Page 93 of Colton
“Where is she now? Upstairs with Colt’s brother. They’re together. Where is her husband? Well, he’s her ex-husband now, and he’s in prison for…I actually have no idea what all he pled guilty to.”
Colt kisses the back of my hand. “Assault, stalking, battery, attempted murder. Those are the high points, anyway.”
He watches as Chris’s face pales. Colt’s eyes are hard.
“And those cops? They’re all in jail awaiting trial. Investigators got a giant pile of evidence dropped into their hands, proving corruption. They’re still working to unravel all of it, but Evie’s been cleared beyond any doubt.”
Chris looks sick. He drops his head, shoulders rounding. He honestly believed I was guilty. It hurts that he thought so little of me. But he still showed up today, and he tried to defend me, so that’s something. I guess.
“That’s something that we should perhaps discuss in private, as a family.” Mother brushes that invisible lint on her skirt, unable to meet my eyes. Father is studying Chris, his face, again, a mask. Is he surprised Chris looks upset? How did we become these people? Was my family always broken, or did we just grow apart? Either way, I’m suddenly exhausted.
“I don’t think that there’s anything else for us to say. Mother, Father, you came here because you thought there would be something in it for you. You’re wrong. The only thing that I truly value is Mia, and you’ve just shown me again today that you don’t give a shit about her. I don’t want you in her life any more than you seem to want to be in hers.”
Turning to my brother, my face softens. “Chris, obviously you still believed that I had stolen from the hospital. I can’t figure out if I should give you props for coming to see me anyway or if I should be completely disappointed in you. I honestly don’t know where we’re supposed to go from here.”
Chris’s face is stark as he examines me. “I don’t know either Evie. I fucked up so bad, I don’t know if I can ever make it right.” He glances at our parents again, disgust lacing his words. “I do know that I don’t want to be lumped in with them. I know I made zero effort to get to know Mia, and that I failed you when I should’ve helped. I am truly sorry. But I think we still have time to repair this if you’re willing. You’re the only aunt my kids have and I really would like you to be a part of our lives.”
He studies me nervously. “Do you think that is something you might consider?”
I can hear the sincerity in Chris’s voice, but I am completely emotionally overloaded. At this point, I’m so fucking done that I’d like to set everything on fire and walk away.
“I honestly don’t know what I want right now, Chris. Nothing’s gone the way I thought it would today.”
Chris nods and tucks his hands in the pocket of his suit pants. “I understand. I’m going to send mother and father home on their own. But I’ll stay the night in town. Maybe we could meet for breakfast tomorrow morning after you’ve had some time to rest and think about things?”
Colton’s big hand is rubbing circles on my back. I focus on that connection as I dig deep, trying to find the part of me that loved and respected my big brother. Because I did. Despite mother and father constantly playing us against each other, I loved him. The question is, can I love him again? Because maybe not all families are supposed to stay together.
In the end, all I can offer him is a maybe.
My parents are subdued as Colt escorts them to the elevator. I don’t miss his whispered words, “You don’t come near her again. You don’t think about her, and if anyone asks about her, you make sure to tell them you’re fucking awful people and that’s the reason Evie’s not around anymore. You’re both too stupid to even realize what you’ve lost, but one day, I guarantee it, you’re going to feel it. And by then, it will be too late.”
He stalks back in and I close it carefully, planting my forehead on the cool of the door. Colton’s warm body presses along mine. His arms wrap around me and he just breathes with me. I feel so fucking stupid. Despite myself, I had built up all of this hope around today’s meeting. Hope that my brother believed in me. Hope that we might have a relationship again. And all of that is just falling flat now.
I wish I could roll the clock back. I wish I had never invited my brother here. Colt turns me in his arms, cradling me as he rocks again.
“Time for some more bad dancing,” he says. I laugh and let him shuffle me around the room, dancing to his off-key humming.
“I really love you. Do you know that?” I ask him. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that this man would be mine. The day we met, I vividly remember how out of my league he felt, so it feels like a miracle that he loves me. Not just loves me, but is completely devoted to me. That alone is amazing, but he doesn’t just love me, but my daughter too.
“I do know that,” he whispers. “You and Mia are the best thing to ever happen to me. I swear to Christ I won’t fuck it up. Promise. I will do whatever I have to do to make sure that both of you know how much I love you. It’s my fucking privilege to take care of you. Plus, you’re hot as hell.”
I plant my head on his shoulder and let the giggles overtake me. We drift silently, shuffling, until I tell him what’s been sitting in my heart for the last few weeks.
“I want us to be a family.”
He stills, and we come to a stop in the middle of the kitchen. He pulls back so he can get a clear look at my face. His throat bobs as he swallows.
“Are you sure? Because if you’re not sure—.”
“I’m sure.” I say firmly. I’ve lived too much life, and not trusted myself enough in the past. I am sure. “Watching you with Mia has been more than I could’ve ever imagined. I honestly didn’t know that fathers could be like that. That men could be so engaged and so loving and so caring. And as a partner…” I wet my lips nervously, realizing I’m basically about to propose to this man, even if I’m not saying the words.
“You did the laundry Colt. Like, actually put your clothes in the washing machine and turned it on. You used soap and everything. Do you know how sexy that is? I’ve been in a couple of long-term relationships and not one of those men did their own laundry when they stayed with me. Somehow, it always became my responsibility. And it feels like a stupid thing to even bring up right now, but for me, it felt massive. You didn’t have to do it. You were covered in puke and soaking wet, and still, you helped.”
Colt looks baffled, and I laugh as I explain. “I’m in my thirties, Colt. Flashy cars and expensive dinners might’ve attracted me a decade ago, but now? Every time I think about you doing laundry, you get hotter.”
His eyes heat. “What are you saying?”
The hope in his eyes makes me feel like I have wings. “I’m saying that I really wanna keep you. I know you well enough to be sure I want us to be a family. I want to go to sleep next to you every night and wake up to you in the morning. I want you to go to the daddy-daughter dances at Mia’s school. I want you there for all the wonderful moments and all the hard ones. And maybe, if it’s in the cards for us, I want more kids. Any way we can have them.”
