stares at me, his eyes burning with intensity. “Tell me the truth. Do you honestly believe that I had sex with the woman who was in my hotel room? Do you believe I invited her here?”
I chew my lip and turn my face away. He grabs me by the chin and gently turns my face back.
“Do you?” he pleads. He drops his hand.
“No,” I admit. “But it was really hurtful of you not to even call for days after that happened. You sent a text basically saying, ‘We’re busy, won’t bother calling you, you’re not part of what we’re doing, get over it’.”
Sebastian winces. “That isn’t what the text said, but if that was the message I conveyed, then I apologize. I was wrong. I should have made it a point to call you as soon as possible, and I should have stayed in touch with you.” He manages a rueful smile. “The thing is, I thought about you all the time. I thought ‘What would Callie tell me to do?’ And when I was freaking out, I told myself that in a few days I’d be home with you, and knowing that would calm me down and help me get through all the craziness. What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You said ‘home with you’. Is that how you think of Bitter End?” I hate the naked need in my voice. I hate the question I’m really asking.
Will you stay here? With me?
“I…” His eyes shutter, and he takes a deep breath. “It’s starting to feel that way. I don’t know. Do you think they’d want me to stay here? I mean, the town, the people, everyone…your family?”
“Let’s see. Do people stop you on the street and tell you about their family’s embarrassing ailments before you even get a chance to say howdy?”
“Yes.” He looks puzzled. “Happens a lot. I’m a little concerned about Herman’s ongoing gas situation. I think he should see a gastroenterologist.”
“A lot of us are. But he doesn’t need a specialist, he just needs to lay off the fried onions. Okay, moving on. Is it impossible for you to make it a block down Main Street without spotting at least two people you know by their full name and also their nickname?”
“Well, yeah, but what does that—”
“And also the history behind the nickname?”
“Well, yeah, a nickname’s no fun unless you know why someone’s called Greasy Gus. That’s quite a story, by the way. Have you heard it?”
“Of course. Okay, here’s one more. Are you genuinely concerned about whether Sandy Sue’s prize pig wins blue ribbon at the Tricentennial?”
“Well, yeah, of course.” His eyes burn with righteous indignation. “Bitter End has never won before, and those Sugar Hill snobs have been rubbing it in our faces for the last fifty years. I think their pig should be tested for steroids.”
“Ha!” I say triumphantly. “You said ‘our faces’.”
“Huh.” He strokes his chin thoughtfully. “So I did.”
“Anyway.” I lean back on the sofa. “Truth be told, I owe you an apology too.”
He looks at me in confusion. “For what?”
“The grudge I’ve been holding against you all this time. We were both really young. And you weren’t the only one making false promises. I told you I was ready to travel the world with you and leave my family behind, but I wasn’t. Neither of us was ready for forever at that point.”
“I’m ready now.” He puts his hand on mine, his eyes burning with intensity. “I’m ready for forever, with you. It’s always been you, Callie.”
“Oh.” A hot rush of tears blinds me. “I’m ready too, but you can’t just disappear on me for days and expect I’ll be okay with it.”
“It’ll never happen again,” he says fervently. “If I go on tour and if you aren’t with us, I’ll call you three times a day.”
I choke on a snort-laugh. “Oh, come on.”
“Not enough? Five times a day.”
“Sebastian!”
“Every hour?”
“You’d drive me crazy! Settle down there. How about call me in the morning and in the evening. Most evenings. And if there’s some kind of crazy crisis, or rumors start drifting around about you and girls, you contact me. And I’ll find a way to go on tour with you at least half the time. Probably a few weeks on and then a few weeks off. I can last for a year. After the tour’s over, though…”
“After the tour’s over, I will find a way to settle down here. With you.” He folds his hand over mine,