Cross (The Gibson Boys 2.5)

“I didn’t slip,” I insist, taking a step toward her. “I had a bad game plan.”

“I can only score it as I see it.”

There’s a blip of pain in her eyes as her uncertainty fails to mask the wavering in her voice. The sound batters my heart, just like it did when she and I were together and I’d see a similar look on her face. I hate it.

We stand in the middle of Crave and don’t say a word. The only sound is the shaky breaths escaping her sweet, full lips. A part of me wants to fight with her, tell her how stupid she was for walking out of my life and destroying everything I had planned for our future. Another part of me wants to toss her to the floor and fuck her so deeply, so completely that she remembers the connection and chemistry only we have together. Yet, there’s another piece of me that wants to grab her and wrap my arms around her waist and hold her close if for nothing but to make sure she’s all right.

“You said it’s a split decision,” I say, standing so close to her, our chests are almost touching. She smells of vanilla and the shampoo she always uses, the one in the red bottle. I fill my lungs with the scent of her and blow it out slowly. “Does that mean there’s still a fight?”

She tucks another strand of hair behind her ear. “The bell rang on this fight a long time ago, Cross.”

“Maybe the scorekeeper was wrong.”

“Maybe—” She’s cut off by the sound of Nora and Machlan behind me. She looks at the floor and takes a step back, like we’ve been caught doing something we shouldn’t.

Looking over my shoulder, I shoot a glare at my best friend. “What’s up, Machlan?”

“I hate to bother you two, but I gotta get this place ready to open. You can use my office, if you want.”

“I think we’re ready to go,” Kallie says, peering around me. “You ready, Nora?”

“If you are.”

“Kallie, wait.” There’s no denying the eagerness in my voice, but I’m too focused on not letting her out of here without some sort of commitment to worry about it.

She keeps her sights set on Nora. “What, Cross?”

“What are you doing tonight?” I ask. “Or tomorrow night?” My mind races through my calendar, trying to figure out on the fly how I’ll rearrange my appointments if she takes me up on one of my offers.

“I’m pretty busy…”

“Oh, you are not.” Machlan smirks, leaning against the bar.

“Stay out of this,” she says, flashing him a look. “This has nothing to do with you, Mach.”

“Everything that happens inside my bar has something to do with me,” he teases. “So, let’s cut the shit: you really have nothing to do but you’re still pissed off about something that happened years ago. Sound about right?”

“Enough,” I say, firing a warning shot at him.

He laughs. “Fine. Just thought I’d help you two get to the point. See you tomorrow, Nora?”

“Yup,” she says before looking between Kallie and me. “I’ll be outside.”

My eyes lock with Kallie’s as the door latches behind Nora. “Name the place and time and I’ll make it happen.”

“Make what happen?” She sighs.

“Coffee. Dinner. A fucking slice of watermelon from Dave’s Farmstand, if that’s what you want,” I joke…kind of.

“Is that still open?” Her eyes sparkle, the easygoing Kallie I remember starting to come back. “How many watermelons did we eat from there over the years?”

“I think the two of us kept him busy.”

“Do you remember when Peck tried to make his own watermelon moonshine?” She laughs. “He was sick for a week, and then you all were trying to find a nurse to check him out so you didn’t have to tell his mom.”

“I forgot about that.” I chuckle. “He was sick as hell. Lance finally found a nurse somewhere.”

“Leave it to Lance.” She giggles, wiping a tear from her eye.

“We loaded Peck in the back of Walker’s truck and met her at the Four-Way Bridge to get checked out. What a mess that was.”

“Does Walker still have Daisy?” she asks, alluding to the big black pickup Walker has driven since his senior year of high school.

“I think Walker will drive Daisy until he dies. He loves that truck,” I say, shaking my head. “But back to the watermelon—Dave closed it down a while back. His wife got put in a nursing home and she passed away not too long ago.”

Kallie’s face falls. “She was so sweet. That makes me sad.”

“I see Dave sometimes over at Crank,” I say, referring to Walker’s car repair shop. “Ran into him at Goodman’s gas station a couple of days ago too. He asked about you.”

“Why would people ask you about me now?” She considers this for a long moment. “Doesn’t that seem strange?”