“I’ve got an interview in three days. Lucky for me, there isn’t a lot of demand just now for small town living, so they’re going to do the background check and whatever else they need to do between now and then. After it, I’m flying to Boston to pack up and give it all to the company moving my stuff, and by the time I fly back, they should have an answer. If the timing works out right, I’ll have everything here by the time I start. If not, then I’ll just pack some work clothes until the rest arrive, and I’ve got Pops’ Toyota 4Runner to drive around in.”
It was crazy how it was all falling into place, but what sucked was the fact it’d taken her losing Lawrence for it to happen.
Cracking the kink out of my neck, I focused on the wall over her shoulder as I asked what’d been weighing on me. “Do you think you’ll enjoy moving back here? It’s different to living in a place like Boston, and the school’s—”
“The same one I went to,” she interrupted. “I know it better than the one I was working at, and I have family here that I’ve missed. I’ll probably miss some of the things I had in Boston that we don’t have here, but I figure having friends and family only five minutes away from me will more than make up for the lack of Starbucks.”
I dared to look away from the wall to make sure she wasn’t lying, but the expression on her face was serious. “Really? That’s kind of a big sacrifice.” I shook my head like I was mulling it over seriously. “Then again, there’s a Starbucks twenty minutes away now.”
“Yeah, in the wrong direction to Piersville High, though.”
“Fair point.”
Walking back into the house, she said over her shoulder, “I don’t know until I try it, right? And if it doesn’t work out, there’ll be something else out there.”
I missed a step as what she’d registered. “Wait, why wouldn’t it work out here?”
Shooting me a grin, she explained, “Well, you might have a new secret to divulge that alters the course of my life again. You and one of the Townsends could be in love and planning to elope in Vegas and want the land Pops’ house is on.”
My mouth opened and closed as I tried to figure out what the hell she was talking about. “I’m fairly certain they’re all happily married, Bex.”
Raising her eyebrows, it was her turn to be shocked by my reply. “I was talking about Layla. Why would you assume we were talking about one of the guys?”
Because I can’t get away from them? The Townsend family were like herpes. First you came across one, then another two popped up behind them.
I was about to say that to her, but she gasped, “Oh wow, are you gay? That’s so cool.”
“What? No. Why are we even talking about this?”
Throwing her arms up in the air, she snapped, “I don’t know.”
There was a brief pause, and then both of us burst out laughing. It felt good to have this with her, being able to laugh shit out like we used to.
“Oh God, your face when I asked if you were gay,” she gasped, holding her side.
Still laughing, I shook my head to clear it. “We’ve had a lot of random conversations over the years, but that one might just be at the top of the list.”
I’d been looking at the ground when I said it, and when I glanced back up again, she was watching me with a soft smile on her face.
“We’re getting it back, aren’t we?”
Knowing exactly what she meant, I took a shaky breath in. “Yeah, babe, we are, and I’m so fucking relieved about it.”
Reaching her hand out with her pinky extended, she waited for me to hook mine around it before shaking them like we used to when we were kids.
“Bro-hoes for life.”
There was a problem with that part of her plan.
I wasn’t sure I wanted to be bro-hoes again. Bexley Heath had been a huge part of my life for as far back as I could remember, even when she wasn’t here. I wanted her to be an even bigger part of it now, though.
I just didn’t know how to convince her.
Chapter Six
Bexley
Three days later…
“I think you’ll get it,” Ava repeated as we got out of the car in front of the Piersville Police Department. “You’re the best there is.”
Smiling wryly at her over the roof, I pointed out, “You’re biased, you have to say that.”
Shutting our doors, we walked toward the entrance, still discussing it and our plans for Boston. Logan had made me promise to tell him how my interview had gone, and because Ava had come with me, she was tagging along before we went to collect her stuff for our trip.
The blast of ice-cold air from the air conditioning hit us as we entered, making both of us shudder.
Almost like it was a coordinated move, every available head lifted from what they were doing and turned to look at us, making me and Ava take a step back.
Without even realizing I was doing it, I shouted, “I didn’t do it.”
“Way to go making them suspicious,” Ava hissed in my ear, making me want to kick myself.
The sheriff, Dave, walked out of the office at the very back. I’d only met him a couple of times and didn’t know how to take him, but his wife was one of the sweetest people I’d ever met, and I was looking forward to hopefully working with her at Piersville High.
“You looking for Logan?”
Blinking, I glanced at Ava for her approval to answer, making her roll her eyes. “Of course you can answer that question. You’re already fucked anyway, so maybe they’ll rule you out
