Unfinished Ex (Calloway Brothers, #2)(64)

I shake my head. “I think that ship sailed when you started dating her.”

“I thought it had, too. Maybe she doesn’t believe you and Nicky are back together. Nobody has seen you out except for walking your dog. Maybe Calista believes she still has a chance.”

“Eric, she doesn’t want me. And even if that were the case, would you really want to be with someone who still has feelings for someone else?”

“I shouldn’t. But damn it, I do.” He punches the pad of the blocking sled. “She was the first woman I’ve really wanted since my divorce. Guess I’m a sucker, huh?”

Fuck. I feel like a traitor. And a real shitty friend. “You’re not a sucker. And, hey, you never know—she could change her mind.”

Drake and my other coaches come up behind us, and the players are ready for direction. I clap a hand on Eric’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s go work it out on the field.”



~



I slip into a booth next to Addy at Donovan’s. Tag and Cooper are on the other side. I kiss my sister’s cheek. “Why the sibling meeting?”

Lissa places drinks down. She doesn’t gaze at me longingly. “Huh,” I say when she leaves. “That was different.”

“She’s fucking Lucas Montana,” Tag says, earning him a kick in the shin under the table.

“Damn, Addy,” he says. “I don’t think you realize how hard that bionic leg of yours is.”

“I’m glad she found someone,” I say.

Tag chortles. “Fucking and found are two different things. Ouch! Addy, keep your goddamn leg to yourself.”

“I thought Lucas was seeing Angela Pearson,” Cooper says. “Or was it Angie Beckham?”

“Yes and yes,” I say. “Our cousin gets around.”

“Still? I thought he got married.”

Addy sips her wine. “If you’d stay in town long enough to know things, you’d know he called off the wedding at the last minute. It’s actually the second time he did it. With two different women. He’s the runaway groom of Calloway Creek.”

I set my beer down. “I assume we’re not here to talk about Lissa or Lucas. What’s up?

Everything okay with Mom and Dad?”

Tag thumbs at Cooper. “He’s leaving. This is his goodbye party.”

Addy reaches across the table and takes Coop’s hand.

“I don’t know why you’re surprised,” I say. “He is a nomad. Where are you off to now?”

Cooper’s face lights up. I haven’t seen him act this excited the whole time he’s been here.

“Parahawking in Nepal.”

Addy drops his hand. “Sounds dangerous. What exactly is parahawking?”

“It’s paragliding with birds—mostly vultures, eagles, or black kites. I was promised an Egyptian vulture.”

“And you have to go all the way to Nepal to do it?” she asks. “Isn’t it hard to get there?”

He pulls up an app on his phone. “Let’s see, I go from JFK to Qatar to Kathmandu. Then on to Nepal, where I’ll run off the foothills of the Himalayas.”

Tag drains his glass. “It’s unbelievable that people pay you to do that shit.”

“It’s a hell of a life,” he says, almost looking happy but not quite.

“How do they get the birds to land on you?” I ask.

“Buffalo meat.”

“Please be careful,” Addy says.

Cooper laughs. “The flights to and from Nepal will be more dangerous than the jump, believe me. Hell, taking a cab in the city probably carries more risk.”

Donny comes out from the kitchen and puts a huge plate of nachos on the table. He stares at Cooper. Cooper wipes his mouth. “Is something on my face?”

Donny shakes his head. “Sorry, son. I just can’t get used to seeing you. Every time I do, it reminds me of your brother and my daughter.” He nods to a booth in the corner. “Chaz used to come in almost every shift Serenity worked. On her break, they’d sit at that table, holding hands and sharing a plate of fries.”

“I remember,” Cooper says. “I did work here on the weekends, Donny.”

We’re all silent for a beat. Because all of us know Donny lost two workers when Chaz died. One is hiding away in Alaska; the other is hiding from his true self. Both are hiding from the pain.

“Right,” Donny says. “You know if you ever need some extra cash, I’m always looking for good help.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Coop says, the four of us knowing bartending is the farthest thing from his mind.

Donny blinks twice, still focused on the corner. “I swear my old eyes play tricks on me, and I can still see them there sometimes.” He puts a hand on Cooper’s shoulder. “I sure do miss that boy, as I know you all do. And I miss the hell out of my daughter.”

“You haven’t seen her?” Addy asks.

Sadness deepens the wrinkles on his forehead. He pulls his phone from his pocket. “Only on this thing. We talk on that face app every once in a while, but it’s not the same. When your brother died, a part of her died right along with him.”

He slumps and walks away, leaving the four of us thinking of Chaz.