AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Michael: That’s saying something.
Addie: It would probably be hard for anyone to live at home again at 35. Plus, she liked Luke and keeps suggesting I try to work things out with him.
I paused. I hadn’t considered that Addie might be thinking of going back to her ex. An unwanted churn of jealousy erupted in my gut.
Michael: Are you considering it?
Addie: Definitely not. Turns out I have a shred of self-respect left.
The jealousy fizzled out.
Michael: Good.
Addie: ?
Crap. I realized I had no say at all in what she did, and offering an opinion about her ex was probably the wrong way to go.
Michael: I just mean that I think you deserve better.
Addie: That’s nice.
Did she not believe me?
Michael: There’s something about you. You’re special. Don’t take anything less than you deserve.
I cringed after hitting send, wondering if I’d said way too much. There was a significant pause, and my stomach twisted. Definitely too much.
Then, after a full five minutes:
Addie: Thank you. That means a lot to me. I have similar advice for you, you know.
I wasn’t sure what to make of that, but decided I’d already put myself out there enough for one night.
Michael: I’ll talk to you tomorrow.
Addie: Good night.
I did talk to the contractors the following day, and learned that we could be in the house again after the floors had a full four days to dry and set. I texted Addie to let her know we could move back in on Friday.
I spent the week at the store, sneaking back to my workshop when I could. I was building a few things for the house, things I probably shouldn’t have bothered with. But Addie was on my mind, and while maybe I needed to avoid thinking of her in the attractive-woman-I-had-interest-in kind of way, I could think of her in the friend-I-wanted-to-do-something-nice-for kind of way. No harm in that, right?
On Thursday, I arrived at work to find Emmet and Virgil behind the counter, and the whole place scented like a bath and body shop and not a farm supply store. This stunk, and not just of lavender. My cousins were up to something.
“What’s going on?” I asked them.
They exchanged a guilty look, and then faced me with matching blank expressions. “Whatddya mean, ‘cuz?” Virgil said.
My suspicions rose even higher. “The smell in here? Did you light candles or something?”
“There’s no smell.”
“Virge, you can deny a lot of things, but there is definitely a smell. Is it lilac?”
“You can identify the scent of lilacs?” he asked me skeptically.
“I don’t know, actually. Probably not. It’s like gardenia or something. Floral. Ovewhelmingish.”
The brothers exchanged a look. “I told you we didn’t get it off,” Virgil said, punching his brother in the chest.
