Page 25 of All This Time (Blossom Peak #1)

“Huh.” Dilynne sits back down on the board and starts to roll back under the car, but I put my foot on the board, stopping her.

“Huh? That’s all you have to say?”

“What more do you want from me?”

“I don’t know. Tell me what to do! What does this mean?!”

“Laney, only you can answer that.”

“But—”

She sits up, resting her arms between her legs, peering up at me. “Look, you could have asked him, or hell, even kissed him, but you didn’t.” She shrugs.

“Well, I mean… Why would I?”

“I think the more important question you need to ask yourself is, why wouldn’t you?”

I blink. “What?”

I’m used to blunt honesty from her, but I never imagined this being her advice.

“Why didn’t you give in to the moment?”

“Because… Because I don’t want to cause any issues for Elliot, Tori, and their big day,” I say, but Dilynne’s eyes narrow.

“Nope. Try again.”

“That’s the reason—”

“No, it’s not.” She gives me a full once-over. “You’re scared. I don’t know why I didn’t see it sooner. We’ve known each other most of our lives, and I can tell when you’re letting fear run things.”

“I am not scared.”

“Yes, you are, and now you definitely have a reason to be.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“A man—not just any man, but your brother’s best friend, the guy you had the most insane crush on—would not go to those lengths and do those things, or say those things, if he did not have feelings for you.”

I suddenly feel dizzy. Bracing myself on a toolbox behind me, I say, “You really think so?”

Dilynne shrugs. “Yeah, I do. But, I wasn’t there.

You were. So, you’re the only one that truly knows what happened between you two, but I will say this.

” She points her wrench up at me again. “You’ve spent almost twelve years wondering if the man felt the same way about you because you never got that validation back then.

I hate to say it, babe…but I think you got it from him the other night. ”

“I—I don’t know.”

She straightens her spine. “I’m gonna ask you something and don’t be mad at me.”

“I hate when you lead with that.”

“I’m just forewarning you. But Laney…do you think there’s even a chance that maybe what you saw that night twelve years ago wasn’t what you thought it was?”

The image of Fletcher in that final moment that sealed the deal for me flashes in my mind. “I know what I saw. And I know what he said—or didn’t say.”

“Then why would he be putting forth all this effort to get on your good side?”

“Because he’s Rhonan’s best friend. Because he cares about Elliot and is taking this best man duty seriously.

Or maybe he doesn’t remember that night because he’d been drinking.

Or maybe he thinks he can get laid while he’s here on his little mini-vacation and then go back to his life as a playboy wide receiver in the NFL. ”

“You know what’s weird, though?” She taps her chin in thought.

“What?”

“He’s never actually been confirmed to be dating anyone.”

“Yeah, because he probably just has one-night stands and licks cake off of their fingers too.”

Dilynne clears her throat while arching a brow at me. “Is that…from personal experience or…?” Her eyes widen. “Oh my God. Did he do that when you two went cake tasting yesterday?”

I close my eyes and nod. “Yes. He was flirtatious, hand-fed me samples of cake, and sucked on my fingers to the point that I thought I was going to have an orgasm right there in the bakery.” I cover my face when I remember what that led to.

“Then I made the mistake of admitting out loud how I haven’t had an orgasm from something other than my hand or a vibrator in three years… ”

Dilynne stares at me, barely blinking. “You are so fucked, so the only thing left to do is fuck him and get it out of your system.”

“That’s your advice?”

“What?” She throws her hands to the side. “You know I’m not the relationship type. Sex without feelings is my love language, Laney.”

“God, I wish I could do that.”

She shrugs. “You can. You just live out the fantasy of being with him, enjoy these next couple of weeks hopefully full of mind-blowing orgasms, and then move on knowing you’ll no longer wonder what if.”

“I just really wish I didn’t feel anything for him at this point. It would make this a lot easier.”

“Again, I think you’ve built this whole thing up in your head, so maybe it’s just time to face it and find out the truth.”

“I think I’d rather get a root canal.”

Dilynne laughs before looking back at the car. “To each their own, but don’t forget we’re going out Friday night, if for nothing else than to get your mind off of this whole thing.”

I fake a cough. “I don’t know. I think I feel a cold coming on.”

She glares at me. “Don’t even think about it. You’re going.”

“Ugh.” I stomp my feet and then turn to exit the shop. “You know, you’re not my mom. You can’t make me go.”

“Oh, yes, I can. Remember that I know how to do wicked things with a pair of pliers.” She shakes her finger at me. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

***

“Who are these people?” Lifting my drink to my mouth, I suck on the straw between my lips. The strawberry and lime margarita is going down smoothly with only a hint of a burn from the tequila.

Dilynne wraps her arm around my shoulders. “Who the hell cares? The point is, there are a ton of men in here, so you have your pick of which one gets to help you burn off some sexual aggression.”

“You make it sound like I’m about to mount someone in the middle of the bar and hump his leg.”

Dilynne pops her brows. “Dry humping is severely underrated.”

“I’m gonna need more alcohol,” I mumble around my straw as I suck down the bottom half of my drink.

It’s Friday night and, as planned, I’m out with Dilynne, my coworkers, and a few of our friends from around town. When Dilynne suggested this little excursion, I just imagined it would be just the two of us. Unfortunately, all of my friends are now involved in Operation: Laney Gets Her Groove Back.

The Charming Bull, a bar located about thirty minutes outside of town, is bustling with more people than I’ve ever seen. Although, I can’t tell you the last time I was out at a bar, so this could just be a normal Friday-night crowd.

“Maybe to take the edge off, you should ride the mechanical bull?” Dilynne gestures to the roped-off area where a girl is gyrating her hips against the bull beneath her, one hand thrown up in the air, her hair cascading wildly around her, exuding sexuality that I don’t think I’ve ever possessed.

“You want me to get off on a fake animal?”

“The stimulation is great if you press down hard enough.”

Shaking my head at my best friend, I signal to the bartender for a refill.

Ginny, our friend who manages the grocery store in Blossom Peak, comes sauntering up to us.

“All right, I scoured the room and landed on two groups of potential men for you.” Brushing her red hair from her face, she discreetly points to the far-right corner.

“That group looks like all blue-collar men—dirty hands, worn jeans, and steel-toed boots.” She licks her lips. “Those would be my first pick.”

Dilynne nods in agreement. “Two of them are wearing cowboy hats too, so that’s a plus.”

“Dear God,” I mutter, sucking down my second drink at record speed.

Ginny motions to the other side of the bar. “Now, over here we have the business type—button-down shirts, pressed slacks, leather loafers. I saw quite a few ankles over there, and a smattering of chest hair peeking out from the collars of their shirts, so also very good potential.”

“God, I love chest hair. It’s so under appreciated,” Dilynne adds. “A man with hair on his chest makes me feel a bit more like a cavewoman, and what we’re doing is more animalistic than not.”

Ginny motions to clink her glass against Dilynne’s. “I’ll toast to that.”

Glenn comes up to us now, a pout on his lips. “Straight, straight, straight,” he whines. “This bar is full of straight men. What does a gay man have to do around here to find someone to bang?”

“Go to a gay bar,” Dilynne replies dryly.

“Then next time, that’s where we’re going. The operation that night will be to get Glenn laid.”

“You know, we could do that right now, if you want?” I interject as the anxiety rises in my chest. I thought the alcohol would help me relax, but all it’s doing is feeding this uneasy feeling in my gut that I don’t want to be here.

Sure, there are some very attractive men in this bar, men that romance novels are written about, looks-wise. But none of them are making me want to put myself out there. None of them are familiar.

None of them are Fletcher.

Yup. It’s official. I think my head, heart, and vagina are broken.

Dilynne tsks. “Nice try, Laney. Tonight is about you. Now, which corner do you want to shimmy on over to first?”

“I’m not shimmying anywhere.”

“Girl, you’ve got to shake your ass a bit in that skirt. I’m telling you, as soon as you walk by that table of bona fide cowboys and they see the way your ass looks, they’ll start fighting over which one of them gets to take you home.”

“Knowing my luck, I’m gonna trip as I walk by and fall flat on my face.”

Ginny perks up. “Even better! Then they get to rescue you, and that’s always a great way to make a man hard.”

“You two have issues.”

“No, we are concerned for you and your vagina,” Ginny clarifies.

“I appreciate it, but my vagina is just fine.”

Glenn dry heaves. “Can we stop with all of the vagina talk, ladies? Please?”

“If you’re hanging out with the girls, you know vaginas are a topic of discussion, Glenn. Don’t act offended,” Dilynne says as Yvonne and Claudia approach us.

“How many drinks have you had, Laney?” Yvonne asks as she tips her beer bottle to her lips.

I hold up my half-empty glass. “This is my second.”