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“Well, hello there, beautiful,” Parks smiles.
She leans on Cody’s chair, smiling back at Parks. “Well, hello back,” she beams. “I didn’t know we had someone new in the group.”
“Tori, this is Parks. He’s just passing through town.”
“I'm sure there's someone who could convince me to stay a few days.” He winks at her.
“Tempting,” she replies looking him up and down. “But, I’m taken.”
Cody gasps loudly and she swats him on the shoulder. “It’s a cold day in hell, baby.”
“Oh, you hush. Anyway, it was nice to meet you Parks.”
I look up at her, my brows furrowed. “Where’s Ellie?”
She blows out a sigh. “She wasn’t feeling good, so I told her to go home. It’s probably stress from school.”
She was fine fifteen minutes ago. What the hell Ellie?
“What’s Tori’s deal?” Parks asks as soon as Tori walks away. Cody tells him about her and Ben. She’s scared to settle down, and this is the first time we’ve ever heard her admit she’s with someone. I’ll have to let Ben know he’s breaking her down. My mind goes back to Ellie as the guys keep talking. What spooked her bad enough that she had to leave?
The rest of the afternoon we spend catching up. I’m talking, but my mind is somewhere else and Parks can tell. “Nix, go talk to your woman. I should get going, I have a long drive home.” He stands and I follow suit. We embrace in a hug. “Now would be a great time to tell her everything,” he says, pulling back.
“Yeah, yeah. Next time, stay longer.”
We all walk out and part ways, heading in different directions. Mine is straight to Ellie.
My knuckles rap against her door. When I hear nothing, I knock again a little louder knowing she’s here. I saw her car. She finally answers. She’s changed out of her work clothes into a… bathing suit? I scratch my head.
“Going swimming?” My words come out slow. I don’t wait for her to invite me, rather just walk in and sit on the couch. The scent of coconut oil is intense as I pass her. She mumbles something to herself and shuts the door. An open bottle of Deep Eddy lemonade vodka sits on her counter next to an empty glass. Has she finished or just began?
“What’s going on Ellie? I thought you weren’t feeling well?”
She thrusts her hands out. “Carpe deem, or however you say it.” I bite my lip from laughing. Definitely has already started. “I mean, I have only one life, right? Why spend it worrying about my past?” The struggle to stop her or let her keep going, knots in my stomach. I don’t want her to regret her words, regret telling me like this, but maybe this is the way it has to happen.
“Why are you worried?” I ask, sitting forward, resting on my knees.
“Because life sucks sometimes,” she slurs. No argument from me there. “I was a different person. I’m not that person anymore. You wouldn’t have liked that person.” No, I loved that person too. She points at me, wobbling a little. I jump off the couch to catch her, but she balances herself and giggles. “Oops.”
“Maybe you should sit down.”
“Nope. I’m fine. I’m going swimming. You should come since you loooove the water.” She gestures like she’s swimming through the air.
“I don’t think it’d be a good time to go swimming right now.” She pshh's me and rolls her eyes. “Come sit with me and tell me why you’re drunk.” I pick her up in my arms and walk her back to the couch. I’m an asshole for pushing this.
“Heyyy big guy, I can walk.” I can’t help but grin at the always in control woman, slurring and over animated words. “I only had a glass.”
“Mmm-hmm. Not likely.”
She pokes my chest and straddles my legs. “Listen here, hot stuff. I’m the bartender. I know how much I’ve drunk. I mean drank.” She puckers her lips when I laugh. “This is not a laughing matter. In fact, it’s cereal.”
“Serious,” I correct her.
She waves me off and continues. “Your friend was very nice. He’s a big guy like you.” She closes her eyes for a beat and when she opens them, she flashes a sly smile. “But he’s not as hot as you.” She tries to waggle her eyebrows, but it ends up looking like she’s trying to hypnotize me with her bulging eyes. I’m surprised when I feel the tips of her fingers on my waist. Maybe she was trying to hypnotize me. I angle my head as she pulls up my shirt. “You’re like hot, hot,” she giggles at herself.
As much as I’d love to flip her on her back right now and have a drink of her, I can’t. She pouts as I wrap my hands around hers to stop her from taking my shirt all the way off. “Talk to me, Ellie. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Fine,” she huffs, letting my shirt free and dropping her hands to her side. “I’m running from my past. Always running. I was a different person. I don’t know that person and I don’t want it to catch up to me. I left it in the past for a reason, Kase. So there… that’s what's wrong. I thought my past had caught up with me and it scared the ever-loving hell out of me. I didn’t know how to handle it.” Her words fall out of her mouth in one breath.
