“No. My sister is a menace and wants to talk to you.” The words are barely out of my mouth before my sister manages to wrangle the phone from my hands and run to the other side of the fire to stand beside Chad.
“You got my six?” she asks him, making us both laugh.
“I’ve got you,” Chad says, patting the arm of his chair for her to sit.
“Shayne, hi, I’m Faith. Ford’s twin sister.” The two of them carry on a conversation, and I’m only privy to one side. Not that it matters. I’ve been open and honest with Shayne. I have nothing to hide. Unlike her. I can’t help the thought that crosses my mind.
“Give me back my phone,” I call out over the fire, and Faith just sticks her tongue out at me. Needing to talk to Shayne, to hear her voice, to tell her how much I miss her already, I stand and stalk toward my sister.
“Uh-oh, Shayne, he’s coming after me. I can’t wait to meet you. I gotta go.” Faith thrusts the phone at me, losing her balance in the process, falling into Chad’s lap. He tickles her side, making her squeal. I block them out as my feet carry me away from their antics. I need some quiet to talk to my girl.
“Hey, babe, sorry about that. My sister, she can be a little much.”
“She sounds so much like you. You have similar personalities.”
“I’d say it’s the twin thing, but she and I are close. We always have been. Well, I guess that’s because we’re the same age, so yeah, it’s a twin thing,” I ramble. Her soft laughter fills my lungs with air. “How was your night?”
“Good.”
There’s something off in the sound of her voice. I was too busy fighting off my sister to notice at first. There is definitely something wrong. “Shayne, what’s going on?”
“Nothing,” she says, her voice cracking.
I stop walking and focus everything on her, on the tone of her voice. “Baby, you can talk to me.”
“Just had a bad night.”
“It’s just me. I left Faith and Chad back at the fire. I’m sitting on a bench outside the barn. Tell me what’s going on.” I keep my voice gentle, but what I want to do is insist that she tell me. I just left there hours ago. What could have happened between now and then?
“Shayne, if this is going to work, you have to talk to me. Communication is important for every relationship, but ours demands it. Honesty, trust, and communication are what’s going to keep us going strong when I’m not there to hold you.” I hear her sniff, and it’s killing me that she’s so upset.
“Where are you?” I ask her. I hate to think of her out driving when she’s upset. I tilt my head back and look up at the stars. The night sky is bright, and I’d give anything to have her with me right now. That’s when an idea hits me.
“My apartment.”
“Go to the window.”
“What?”
“You heard me. Go to the window. Turn off all the lights in your apartment, and open the window.”
“Ford?”
“Trust me,” I whisper.
“I do trust you.”
“Then, please, for me, turn off the lights and open your window.” I hear her walking through her apartment as she does as I ask.
“What now?”
“Look up at the sky. What do you see?”
“Stars. The moon.”
“You know what I’m doing right now?”
“What?”
“I’m looking up at the very same sky. The very same moon and the very same stars. I might not be there to hold you or to kiss you, but I am with you, Shayne.”
Her voice breaks into a sob.
“Please, talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”
“I didn’t want to do this over the phone.”
“Didn’t want to do what over the phone?” Is she breaking this off already?
“Tell you about my past.”
“Did someone from your past hurt you?” My senses are on high alert. Not that I could do shit about it when I’m here, and she’s there.
“No. Just… this town, and my history. It was a rough night.”
“Look at the stars, Shayne. Pretend I’m there with you. Pretend that my arms are wrapped around you. You’re safe with me. Your body and your heart. Please, I’m begging you to let me in. That’s the only way this is going to work.” I hate to drop that on her, but I don’t know what else I can say to get through to her.
“Can you let me get it all out before you say anything? Please? I just… I need to get it all out, and then we can go from there.”
“That’s fine. I’ll stay quiet, but, Shayne, you need to know that I’m going to still feel the same way about you once you tell me whatever it is you have to say.”
“How do you feel about me?”