Page 53 of The Last Goodbye

“Wow. That was worth the wait. Thank you.” He had a goofy smile on his face, and I could tell that he was slightly buzzed, as he’d had a few drinks at the bar. I was grateful I hadn’t drunk too much, so I wouldn’t make a fool of myself again.

“Tell me about the tattoo, and I’ll give you another one.” I bumped my shoulder into his side as we turned down my street.

“My tattoo says, ‘You don’t earn loyalty in a day. You earn loyalty day by day.’ It’s a saying that I read as a teenager by Jeffrey Gitomer, and it just sort of stuck with me. It’s a reminder that you can’t just come and go as you please in and out of people’s lives. You have to show up every day. It’s an example that I worked really hard to show my sister.”

Damn.

This man.

He was full of surprises.

And those words hit harder than I could have imagined because they were very relatable.

“Those are good words to live by.” I paused when we arrived at my house.

“Yep. I read them every day.” He shoved his hands in his pockets as he tilted his head to the side. “So, I guess we aren’t enemies anymore?”

“That depends on what you do to infuriate me tomorrow,” I said, chuckling. “Thanks for walking me home.”

“You aren’t going to give me another one, are you?”

“Tomorrow is a new day, Bass Bennett.”

“Sleep well, Magpie.” He held my gaze, and neither of us moved.

As if we didn’t want the moment to end.

I pulled myself from my Bass-induced haze and nodded as I started walking backward toward my house.

My gaze was still locked with his until I arrived at the front door.

I held my hand up and waved, and he just stood there watching me.

I pushed into my house and closed the door, leaning against it as I squeezed my eyes closed and tried to calm my racing heart.

Bass Bennett was definitely not the enemy.

thirteen

​. . .​

Bass

Phoenix

Are we meeting at the gate?

Cutler

Yes. Gracie, Tatum, and I are already here. They insisted on arriving at the airport three hours early.

Cannon

Damn. I haven’t even left my house yet. I’m cutting it close, but I’ll be there.

Phoenix

I told you Brody was driving us, and you turned down the ride, fucker.