Page 47 of Hold Me Instead (Elmwood Falls #1)

Zachary sat quietly, fingers tapping his pint glass, listening.

Hyper-aware of Charlie’s leg against his as they sat side by side, their scrubs a beacon that they’d stayed late at the office once again.

He wore a gray zip fleece over his, neutralizing the work image.

Charlie had busted out a bulky maroon cardigan that looked soft to the touch. He wanted to test his theory.

“He’s having a difficult time, huh?” Charlie asked.

“That’s putting it lightly,” Sandra said.

“He’s struggling with some depression, but neither one of them want to talk about it.

He wants to get up and go like he used to, but his energy is completely drained.

So he’s frustrated he can’t do much of anything without having to take a break, or a nap.

And when Mom tries to help, he claims she’s treating him like a child. ”

“She did try to feed him the other day,” Jay said carefully.

Sandra rolled her eyes. “Mom was letting him taste the soup she made! You have to get the full story from him.” She turned from her husband to Zachary and Charlie.

“God, he’s ridiculous, going to Jay and trying to drum up support.

But he leaves out very pertinent information. He’s like my teenagers at school!”

The comparison launched Sandra into a story about some of her students, and eventually Vivi and Alex, which in turn had them laughing.

The knots in Zachary’s neck slowly loosened, and he sat comfortably, arm behind Charlie, his fingers occasionally grazing her shoulder.

The sweater reminded him of Maple’s silkiness—though nothing could beat the softest pup’s head in the world.

He smoothed the contour of her shoulder, dragged his fingers absentmindedly.

It was a natural movement, one he didn’t realize he was doing until he caught the raised eyebrow of his sister across from him, her pointed look clueing him in on his less-than-subtle affection.

When Charlie left the table for the restroom, Sandra pounced.

“What is going on with you two?” she hissed.

“Nothing. We’re friends.”

“Friends who can’t seem to keep their hands off each other?”

He winced. He thought it might be obvious that Charlie was placing her hand on his thigh beneath the table, but he had cared little to worry about it. He should’ve known his sister would catch on.

Then there was his shoulder grazing. Much more obvious .

Oh. And brushing her hair over her shoulder. He’d caught himself off guard with that one.

“No use lying to her, man,” Jay said solemnly.

Zachary held out his hands. “It’s nothing serious. We’re enjoying each other’s company.”

“Ah, yes, and while you’re ‘enjoying each other’s company’”—she added air quotes and adopted a classic sister tone for the words—“ do you happen to be shoving your tongue down her throat? Because then we have a problem.”

“I don’t want to talk to you about this,” Zachary said.

“We’re all adults, Z. But that woman is like family to us. Not to mention a major part of the practice. Mom will plan your wedding as soon as she finds out, and Dad will make you sign some sort of agreement to ensure you don’t scare her off when things go south.”

Jay mouthed yikes . “That might be jumping ahead a bit, babe,” he said calmly before taking another sip.

“Seriously. And thanks for the vote of confidence, sis.”

“I’m just saying, you’re playing with fire. This is Charlie we’re talking about. This is a huge deal!”

“I know who she is. Like you said, we’re adults. She and I are on the same page.”

“So, what, she knows you’re going to leave soon, and she’s okay with that too? Charlie’s not the type of person to have a fling.”

“I know.”

“She cares so deeply, Z. Like, heart on her sleeve.”

“Yes, I know .” His annoyance spiked. “No concern for me, then? It’s okay for my heart to be broken?”

“Holy shit, is your heart involved?!” Sandra hissed.

He swore the organ stopped beating in that brief moment, waiting for his answer, before she continued.

“What if Mom and Dad find out? Then what? They’ll want you to stay and keep working together. How’s that going to go if things end between you guys?”

“Who knows what they want? Dad wants me to buy the practice from him now. ”

Jay straightened as Sandra leaned forward.

“But Charlie’s taking over the practice,” she said.

“Not with the state it’s in.”

“What are you talking about?”

He gave them a brief rundown.

“She has no idea?” Sandra asked.

He nodded grimly.

“Zachary. You need to tell her.”

“Sandra. I just told you, I can’t.”

“But this is what she’s been working toward—”

“I know! Sandra, fuck, I know. This is shitty. Someone or everyone will be hurt. I’m trying to figure out the best solution before she hears the news. There’s gotta be a way.”

They sat quietly.

“Are you considering it?” Jay asked.

He scrubbed his hand over his face. “I don’t know where my head is at right now.”

“But you guys are seeing each other,” Jay supplied.

“Honestly, that’s the one thing I look forward to most.”

Sandra’s eyes widened, but she said nothing.

“Good God, women take a long time at the bathroom,” Charlie said, sliding back into the booth. “So I met this woman in line, and she was telling me about the new restaurant moving in around the corner.”

“You met someone in line again?” Zachary asked.

“What else are we going to do while we wait?” she asked.

“Last time, she came back and told me all about this poodle, I thought it was a patient of ours. Turned out, it belonged to someone she’d just met in the bathroom,” Zachary said .

She laughed lightly. “I think she scheduled with us afterward, so technically, that poodle is a patient.”

He felt it on his face, his affection for her. It must’ve shown, because even in the dim light of the bar, he saw the blush spread across her cheeks. She leaned closer, and he grabbed her hand to keep from running his nose along her neck.

“Babe, I think we still have time to get food from that place we were talking about,” Jay said as he nudged Sandra. “Make this a real night on the town…thing.”

Zachary looked over to see his sister’s eyes bouncing between him and Charlie.

“Uh, yes. Good call. Rare night out, you know how it goes. Well, yeah. You get it.” Sandra scrunched her face as she reset herself.

“It was great hanging out with you both, thanks for joining us.” She scooted from the booth.

“See you later!” She grabbed Jay’s hand and tugged him away, giving the man only a moment to throw a wave behind him.

“That was weird,” Charlie murmured.

Zachary shifted in his seat. “Wanna get out of here?”

Her smile was coy, and she trailed a finger down his arm. “Come over?”

He pressed his lips to her temple and murmured, “Right behind you.”