Page 5

Chapter Five

EVERLY

My sheets are twisted around my legs like I've been fighting demons all night, but the only thing haunting my dreams was a certain cowboy's hands.

I sit up and stretch, untangling the sheets.

The apartment I share with my brother Wilder is small but cozy; we found it when I decided to spend the summer in Snowflake Falls helping Mila.

Wilder landed a job here for the season, so it worked out perfectly.

My lips still tingle from Bruno's kiss. I touch my mouth, heat pooling low in my belly at the memory.

Sweet mercy, that man can kiss!

I've been kissed before, obviously, but never like that. Never with such intensity, like I was the only thing in the world that mattered. The way Bruno looked at me afterward, dark eyes burning with want, made my knees weak.

Still makes them weak.

The smell of coffee drifts from the kitchen, which means Wilder's already up.

I drag myself out of bed and into the shower, trying to ignore the way my body responds to thoughts of Bruno.

The way his hands felt cupping my face. How his voice dropped to that rough rumble when he said my name.

The barely leashed power in his shoulders when he crowded me against the booth window.

By the time I make it to the kitchen, Wilder's leaning against the counter in his work clothes, scrolling through his phone with a piece of toast hanging from his mouth.

“Morning,” I mumble, reaching for the coffee pot.

“Well, well.” He looks up with a grin that's identical to mine. “Look who finally rolled in. Where were you last night?”

“I had dinner.” I keep my voice carefully neutral.

“Uh-huh. With the cowboy-turned-mountain man everyone's talking about?”

I nearly choke on my coffee. “How do you?—”

My phone buzzes on the counter. I glance at the screen and my stomach drops.

Trent: Ev, I've been thinking about us. We need to talk. I made a mistake.

Wilder notices my expression change. “What's wrong?”

I flip the phone face down. “Nothing. Just... my ex.”

“That asshole.” Wilder's eyes narrow. “What's he want?”

“To talk, apparently.” I stare at the phone like it might bite me. “Says he made a mistake.”

“Yeah, he did. Months ago. And now he wants to talk?” Wilder sets down his coffee. “You're not actually thinking about talking to him, are you? The same guy who wanted you to lose forty pounds before he introduced you to his family?”

“I don't know. Maybe I should hear what he has to say. Get some closure.”

"Ev. You walked in glowing just now and then Trent texts and you look like someone kicked your puppy. You see the difference?”

I do see the difference. With Bruno, I felt beautiful, desired, worth risking everything for. With Trent... I just feel tired.

“Bruno made me feel like I'm enough. Like I'm more than enough.”

“Then why are you even considering what that dickhead has to say?”

My phone buzzes again. Another text:

Trent: Saw your Instagram. You look different. Happy. Miss you.

“Because what if Bruno's just caught up in some fantasy and when he really gets to know me…”

“Stop.” Wilder's voice cuts through my spiral. “Trent’s an insecure little shit who couldn't handle dating someone better than him. Don't let him mess with your head now.”

“But—”

“No ifs, no buts. You want to know what I see when I look at you? I see my badass little sister who put herself through college and who's going to be an amazing teacher. And who just dated the most eligible guy in Snowflake Falls, present company excepted.” He crosses his arms.

“He's not that eligible. He's forty-three and lives alone on a mountain.”

“Accrding to my sources, every single woman between eighteen and sixty has been trying to catch Bruno's eye for years. Man's got his pick of the county, and he chose you. That makes you either very lucky or very brave.”

“Or very stupid,” I add under my breath.

“What was that?”

“Nothing.” I shove bacon from the pan into my mouth to avoid more questions.

But Wilder knows me too well. He sets down his phone, expression turning serious. “Talk to me, Ev. What's really going on?”

“Bruno scares me. Because when I'm with him, I forget that I'm supposed to be focusing on school and my future, not getting swept off my feet by some gorgeous cowboy.”

“Who says you can't have both?”

“Wilder, the man lives alone on a mountain. He announced in front of half the county that he wants to win me like a carnival prize.” My voice rises with each word. “Those are not the actions of a man looking for something stable.”

Wilder leans against the counter, studying me. “Your voice is getting all squeaky, sis. You know what I think?”

“What?”

“I think you're running scared because for the first time in your life, someone's looking at you like you’re perfect, and you don't know what to do with that.”

My stomach flips. “That's terrifying.”

“Why?”

“Because what if I disappoint him? What if I'm not worth all this grand gesture nonsense? What if he wins today and realizes I'm just…ordinary?”

Wilder shakes his head. “If Bruno Castelli can't see how great you are, he doesn't deserve you. But stop running scared and see what happens.”

I spend the rest of breakfast trying to ignore the butterflies doing a workout class in my stomach. By the time I need to leave for the fair, my nerves are wound so tight I might snap.

When I pull into the parking lot and catch sight of the arena where Bruno will be competing in just a few hours, my heart is hammering in my chest. I park and walk toward my cotton candy booth, past the horse trailers and competitors preparing for the day.

Somewhere in this chaos is Bruno, probably going through his pre-competition routine with Ranger. The thought makes my pulse quicken.

Elena's voice drifts over from her tent. “You look well this morning, Everly.”

I stop and turn to find her standing in her tent’s purple doorway, silver hair gleaming in the morning sun. “Thank you.”

Her knowing smile makes me wince. “Mmm… the cards told me last night would be... illuminating.”

“Oh Elena. You didn't do a reading about me…”

“Didn't I?” She winks and disappears back into her tent, leaving me standing there with my mouth open. She comes back, her rings glinting in the sunlight.

“The cards have been restless all night,” she says, her voice taking on that mystical quality she uses with paying customers. “They're practically humming with energy about you.”

“Elena, I really need to set up?—”

“Humor an old woman.” She spreads the cards in a fan. “Draw two.”

Against my better judgment, I find myself reaching for the deck. My fingers hover over the cards before selecting two from opposite ends.

Elena flips the first card: The Lovers. A man and woman stand beneath an angel, bathed in golden light.

She smiles. “A powerful connection. Two souls recognizing each other across time and space. Passion, yes, but also choice. True love requires courage, my dear.”

She flips the second card and her expression darkens: The Tower. Lightning strikes a tall structure, sending figures tumbling into darkness.

She shakes her head. “Something from your past seeks to destroy what you're building. A false foundation that must crumble before truth can emerge. Beware voices from yesterday trying to poison tomorrow...”

My phone is heavy in my bag and I swallow hard. “That's oddly specific.”

Elena gathers the cards with a flourish. “The universe speaks to those who listen, dear. The question is: will you choose the poison, or will you choose love?”

I shake my head and continue toward my booth. Today's going to be a long day, and it hasn't even started yet. But as I unlock my station and start setting up for another day of spinning sugar, Elena's words echo in my mind.

I have a choice to make.