Mo flings herself over the bar and rushes to the TV as though she wants to reach through it and be the one to help me. The camera on the phone shifts, the sound muffling, but I’m able to make out what Mo says.
“Why isn’t he moving?” She’s crying, and as morbid as it sounds, I’d give anything to see her face. “He should be moving, right? Dammit, Rhett,” she cries. “I need you to move. Fucking move already. He’s so still. Why aren’t they helping? They need to do something.”
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Mo comes back on the video. The view is slanted to the side, and there’s too much white noise to hear what she says, but the wild, desperate look in her eyes tells me everything. I swallow hard, waiting to see what she’ll do next. There’s a pause, followed by her frantic cry for Cooper. “Coop!” After a loud thud, the video goes black.
I look up to find Coop. He’s standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room, his hip propped against the frame.
“She was scared to death. We both were. I don’t know what happened between you two all those years ago—other than Nikki clearly helped make a mess of things—and frankly, I don’t need to know, but Mo cares about you. Probably even loves you, if I had to guess. She hasn’t dated anyone since you two broke up. Not once.”
Pressure builds behind my eyes. I’m not sure what to think about that. Why didn’t she date? Because of me? Was she hoping I’d come back? Because that’s pretty twisted after the lie she told.
I look away, taking a second to get a hold of my emotions, although I’m finding it difficult because they’re swirling all over the damn place.
“You’ve seemed happy since you’ve been back in Heaven, and I’d say it has something to do with seeing Mo. If there’s still something there, you owe it to yourself to figure out if you two can sort through the past. A girl like her won’t stay single forever.” Coop grabs his phone from my lap and slides it into his pocket. “I’ve gotta head down to the pub, check on a few things. When I get back, you better be off this couch, and for the love of God, take a damn shower.”
I stare at the front door for a long time after Coop leaves, wondering what in the world I’m supposed to do about Mo. I’m relieved that she didn’t cheat on me with Charlie Dixon, but I’m not sure I can get over her lie, mitigating circumstances or not. She’s had six years to come clean, and she never chose to do that until she had to.
I groan, and my head falls into my hands. Duke shoves his wet nose against the side of my face.
“I’m okay, bud,” I say, giving him a pat. “Just trying to figure out what to do about Mo.” His ears perk at the sound of her name, and I laugh. “She’s gotten to you too, huh?”
Sitting up, he lets out a deep bark.
“Now you sound like Coop.”
I glance at the sweats I’ve been wearing for two straight days. No woman is worth this. Surely it won’t kill me to talk to her, if that’s what she wants.
Mind made up, I take a quick shower and get dressed. I slip my feet into a pair of Nikes, grab my keys, yank open the front door, and plow straight into a body. Grabbing Mo’s arms, I make sure she’s steady.
She blinks up at me. Her puffy eyes are red, lips swollen. My stomach twists in knots. I get a whiff of her strawberry shampoo and without fail, I’m reminded of a blanket, a six-pack of beer, my favorite country song playing on the radio, and Mo’s soft moans as we made love under the stars. My heart flops around in my chest, and I have to take a step back. It’s too much, and without the cover of anger, I’m not ready to be this close to her.
“What are you doing here?”
“I was hoping we could talk.” She bites her lower lip and glances at the keys in my hand. “I can come back if this is a bad time.”
“Mo—”
“Just so you know, I’m not going to let this go.”
“I know.” I rub the back of my neck. “I was actually coming to find you.”
She shifts on her feet, a nervous habit that she’s had for as long as I can remember. “You were?”
I nod. “I told you I wanted you to start from the beginning, and then I walked away before you could finish. That wasn’t fair to you, and I apologize.”
She looks down at her feet, and I follow her gaze. Mo’s toes peek out from the tips of her sandals. They’re painted a pale aqua color—odd choice if you ask me, but what do I know? The corners are chipped and worn—the way my heart has felt this past week. It’s time to move forward.
I clear my throat, catching Mo’s eye, and gesture over my shoulder. “Would you like to come in, or we can stay out here?”
“I don’t care where we go, Rhett, just somewhere quiet where we can talk.”
Coop lives off of Route 143. His closest neighbor sits a mile down the road, and the only sounds are birds chirping and the light rumble of thunder off in the distance. And, if we stay out here, the smell of the impending rainstorm will distract me from the smell of Mo.
I motion for her take the chair while I prop myself up on the banister of the front porch.
“Okay, Mo, you said you had more to tell me. I’m listening.”