Page 23 of All This Time (Blossom Peak #1)

“It’s the least I can do. I have all of this money and no one to spoil. Might as well spoil my friends.”

Carolina arches a brow. “Are you looking for someone to spoil? Because last I recall, Fletcher Adams had no interest in love.”

I turn toward Laney and wait until she looks my way. “I guess I’m just waiting for the right person.”

Laney clears her throat as Carolina looks between the two of us.

“You know, she might just be closer than you think. And when you find her, I expect you to come back so I can make your wedding cake as well,” she says cheerily.

“Have a good day, you two. I’ll have the cake ready to be delivered in two weeks. ”

“Thank you,” Laney says as I hold the door open for her and we step out of the bakery. She checks the time on her phone as we reach the sidewalk. “Shit, I need to get to the salon.”

“Did you drive?”

She shakes her head. “No, I just walked over from the salon since I went in early this morning to take care of some paperwork.”

“Then let me drive you.”

“It’s not that far of a walk, Fletcher.”

“It’s five to eleven, Laney. You don’t want to be late for your client.” She bites her lip, clearly weighing her options. “Don’t overthink it,” I add. “It’s just a ride.”

She exhales. “Fine.”

I take her by the hand and lead her to my truck, not wasting another second or giving Laney the chance to argue with me again. Holding her hand makes my body stay in the hyperaware state I was in while feeding her cake.

Opening the door for her, I help her inside.

“Thank you.”

“Wow. We’re up to eight thank-yous, ladies and gentlemen.” She shakes her head at me before I close her door, round the front of the truck, and drive her the short distance through The Village to her salon.

When I get out of the truck as she does, she asks, “What are you doing?”

“Walking you inside.”

“That’s unnecessary.”

I meet her at the front of my truck, right in front of the entrance to the salon. Glancing inside, I see her employees begin to gather at the front reception desk.

Great, now we have an audience.

Smiling, I shove my hands in my pockets. “It’s completely necessary. This way, I know you made it inside safely.”

“Fletcher, I appreciate the ride, but you can’t do this.”

“What?”

“Be all sweet. Support my business. Drive me to work.” She lowers her voice. “Feed me cake.”

I take a step closer to her so she’s forced to crane her head back to meet my eyes. “Why not?”

“Because…you’re…confusing me,” she admits on a whisper, but finally giving me a glimpse of just how much I affect her.

If only she knew how much she affects me too.

I reach up and tuck her hair behind her ear as her eyes grow heavy from my touch. “How so?”

“You know how.”

I shake my head. “Nope. I’m an idiot—been hit one too many times in the head. I need you to spell it out for me.”

Laney’s eyes flick between mine and then drop down to my lips for the hundredth time since I arrived back in town. And for a moment, I’m taken back to that night—the night she told me she had feelings for me, but I was too stupid to do anything about it. And when I wanted to, it was too late.

Laney blinks herself out of her trance, stepping away from me and averting her eyes from mine. Blowing out a breath, she hoists her purse up higher on her shoulder and then reaches for the door handle to Blossom Beauty. “See you later, Fletcher.”

“Yes you will, Laney.”

She flashes me a tight-lipped smile and then disappears inside.

But I know what I saw.

The fire that started burning when we were teenagers is still there.

The question is: is now the time to do something about it?

Or am I still going to let all of my excuses prevent me from going after the one thing in my life that I’ve always wanted, but never thought I could have?

***

“Fletcher?” Elliot comes out from the back of the Thorne Family Law Group office after I showed up unannounced and asked the receptionist if he was around.

Standing from the chair I’ve been waiting in, I reach out to shake his hand. “Hey, man.”

He reciprocates, greeting me in a more professional way than jumping into my arms as we’ve been known to do in the past. “What’s up?

You need a lawyer? I have to tell you, I’m getting married in a couple of weeks, so now’s not a good time.

” Pushing his shirt sleeves up his tattooed forearms, he crosses them over his chest, an amused grin on his face.

“No legal services necessary. I was in the neighborhood and just thought I’d stop by. Laney and I ordered the cake this morning, FYI.”

“Nice. Don’t tell me the flavors, though. I want to be surprised.”

“Deal.”

“Well, I’m in the middle of some paperwork, but if you want to come back to my office to chat, I can multitask.”

I shove my hands in my pockets. “Sure. Sounds good.”

After dropping Laney off, I drove around a bit and took in the town I’ve always thought of as home. There have been some changes since I was here last—new buildings, repaved roads, expanded intersections—but most things have stayed the same.

Even driving past Blossom Peak High School felt like traveling back in time. The field that held some of the best memories of my life is the same as I remember it—although, I’m sure my father has enjoyed having new players to torture with drills.

Elliot leads me into his office, a more than ample space filled with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and the biggest mahogany desk I’ve ever seen.

The walls are filled with his framed degrees and accolades he’s earned throughout the years, and one of the walls is almost entirely taken up by a window that looks out toward the mountains that surround the town. “You want something to drink?”

“Water would be great.”

He points to the mini fridge in the corner next to a couch as he takes his seat. “Help yourself.”

After grabbing a bottle of water and drinking down half of it, I take a seat in one of the cushioned chairs opposite his desk. “So, how’s business?”

Elliot can’t hide his smile. “Really fucking good, man. The practice is thriving, our win rate is nearly perfect, and I’m getting married. Life is fucking great right now and I feel like I’m living the dream.”

A small twinge of jealousy hits the center of my chest. “I’m happy for you, man.”

“Thanks, Fletch. I know I said this to you on the phone when I called, but it really fucking means a lot that you’re here for the wedding.”

“I wouldn’t have missed it, Elliot.”

“I guess it was lucky that it happens to be the offseason too, huh?”

I nod. “That definitely helps. I’ve still got about a month before training camp.”

“You ready to get back on the field?” he asks as he begins glancing between two spreadsheets and scribbling down some numbers.

“Always. I feel kinda antsy between seasons.”

“So, what do you plan on doing between the wedding and then?”

“Probably just go back to Charlotte and train.”

“You could always hang around here for a while longer,” he suggests, glancing up with a knowing grin.

“I mean, I could…”

“You’re always in a hurry to leave when you come to visit… I mean, at least the handful of times I’ve seen your face in the past few years.”

Yeah, and there’s a fucking reason for that.

“Well, my life is in Charlotte now.”

“Yeah, but Henley, Rhonan, and I are here,” he counters. “It’s fucking weird not having you here too, man.”

“You act like my job just took me away from here, Elliot. I’ve been in the NFL for ten years now.”

“Yeah, but you’ve also missed a lot.”

Don’t I fucking know it. Sometimes it feels like my life here in Blossom Peak was a movie I watched as a teenager but never got to see the end of. “I can’t be in two places at once.”

Elliot sighs. “Fuck, I know. I’m not trying to lay on a guilt trip, I just…

” He blows out a breath as he drops his pen to his desk and leans back in his chair, reaching up to make sure that his black hair is still styled in place.

“I guess with the wedding coming up, it’s just making me sentimental.

You guys are the brothers I never had, you know? ”

“Take that up with your parents,” I joke.

Elliot laughs. “You’re right, and fuck. They’re so over the moon about the wedding. Since the moment I introduced Tori to them, my mom acts like she’s her biological child and I’m chopped liver. Dad just wants to make sure I have a son to carry on the family name.” He rolls his eyes at that.

“I thought you didn’t want kids,” I say, curious what changed his mind.

“I didn’t, but when Tori and I talked about it, it didn’t sound so fucking scary anymore. Like, with her, I think I want to take on that challenge. Plus, my parents are dying to be grandparents, so having them close by means they’ll be here to help when we need a break, you know?”

Hearing Elliot talk about him wanting a family just reminds me that the man I share DNA with is the one who made me never want to have a family of my own.

Yet here’s my friend, sitting right in front of me, saying words I thought I’d never hear him say.

Did he really have a change of heart, and is Tori the reason for it?

Can the right person suddenly make everything click into place?

Or does growing up truly mean that the life we were avoiding was just our fear of the unknown?

My phone starts ringing in my pocket. I pull it out and see my dad’s name—talk about speaking of the devil himself. I immediately send it to voicemail. “Sorry,” I say, sliding it back in my shorts.

“You can take that if you need to.”

“Nope. I can call them back.” Yeah, that’s not going to happen either.

Elliot grins. “Was it a lady friend?”

“No.”

He leans forward in his chair. “Come on, you can be honest with me. You’ve got to have a roster of women on standby, right?”

Actually, I haven’t had sex in almost two years, I think to myself. But Elliot certainly doesn’t need to know that.

But after cake tasting with Laney earlier and her little secret she spilled, sex is certainly on my mind.

I reach down to discreetly adjust my dick in my shorts, yet again. “There is no woman, and there hasn’t been one in a long time. But if I recall correctly, you’re the one who used to have a roster.”

“I’m not going to apologize for enjoying myself and showing women a good time. But that was my life before Tori. Now I’m a changed man.”

I blow out a breath as I contemplate my next words, but there’s no time like the present. “Dude, I have to say this as your best man, okay? And the only reason I’m bringing it up is because I want to hear it from you.”

He rolls his eyes and crosses his arms over his chest. “All right. Give it to me.”

“You sure you’re not rushing into this?”

His smile falls and his eyes narrow. “Did you talk to Henley and Rhonan?”

“No. This is all me.” I tap the desk right in front of me. “I just want to make sure you’re thinking this through.”

“I get it. It’s not like me to be the impulsive one, right?”

“Well, yeah, that’s part of it. Ever since I’ve known you, you’ve been analytical about shit.”

“Exactly, and for once, I was listening to my heart instead of my head, Fletcher. Does it make this sound crazy? Probably. But it also feels right. And not that it’s any of your business, but Tori was the one that brought up marriage, not me.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” His lips spread into a boyish grin. “We were lying in bed one night after fucking so hard I nearly blacked out…”

“Didn’t need to know that,” I mutter, but he ignores me and continues.

“And she turned to me and told me that I’m exactly the type of man she wants to marry—smart, responsible, good looking,” he says, bouncing his brows. “And when I looked at her and really listened to what she said she wanted, I just decided right then and there to be that man.”

“Okay…so she wanted this too?”

“We both do, Fletch. I know she wasn’t the nicest girl in our class back in high school, all right?

And she’s even admitted that to me, how she wishes she could go back in time and act differently.

Hell, she even told me about things she did and said to Dilynne, which makes more sense why she’s been a pill ever since Tori’s been around.

” He rolls his eyes. “But Tori isn’t the same person she was back then.

Hell, none of us are, right? She’s fucking gorgeous, hardworking, and wants the same things I do.

Why should I question it? When you feel that strongly for someone, you have to react.

If you don’t, that’s how you live with regrets, right? ”

His words strike a chord once again. If only he knew how true that statement is for me, how often I think back to not giving in to what I’ve felt for Laney since I was seventeen, and how different my life might be if I had.

“You’re right.”

He points at me. “I know. So, yeah… It’s fast, and you, Henley, and Rhonan might not understand it. But one day you’ll find a woman who will make you want to be impulsive for the first time in your life, and if you don’t act on it, I’m going to be pissed at you.”

“Is that so?”

“Yup. And I’m going to remind you of this conversation when you come to me on the fence about listening to your goddamn heart.”

“So no matter the cost, no matter what issue may arise… You’re saying that if I find the woman that makes me want that life—marriage, kids, the white picket fence—to go after her?”

He nods. “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

So, you’re saying that I should go after Laney?

Am I using this as a bit of a loophole? Maybe. But at the same time, hearing one of my best friends talk about taking control of his life and not waiting, despite the risks, has my brain spinning.

There are a million reasons why I shouldn’t push things with Laney.

Hell, reason number one being her hot-and-cold demeanor that still hasn’t chilled out.

But if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past twenty-four hours, it’s that I still have an effect on her, so maybe this time in Blossom Peak is the perfect opportunity to explore it.

Am I fucking crazy? Probably.

Do I care? Not even a little.

“Fletch?” Elliot’s voice pulls me from my thought spiral.

“Yeah?”

He glances at his phone that’s chiming at him. “I have a call in ten minutes that I completely forgot about.”

Pushing myself up from my chair, I readjust my hat. “No worries, man. I’ll let you get back to work.”

“We’ll talk more soon, yeah?” He wakes up his computer by jostling the mouse. “Maybe you can come over one night and I’ll order some pizza. It’s just me right now while Tori is out of town for work.”

“Aw, are you lonely, Elliot?”

He flips me off. “Do you want free pizza or not?”

“I don’t know.” I pat my stomach. “Not sure my waistband can afford it.”

“Fuck off,” he says through a laugh. “Just text me later.”

“Will do.” I leave Elliot’s office and head back out to my truck, reeling over my friend’s epiphany about his life, and wondering if coming here for his wedding is helping me find my own.