Forever After All - Kaylee Ryan Page 0,28
many hugs like this I’ll get with him, so I’m taking what I can get. “Have fun tonight. Call me if you need a ride.”
“We will.”
With a wave, he’s back in his truck and driving away from me. I watch him until I can no longer see him. It’s not until I reach the door of the house that I realize I forgot the container. This should be fun to explain.
“Rip leave?” Gram asks.
“Yes.”
“Where’s the container?”
I look up to find her smirking. “He um… he thought he had it, but he didn’t.”
“I see.” She grins. “Well, it’s no worry. I can get it next time.”
“Right. Next time. Let’s get this put away.” I keep my focus on the task at hand and pretend to ignore her knowing looks.
As I help Gram store all of her baking supplies, I can’t help but think about Rip. About the change in him, at least when it comes to me, and the fact that he helps Gram every week. I wonder if Gramps did put him up to it. Regardless, the act has my heart swelling in my chest. I’m glad he helped to look out for them while I was gone.
It really is good to be home.
Chapter 9
Rip
I’ve been sitting at my desk for twenty minutes. I’ve stared out the window pretty much all that time. I wanted to beg McKenna to cancel on my sister, but I know they miss each other. I also wanted to ask her where they were going to dinner so that I could just happen to be there. I realize my thoughts are stalker-ish, so I refrained. Now, here I am, sitting and staring off into space, thinking of her.
My phone rings, pulling me out of my McKenna daze, and I laugh when I see it’s my sister calling. “Lara,” I answer.
“Big brother.”
“What’s up?”
“Oh, nothing. I just called to tell you that Colby might be reaching out to you. I’m having dinner with Mac tonight, so he might be lonely. He mentioned calling you and Corbin.”
“Yeah? Where are the two of you headed?”
“Depends.”
“On what?”
“You going to tell me what’s going on between the two of you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” It’s not a complete lie. I don’t know what’s going on. I know that I want her. More today than I did at the lake on Saturday and more than the day she left for college. Time hasn’t diminished my desire for her. It’s fueled it.
“Come on now,” she pries.
“I think I need to have this conversation with her first.” Eleven words are all it takes for my sister to understand my feelings for her best friend.
“How long?”
“A while.”
“How long is a while, Rip?”
“High school.”
“Wow,” she whispers. “I always thought maybe, I mean, I know she had a crush on you, but you never pursued her even when you had the chance.” She’s quiet, and so am I. What do I say to that? That I knew she was interested, but I was doing what I thought was best for her? “What are you going to do about it?”
“Still trying to figure that out.” What I don’t tell her is that I can’t seem to keep my hands off her best friend or that McKenna is all that I can think about.
“I can help.”
“No. I don’t need your help.”
“I’m her best friend. You need me,” she says with confidence.
“I don’t need your help,” I say again, trying to steer her away from whatever point it is that she’s trying to make.
“She’s always had a thing for you.”
I know. “She was always leaving for college.”
“Rip Callahan, are you going to claim your girl?”
“If it’s meant to be, it will be.” That’s what I tell her, and that’s what I also keep telling myself. I want it to be—more than my next breath. I want to be able to call her mine.
“Well, I’m going to help you.”
“Lara,” I warn.
“Tonight, she and I are having dinner and drinks at the Silver Star. We’re meeting there at seven.”
“I’m not crashing her time with you. I know she misses you.”
“Well, I miss her too, but I want this to happen. She could be my sister.” She lets her proclamation hang between us.
“What, am I not a good enough sibling?”
“We can’t share clothes.”
“You and Kenna do that now.”
“Figure it out,” she says, calling an end to our back-and-forth banter. “I’ve never known you to back down from something that you want.”
She’s right. I don’t, and when it comes to McKenna, I