Hardwood - K.M. Neuhold Page 0,69
eight and the concept of keeping a secret has so far eluded her.”
“I get it. I really do.”
“Thank you,” he says, letting out a relieved breath. “Where are you all going tonight?”
“Jordy’s place. He loves doing this big Thanksgiving for the three of us. It’s sort of a tradition.”
“That sounds really nice,” he says, sounding wistful.
“Are you doing anything tomorrow?”
“No,” he answers. “Val always invites me to join them, but I feel a little weird about it. So, normally I just have a turkey sandwich and watch football.”
“That’s the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.” I chew on my bottom lip, staring at the phone uncertainly. On the one hand, I cannot let Ev sit home all along on Thanksgiving. On the other hand, it’s way too early to invite him to my parent’s house for our big, crazy holiday celebration. That’s the height of commitment, and we’ve only been on two dates.
“I’ll be fine,” he assures me. “I’m used to it.”
“Ugh, no.” I wrinkle my nose and shake my head. “No one should get used to that.”
He chuckles, the sound crackling over the phone. “What do you suggest I do instead?”
“Okay, it’s way too soon for this, and it’s probably a terrible idea but come with me to my family’s dinner.”
“Too soon and a terrible idea? That’s quite the invitation.”
“Shut up,” I say with a laugh. “Come with, it’ll be nice.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive,” I assure him.
“That sounds great. I’d love to.”
My heart leaps, and I curse myself. What the fuck am I doing? This is so not part of the don’t fall in love with him plan. “Awesome. I’ll pick you up at noon tomorrow.”
“Perfect. Have a good night,” Ev says.
“You too.”
We hang up, and I finish getting dressed, then head out the door to Jordy’s.
I arrive with a bottle of wine, giving both of my best friends a hug as I step inside his apartment.
“Did you bring your apple crumble?” I ask Mia, my mouth already watering in anticipation of my favorite dessert.
“Jordy said I couldn’t come if I didn’t,” she answers.
“Good job, Jordy.”
“It’s my last Thanksgiving here; you think I was going to miss out on apple crumble?” he reasons, and my heart sinks. It’s not that I forgot about the moving to California thing, but I’ve been trying not to think about it. Having a hot new boyfriend has been a useful distraction.
“Why would you bring that up and bum us out like that?” Mia complains.
“I agree. No more moving talk tonight.”
“Fine, but don’t blame me when the end of December sneaks up and you two aren’t emotionally prepared,” he warns.
I head into the kitchen and pour three glasses of wine, handing them out to each of my friends.
“To ignoring our emotions until we’re absolutely forced to face them,” I jokingly toast.
They clink their glasses against mine, and we all laugh before taking a sip.
“Speaking of pretending our emotions don’t exist, how’s it going with Everett?” Jordy asks.
“Hey, that turkey smells great. Is it almost ready?” I evade the question, opening the oven door to peek in at the turkey needlessly.
“That bad, huh?” Mia guesses.
“Nope, it’s great.”
“Lie,” Jordy calls me out.
“Seriously, it’s great. Ev is incredible. He hits every single item on my list for the perfect man.”
“That’s fantastic.” Mia lights up.
“Is it?” I ask skeptically. “It’s never going to last.”
“You never know,” Jordy says optimistically.
“Yeah,” I agree, even though I do know. “How about we break into that crumble while we wait for the turkey?”
“Dessert before dinner?” Jordy asks, both of his eyebrows going up. “You’re a rebel; I like it.”
Chapter 20
Everett
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay for Thanksgiving?” Val asks, leaning her shoulder against the front door and studying me with concern.
I can’t stay. My boyfriend invited me to spend it with his family. The words are on the tip of my tongue, but I can’t very well say them and then walk away, leaving her to process that on a holiday. Right, the holiday is the reason I’m being a chickenshit. I roll my eyes at myself internally.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’m good,” I assure her, stepping forward to kiss her cheek. “Happy Thanksgiving and give your parents my love.”
“Will do. Happy Thanksgiving to you too.”
It’s a ritual I’ve gotten used to over the past few years, driving home from dropping off Livi for a holiday at Val’s that I won’t be part of. It was one of the many areas where the moderation of our custody agreement went smoothly. Most