Rushed (Adventures in Love #1)(61)

Chapter 22


TANNER

With Cybil still asleep after I’ve taken a shower, I quietly leave the bedroom, head down the hall to the kitchen, and flip on the coffeepot before going to the living room to turn on the news. I start to take a seat on the couch, but my cell phone buzzes on the counter. I grab it and see a text from Blake, asking me to call him.

After Cybil tried to break up with me last night because of this situation with him, I’m not feeling very amicable, but at the end of the day, he’s still my brother. Not sure how this call will go, I take my phone with me outside in case I lose my shit like I have the last couple of times we’ve spoken. I clear the last step, head across the grass to the floating deck that’s kitty-corner to the edge of the trailer, and take a seat at the table situated near the gas grill. After dialing Blake back, I listen to the phone ring.

“Hey,” he answers, sounding out of breath, and I remember that supplies were scheduled to be delivered this morning, so he’s probably at the lodge, unloading the truck.

“I got your text. What’s up?”

“I’m sorry.” I’m caught off guard, and my fingers curl around my cell. “I fucked up. I shouldn’t have . . . fuck, I shouldn’t have said anything to you, especially in regard to Cybil. And I really shouldn’t have been a dick when you took off to be with her after her mom had a heart attack,” he says, and I don’t correct him about Maisie being her mom, since she is Cybil’s mother figure, even if she doesn’t call her Mom. “I just . . . shit. Everything between you and her happened so fast; then you took off, and I didn’t take it well.”

“You know I love you like a brother, man, but I’m done with the bullshit. I’m not going to live my life waiting for the next time you slip up and say some shit that will piss me off. Especially when your anger has nothing to do with me, or Mav, or the business. I also do not need to explain my relationship to you or justify why I’m leaving or need time off. I don’t work for you. I work with you, and as my friend, you should want me to be happy.”

“You’re right. You’re a hundred percent right.” He gives in immediately, and I wonder what the fuck is going on.

“Why are you having a change of attitude about this now?”

“Let’s just say I’ve had everyone up in my face for the last few days, pointing out how I fucked up and letting me know I need to fix shit or they’re done with me.”

“You deserve that.”

“I know,” he agrees quietly, then sighs. “I don’t want to buy you out, and I don’t want to lose you, man—come back.”

“I don’t know. You’re going to have to give me a couple of days to think about things.”

“All right. Before you hang up, how’s Cybil doing? Is she hanging in there?”

“She’s good. She’ll be happy we spoke about shit.”

“Yeah, so will Mom. She’s been on my case since the day you and Cybil took off and I lost my shit.”

“She’s been on your case for a lot longer than that.”

“You’re not wrong,” he mutters. “Call when you decide, but whatever happens, just know we’re still family—that’s never going to change.”

“Yeah.” My stomach muscles tighten. “We’ll talk soon.” I hang up and drop my head back to my shoulders.

After that phone call and Cybil saying last night that she loved my house and would be willing to move to Montana, everything is back up in the air. I thought I had shit figured out, had already mentally started making plans for making this place a little more comfortable, and had put out some feelers to see about opening my own guide business in the area.

“You look deep in thought.” Cybil’s words bring me out of my head, and I turn her way and watch her walk across the grass, looking too beautiful in the early-morning light. Her hair’s a mess, and the long sweater she has wrapped around her barely hides the fact that she’s only wearing a tank top and panties.

“I just got off the phone with Blake,” I tell her, reaching for her hand and pulling her down to sit sideways on my lap. “He called to apologize for being a dick.”

“That’s good.” Her eyes study mine as her fingers skim along my jaw, then over my bottom lip.

“It is.” I grab hold of her wrist and kiss her fingers before holding her hand against my chest, over my heart. “But after talking to him, you and I need to decide what we’re going to do.”

“What do you mean?”

“We need to figure out if I’m going to sell and move here, or if you’re going to move to Montana with me so we can start our life there.”

“Oh,” she says quietly, her eyes going from her trailer to her shop, then the trees surrounding us.

Cupping her cheek, I wait for her gaze to come back to me. “If we decide on Montana, you don’t have to sell this place—you can keep it, and we can use it when we come to visit, or you can rent it out for a little extra cash or even sell it later on down the road.”

“I love you.” She rests her forehead on my chin.

Fuck, I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to or tired of her saying she loves me. Yeah, I’ve had Mav and Blake, along with his family, but until her, I’ve never had anyone of my own, and it feels good, better than good, to have someone to belong to. “I love you too.”