“Come on, Poppy! The door’s open, and I’m getting all wet.”
“Just...” She took a deep breath and waved her sister away. “Just go on without me. I’ll be there in a little while.”
Prue’s mouth dropped open. Mine did, too. “But Mom and Dad said—”
“Just go,” Poppy repeated. “Tell Mom and Dad I’ll be back later.”
Back later?
Prue looked shocked for a moment. Just that same way I felt.
“Fine,” she said, rolled her eyes, and muttered something about the queen of mixed messages as she slammed the door shut.
Couldn’t argue with her on that one.
There was no way I would have guessed that Poppy would stay behind to talk. No way in hell. But there she was, sitting in the truck with us even after her sister had run inside the house.
I wasn’t sure how long she’d stay or how helpful it would be, but I hoped we would make the most of whatever time we had.
Chapter Seven
Poppy Evans
It was obvious that I’d shocked Cooper and Nolan as well as Prue when I announced I’d stay behind with the guys. When the words came out of my mouth, I surprised myself too.
But what options did I have?
Talk to the two guys or go inside and face my parents? I didn’t want to do either of those things, but faced with a difficult choice, there was one clear winner.
At least Cooper and Nolan were likely to be apologetic and kind. I didn’t expect the same from my father.
And okay, so he probably wouldn’t be unkind, but I didn’t want to face the judging looks and the cold shoulder.
Not yet.
Not with these guys on my mind at the same time. At least I had the chance to clear the air with them first.
“I didn’t think you’d stay.” Cooper had been the first to speak, as always. “After the way you glared at me back at the event.”
“I’m not sure I glared, but what did you expect me to do?” I asked. “Did you think we would really have a conversation right then and there? Under the awning in front of God and everybody?”
I sat back in my seat. I was not more than half-second away from saying something rude, and I didn’t want to do that. But seriously, what did they expect me to say?
“Are you ready for the conversation now?” Nolan asked, quiet and straight to the point. Also, the same as he’d always been. “Because it is up to you. There’s no point in going down this road if you don’t want to hear it.”
“I’m not ready,” I confessed. “But I’m not sure I’ll ever be ready to talk about it, so this is probably as good a time as any. Can we go somewhere else, though?”
If we sat out in front of my parents’ house, it was only a matter of time before my mom or dad opened the door and called me inside as if I was a naughty teenager out past curfew.
Especially once Prue told them who I was with.
Because while my parents wouldn’t have been outright rude to me—at least not before they’d even said hello—there was no guarantee they’d extend that same courtesy to Nolan or Cooper.
“Somewhere else?” Cooper asked. But he had already shifted gears into reverse and backing down the driveway toward the road. “Your dad’ll kill us if we take you too far in this storm.”
“He’ll kill you faster if he comes out here and catches the three of us together,” I said, only half-joking.
“Good point,” Cooper nodded. “Shall we go to the ranch? We can at least be comfortable and talk freely there.”
“That’s fine with me.” I swallowed hard and tried not to conjure up images of the last time I’d been at his family’s ranch. Back when the three of us used to sneak into Cooper’s room to do things that would have scandalized his parents—and mine—a whole lot worse than getting caught cheating on the SAT.
It wasn’t a long drive to the ranch. I knew the route well. The place had been like a second home to me back in the day, where I always loved the wide-open space and the dusty country air.
We made stilted small talk, but it all seemed sort of awkward and pointless since the three of us knew what we really had to talk about and we were on our way to do that. Still, once I’d decided to talk, it had been nice to catch up a little with the guys who had been such an important part of my teenage years.
I had to smile as we made it to the tree-lined driveway that went for nearly a quarter-mile from the road up to the main ranch house. “God, this place hasn’t changed at all.”
“No, not too much,” Cooper flashed a quick grin. “Except I’m in the big bedroom now, and Nolan has the other end of the house to himself. Vic moved out as soon as he was old enough to go, of course, he preferred to live in town.”