The Bully (Calamity Montana #4)(42)

Every second was torture. I realized after a block that I wasn’t breathing. Sweat beaded at my temples.

“Well, this is awkward,” Kylie muttered.

I huffed a dry laugh. “Pretty much.”

Yet even after admitting it, we didn’t talk about anything. Not a single word. Not that there was anything to say. So we walked, step after step, until the bustle of downtown forced me to shift behind them.

My gaze flew over their heads to Nellie, standing outside the White Oak.

Her eyes were on her phone. She smiled at the screen, her fingers flying, then she tucked it into her shorts pocket. She was killing me with those shorts. Bare, smooth skin all the way to her sandals. Her loose tee draped off one shoulder.

A shoulder I’d kissed last night.

She turned our direction, spotting her parents first. Her smile was breathtaking. It fell flat when she looked over her father’s head and found my face. Her eyes widened as she rushed our way, like she was coming to their rescue. “Hi. What’s, um . . .”

“We bumped into Cal at the motel,” her mom said, looping her arm with Darius’s. “We’re going to grab a table for breakfast.”

Before they could walk away, I stopped them. “Mr. Rivera.”

Darius turned. “Yes?”

I pulled off my shades so he could see my eyes. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

Kylie’s eyebrows rose. Nellie’s mouth parted.

We all knew why I was apologizing.

Darius gave me a single nod before he escorted his wife into the restaurant.

Nellie waited until her parents were inside, then her hands went to her hips. “This town isn’t big enough. You have to move.”

“This again? Not happening. Besides, I figured you’d be out exploring the area today.”

“We’re meeting for a late breakfast.”

“Then the next time you come over for a fuck, mention your schedule. I’ll do my best to accommodate.”

Her nostrils flared. Beautifully furious. “Please tell me you didn’t make that sort of comment to my parents.”

“No. But it’s good to know that I’m your dirty little secret.”

“Oh, and I suppose you tell people about us.” When I didn’t respond, she rolled her eyes. “That’s what I thought. Don’t want the world to know you’re screwing the scholarship kid, right?”

No, that wasn’t why I hadn’t told anyone. I hadn’t spoken about it because I wasn’t sure what to say.

“Whatever,” she muttered. “What was that about? The apology to Dad?”

I shrugged and put on my sunglasses. “It was overdue.”

She gave me a sideways glance. “We’re going to wander around downtown today.”

“I’m just grabbing some food. Then I’ll stick close to the RV.”

“Thank you.”

“It’ll cost you.” That remark earned me another eye roll.

“Of course, it will.” She raised her chin. “What do you want?”

“Tell me what you hate about me.”

She frowned, looking past me to the windows of the café.

I followed her gaze, seeing her parents in a booth beside the glass. Darius was watching us as he pretended to read his menu.

“I hate that you’re a liar,” she said.

Ouch. It stung because she was right. “Can’t argue with that.”

“Bye, Stark.”

“Bye, Rivera.”

She hurried into the café while I continued down the sidewalk. Whatever appetite I’d had was gone, replaced by rocks in my gut, so I turned around and retraced my path to the motel.

She was right about more than me being a liar. This town wasn’t big enough.

Did I really want to bump into her at random? Last night she’d been beautiful and naked in my bed. Then this morning, she was back to the woman who’d learned long ago to keep up her guard where I was concerned.

Maybe sex was just part of that barrier. Maybe it was a way for her to keep me in a box. Casual. Physical. Shallow.

And one day, when she was tired of that box, when she wanted more and met a man who could give it to her, she’d cut me off. It was destined to end.

When I arrived at the Winnebago, I went straight for the closet.

And while I waited for my laundry, I filled my suitcase.





CHAPTER TWELVE





NELLIE





For the tenth time since I’d unrolled my yoga mat at The Refinery, I glanced out the windows toward the street. Besides the instructor pacing the sidewalk while talking on her phone, there was no sign of Cal.

There’d been no sign of Cal for a week.

Not since last Saturday when he’d walked downtown with my parents.

I’d assumed he’d simply been avoiding public spaces while my family had been in town visiting. The apology he’d given Dad had been . . . nice? And totally out of character for Cal. He rarely admitted his mistakes. I’d figured his absence was another anomaly, and for once, he’d been heeding my wishes.

But since he’d moved here, Cal had been a constant irritation. Going a week without seeing him was unsettling. Where was he?

Neither Mom nor Dad had mentioned Cal during the rest of their short vacation weekend, though Dad had been quieter than normal as we’d wandered up and down First. Maybe one day we’d talk about Cal. Probably not. After all this time, there just wasn’t much to say. What was done was done, and Dad had moved on.