Oh, for fuck’s sake, is she purposely trying to make me go insane right now?
No joke. This might be the most painful thing I have ever witnessed in my life.
But I just stand there, watching Ava eat that fucking cookie and feeling like either my head or my goddamn balls are going to explode.
That is so wrong, dude. You shouldn’t be that fucking turned on by watching someone eat a cookie.
My mind is right. But my body gives zero fucks.
Finally understanding her flight reaction in emergent situations, I gently grab her by the elbow and get us moving. “Where…uh…where’s our first stop?”
“Not sure.” Ava shrugs, still finishing off that goddamn cookie. “How about Bath & Body Works?”
“Sounds fantastic.” Anything but standing around and watching you eat cookies and dropping crumbs onto your perfect tits and licking fucking chocolate off your lips. Anything but that is the best idea ever.
She looks up at me like I’ve grown two heads. “You want to go into Bath & Body Works?”
“Yep. Sounds great.”
Her face turns into a puzzle. “Are you feeling okay?”
“Feeling great,” I respond, my voice probably far too excitable, but fuck, I’m only a man. A man who apparently gets turned on by watching his best friend eat chocolate chip cookies.
She’s not buying it, the look of downright confusion is still apparent on her face, but the good news is she’s finished eating that fucking cookie that apparently was made by Satan himself and sent to earth to destroy me.
Fucking hell.
Thankfully, though, I spot something in a store window before we reach Bath & Body Works and pull us to a stop.
“What are you doing?”
“We need to go in there.” I nod toward the store, and Ava furrows her brow, reading the name of it.
“Green Thumb? That’s a plant store…”
“I know.” I grin. “Come on.”
She follows me without complaint, and within thirty seconds, I have the one item that caught my eye clutched in my hand.
Ava looks at it. Then looks at me. Then looks back at it. “Why are you holding a cactus?”
“Because this is the perfect plant for you,” I respond, smiling down at the baby green cactus. It sits in a tiny terracotta pot with a red velvet bow wrapped around the edge. “Cactuses can survive any-fucking-thing, Ace. You barely need to water them.”
“But Teddy 12 has been doing so well,” She retorts and puts a hand to her hip. “He’s been living for, like, three years straight.”
Because of me.
I am literally the only one keeping that green bastard alive.
Yeah, and since you’re going to be leaving for Houston soon, it won’t be long before Teddy 12 kicks the bucket.
The mere thought makes my chest tighten with discomfort.
Who is going to keep Ava’s plant alive when I’m gone?
Who is going to be there for her when she’s freaking out about something or when she’s upset about something or when she just needs someone to watch fucking Golden Girls with at midnight because she can’t fall asleep?
It’s nearly too much to bear, but somehow, I manage to swallow it down, all the questions, all the worries, all the discomfort about leaving Ava behind in New York, and force myself to focus on the here and now. The present. And not worry about the fact that I still haven’t told her about NASA.
Trust me, I know. I’m a fucking asshole coward.
“I think it’s time for Teddy 12 to have a friend, though,” I suggest, and she mulls it over for a moment, even reaching out to take the cactus into her own hands.
She inspects it carefully, turning it from one side to the other. “You know, he probably does get lonely sometimes…” She pauses and smiles up at me. “You think we can get him on the plane without too much trouble?”
I nod.
“Okay,” she says, and her responding smile is magnificent. “You’ve convinced me. Let’s bring Tom home.”
Tom.
Figures it took her all of two minutes before naming the prickly bastard.
Yeah, and it’s shit like this that you love about her the most.Ava“For two people who don’t really like to drink, we sure end up at bars a lot, huh?” Luke whispers into my ear as he opens the door to The Pub, a staple in my hometown.
I grin up at him as he places a hand to the small of my back and guides us inside. A rush of warm air hits me in the face, unthawing my cheeks and nose and ears from the blistery air.
Any day now, it’s going to snow. I just know it. Vermont will have a Christmas that’s so white, even Bing Crosby would be jealous.
“There they are.” I spot my sisters, Em and Kate, standing in the back corner, drinks in hand and music urging their bodies to move to the beat. Landon and Zach, their respective men, stand beside them, drinks also in their hands and chatting animatedly with each other.