Unfinished Ex (Calloway Brothers, #2)(26)

I flip the burgers.

“Want my advice?” she asks.

“Why do I get the feeling you’re going to give it to me anyway?”

“Take the shit, Jaxon. Nicky is gone. She may be here temporarily, but look at what’s happening to her. Her career is only beginning to take off. If you have any crazy ideas about getting her back and settling down, you’re kidding yourself. She’s working at XTN. What’s next, The Today Show? She’s on her way up. I know you still have feelings for her, but just like how I loved the leg I no longer have, I needed to say goodbye and learn how to love my life without it. And so do you. Once and for all.”

Everything she says hits me square in the chest. She’s right. I sit. “Shit, Addy. When did you become smarter than me?”

She wraps me in her arms from behind. “I love you, Jax. I want you to be happy.”

“You think I should go all in with Calista?”

“I think you should try.”

I nod. “Friday at our ten-year reunion. Maybe I’ll make it official then.”

“That’s a great idea. Make it romantic. Like during a slow dance or something.”

“Have you ever thought about going into social work or psychology?”

“Ha! Maybe.” She points. “The burgers are burning.”

I hop up and look at the charred beef, somehow feeling it’s a metaphor for my life.





Chapter Twelve



Nicky




We pull up behind Donovan’s Pub in Paige’s car. The parking lot is packed. It’s a public lot, so people who are going to the movie theater, bowling alley, or anywhere on McQuaid Circle, also park here. Even so, it’s far more crowded than I remember.

“How many people will be here?” I ask.

“According to the Facebook page, 120 said yes, 29 said maybe, 60 declined, and 19 failed to respond.”

I snort. “Or weren’t invited.”

She lovingly pats my leg.

Paige parks. I don’t move to get out. I let my head fall back onto the headrest. “So there could be 150 people here.”

“Relax, Nic. Think of it this way: the more people that are here, the better chance of you blending into the crowd.”

I run my hands down my short black skirt, wondering why I even agreed to this.

“You look amazing,” Paige says. “And I promise I’ll have your back. Just give it an hour, okay?”

“One hour.”

“Two if they don’t lambaste you.”

“One.”

“Okay, one. Come on, let’s go.”

As soon as I open the car door, I hear music coming from the patio of the pub. With the front of Donovan’s along McQuaid Circle, the patio off the parking lot is the most popular point of entry.

Hung above the patio door is a banner: Welcome Cavaliers Class of 2012.

“Do you think this is some kind of bad karma?” I ask. “Technically, this reunion should have happened over the summer. It’s almost September. What are the odds it would get scheduled right when I come back to town?”

“Maybe it’s good karma. And it was scheduled long before anyone knew you’d be here.”

“Good karma doesn’t tend to follow me.”

“What do you call the job at XTN?”

“I call it temporary.”

Paige stops walking and punishes me with her stare. “Nicky, one mistake doesn’t make you a bad person. I honestly think you are the only one who holds it over your head.”

I nod to the pub. “Guess we’re about to find out.” After two more steps, I see a familiar car.

There’s no mistaking whose it is. Nobody else in this town drives a Honda with a bumper sticker that reads: WHEN IN DOUBT, PUNT.

My stomach becomes tied in knots. He’s here. I knew he would be, probably with Calista on his arm. Hell, she probably planned the whole thing, being she was our class president and all. Thoughts of last Friday night and him kissing her in front of his house play on a continuous reel in my head.

Will he kiss her here? In front of me? The knots become tighter. Karma has definitely come for me, and she wants her pound of flesh.

“Nicky Forbes,” a low, sensual voice says from behind.

I turn to see Hunter McQuaid stride up to us. “Hunt—oof!” I barely get his name out when he pulls me into a crushing hug. Paige and I lock eyes, wondering what’s going on.

Once finished with the hug that lasts far longer than your typical haven’t-seen-you-in-a-while hug, he stands back and scans me from head to toe. He lets out a low whistle. “Damn, girl. Whatever they’ve been feeding you in Wyoming sure seems to be working.”

“Oklahoma,” I say.

“Yeah, that’s what I said. Saw you on TV last weekend. I have to say, you’re even hotter in person. The last few years have been really kind to you.”

“And you.”

Hunter McQuaid is the middle of the three McQuaid brothers. Like their enemies, the Calloways, they were all blessed with good looks, impeccable hair, and somewhat misplaced charm.

His older brother, Hawk, helps run their family’s many car dealerships. His younger brother, Hudson, went to medical school. For the life of me, I can’t remember what Hunter does. Maybe he just sits back and counts his money.