“Um…good night, Layton. Thank you again for everything you did for me today. I really do appreciate it. ”
I could almost hear the smile in her voice.
“It was my pleasure, CG. Good night. ”
“Sweet dreams,” she purred into the phone.
I hit End and set my phone down on the nightstand. Lying down again, I stared at the ceiling for a minute or two.
“Fuck!”
I jumped up and headed back to my bathroom and turned on my shower. I cursed Whitley Reynolds as I stepped into the freezing cold water.
I swore I woke up with a goddamn smile on my face. I did nothing but dream of a stubborn, hardheaded, beautiful, green-eyed beauty last night. After I got dressed, I reached for my cell phone and headed to the kitchen where I could already hear Reed and Kevin arguing. It reminded me of Mike and me, and for one brief moment, I felt like my chest was being pushed in on me.
I glanced at my phone and saw a text message from Whitley. I smiled as I opened it up to read it.
Whitley: Good morning, Layton. Have a good day. I read that damn book until five thirty this morning. Thank you again for helping me yesterday.
“Jesus, dude, what in the hell has you smiling with that damn goofy-ass grin?” Reed asked as toast popped up from the toaster.
I looked between both of them. There was no fucking way I was telling them about my conversation with Whitley. They’d just go off on me about how much I liked her…which I didn’t.
“Nothing. So, what’s the plan for today?” I grabbed the eggs out of the fridge and started to scramble them.
Kevin stood and cleaned off his plate. “I’m going to head out for a quick run, and then I’d really love to just spend a bit of time on the ranch. ”
I smiled as I looked at my brother’s best friend. I knew losing Mike had been hard for him as well.
“You want to saddle up a few horses?” I glanced over toward Reed, who was looking down at his phone.
He looked up and grinned. “That sounds good to me, dude. Kev, you up for riding?”
Kevin smiled and nodded. “Give me a good thirty-minute run, y’all. ” He headed out the back door.
I turned back to cooking my eggs.
“Layton?”
I looked over my shoulder and smiled. “Reed?”
“Um…I don’t know how to tell you this, but—”
I turned and stared at him. “What? Is something wrong?”
“Uh…Olivia sent me a text a few minutes ago. She said some bullshit about worrying about you. She asked me if I was going to see you today and if I could let her know where you would be. What do I say to her?”
My heart instantly fell to my stomach. “Just don’t text her back. ”
“What the fuck is her deal? Why is she all of a sudden so worried about you? Bitch wasn’t worried the night she walked out and left you. ”
I felt the anger starting to build inside me.
She left me when I needed her the most. All women are nothing but selfish bitches.
“I don’t know what her deal is. She was texting me in the middle of the night last night. I just ignored her. ”
“Bill said she was pissed when she saw you with Misty. ”