Page 141 of More For Me

I think about Santana and how shocking it was to find out that Mom and Dad were going to let her finish high school out of state. I guess if my fight with my dad helped bring that about, it was worth it.

“But you know the biggest reason I was okay with you guys dating?” he asks meeting my eyes. “Because I had a long time to get used to it,” he says gently. “We all knew this was coming, Lele.”

“Apparently I’m the only one who didn’t get the memo,” I mutter, and he chuckles.

“You should see the way that boy looks at you.” He shakes his head. “I’m sure that’s how I look when I see your mother.”

I try to swallow past the lump in my throat, wondering if he’s ever going to look at me like that again.

“I’m sorry that he hurt you, kiddo. I don’t know what he’s going through right now,” Dad says. “But I do know that he cares about you. And I’ve always felt okay about that.” He squeezes my hand. “I think he might be the only person I’ve ever met who could keep up with you. He makes you happy, Everly. And that’s all I really want for you.”

“He’s not making me very happy right now,” I whisper, blinking back tears.

“The offer to kill him is still on the table. I might like the kid, but I can get past that if you need me to hurt him.”

“I don’t need you to hurt him,” I say, laughing through my tears. “I kind of want to kick his ass myself, though. Maybe I should ask my uncles to teach me how to brawl like rock stars.”

“You don’t need your uncles’ advice,” he says, pride shimmering in his eyes. “You could take him down no problem.”

But I don’t want to take him down. I just want to be with him.

“I’ll just say one more thing,” Dad goes on. “You said he was dealing with complicated family stuff? I can tell you from experience how much that can mess a person up. I wasn’t ready to be with your mom until I dealt with my own shit, you know?”

“So I should just be patient?”

“No, I think you should definitely kick his ass.” I laugh and he slips an arm around my shoulder. “But I also think you shouldn’t give up on him just yet. It’s hard for me to imagine there’s anyone good enough for you, but Bodhi just might come close.” He kisses the top of my head. “And that’s something that you want to hang onto.”

* * *

My dad must saysomething to my uncles because they manage to behave themselves for the rest of the shoot. I stop spacing out and do my job and by the time we’re done, I think everyone is pretty happy with the photos.

I’m feeling worn out by the time I get home. I’m not surprised that Bodhi’s Jeep isn’t at the house, but it still hurts to see the empty driveway. I just want to get inside, take a long bath, and drown this awful day with a glass of wine. Probably several glasses of wine.

But the universe has other ideas. I must have missed the car parked across the street when I pulled in because I nearly jump out of my skin when I see Leo sitting on the porch steps. Rose isn’t with him. Which means he probably came to talk about Bodhi.

And from the expression on his face, I don’t think it’s going to be a fun chat.

“Hey,” he says, stepping down from the porch as I approach. He shoves his hands into his pockets. “I wasn’t sure if you’d be out late so I figured I’d wait awhile.”

I cross my arms. “What’s going on? Do you know where he is?”

Leo looks exceedingly uncomfortable. “I talked to Bodhi after I saw your text this morning. He went camping.”

I stare at him. “He wentcamping?” I must have misheard that. There’s no way in hell he dumped me on a street corner and then went camping.

He nods, not meeting my eyes. “He does that, sometimes. When he’s stressed.”

Annoyance prickles my skin. Does Leo seriously think I don’t know that?

“It would have been nice if he’d told me that himself,” I snap. “So I wouldn’t have worried all night.” Not like knowing would have done much to ease the sharp pain in my chest over what he said to me. But at least I would have known he was alive.

“His parents are splitting up, Everly,” Leo says softly. “He found out last night.”

My breath catches. “Oh,” I whisper, shock rolling through me. My understanding of the night before shifts slightly, taking a new shape with this information. He went to dinner at his mom’s and found out this news. And then came to the party.

I still don’t understand why that means he thought he should break up with me, but I do finally get why his eyes had looked like that.

“His family…it’s complicated,” Leo says. “Bodhi has always had this ridiculous idea that it was his job to keep everything together. That if he could just be a good enough son, his parents would be okay. I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense but—”