, I love you."

Her eyes glisten with tears. "You do?"

"Yes. I've known awhile but I was waiting for the right time to tell you. I was waiting until I knew what our future would hold. But I love you, Vi. You're the most amazing woman I've ever met. I've never told anyone this before."

She smiles. "Neither have I. I love you, too."

And as Indiana Jones runs away from a giant boulder, I make love to the woman I love and we fall asleep on the couch together to old movies.

The next day I don't tell Vi my plans. She's already at work when I get up and head out.

First, I pick up groceries and drive to Kevin's. He sits on the sidewalk in front of his house, tossing a tennis ball up and down. His skateboard lies next to him. He has dark circles under his eyes. "Hey, Lach. What up?"

"Not much. Why aren't you practicing?"

He groans and smacks the board. "The wheels broke off again."

"Let me take a look." I do. The thing is beyond repair. I sit beside Kevin. "I'll get you a new one, buddy."

He rolls his eyes. "Like a year from now? No thanks." This isn't like him.

I frown. "Hey, what's going on?"

"Nothing. Just don't need your help."

"Okay. If you want, you could help me out with something in exchange."

He stands up and turns away. "I don't care about the board. You don't have to…" His shoulders droop. He sighs. "You barely come around anymore."

I've been busy, with work, with investors, with Vi, but I don't tell any of that to Kevin, because it shouldn't have gotten in the way. "I'm sorry, Kev. I'll come by more often again."

He turns back and grins. It's the way I used to grin to my parents. It's hollow. "Thanks. How's your center going?"

"It's not. I failed to get any investors."

"No way." He sits back down, puts a hand on my shoulder. "Man, there's got to be more suits out there you can talk to."

I shrug. "Sure, but—"

"But what? You got a good idea. You got the skills. Now you just need the money. It's simple."

I smirk. "Yeah. There might be a way. It might even be easier."

"Okay. Yeah, what is it?"

"I can tour again. And with the money, I won't even need an investor. I'll have full control of the center."

Kevin pulls back, shaking his head. "I don't know, man. Tour again? I thought you said you were tired of that."

"I am. I'm tired of touring. But I'm also tired of investors trying to change my vision."

"So the question is, what are you tired of more?"

"Your smart-ass wisdom," I joke. But he's got a point. There must be a right answer to my problems. Even if it's an answer I don't want to hear.

I tap him on the back and stand up. "Come on, let's see what your mom's up to."

He follows me up the porch. "Probably burning the lasagna again."

"Hey, be respectful. It's only happened like ten times." I smirk.

He smiles. There's more warmth to it now. He leads me inside the dimly lit house. The air is hazy and thick. Mary stirs a pot on the stove. She wipes her hands and adjusts her glasses. Her hair has streaks of grey. She hasn't dyed it. She must be busier than usual. "Lachlan, my boy, you remembered not to knock."