Page 22 of Waiting for You (Balsam Cliffs #3)

I can honestly say that Neil was never as attentive as Hunter has been tonight. My drink has never been empty and neither has my plate of snacks. The second I started shivering and rubbing my arms, a hoodie was handed to me and another log added to the fire.

“Damn girl. Either he’s trying to win you over or he fucked up.” Lacey watches Hunter leave after his latest refill on my cider along with a water.

“Uh. A little of both actually.” I shrug. Not really wanting to air my dirty laundry in front of all Willow’s sisters.

“Oh, my brother is, for sure, a dumbass. He left her at the altar. And no one ever even knew they were dating. Then the idiot pretended to hate her and be a jerk for no good reason other than he’s incapable of using his brain sometimes.

So now he’s groveling.” Well. I guess Emma has no issues doing it for me.

“With orgasms,” Willow adds.

“Oooh groveling with orgasms sounds delicious. I might have to add that to my repertoire for Porter.” Addy laughs.

“Girl, who are you kidding? That man happily gives you orgasms any time you want and then some.” Willow elbows her sister.

Addy just takes a sip of her drink and looks over at Porter who is standing with the guys playing beer pong. “I mean look at him. Would you deny him?”

All of us shake our heads. I have to say seeing Addy and Porter together was a shocker.

I don’t think I would have put them together.

She’s quiet, a teacher, and sounds like the sweetest one out of the bunch.

But Porter looks like all the guys your parents warn you about.

Sleeves of tattoos, muscles, and enough scruff to be dangerous to the inside of your thighs.

But they work together somehow. They fit together like the perfect puzzle pieces.

“Okay, back to you though. That man has it baddddd.” Scarlett raises her brows.

“I’m making him earn the letters back in his contact on my phone before I agree to be his girlfriend again.” I blurt out.

“What?” Lacey asks giggling.

“I saw this video where when a guy pisses you off you delete a letter off their name in your contacts on your phone. When you delete the last letter, you delete their contact. He got close. But I added a letter back after last night. So when he asked me to come tonight as his girlfriend, I told him he had to earn the rest of the letters back in his name.”

“That is fucking amazing. I love it.” Scarlett laughs to the point I think her beer is about to come out of her nose. “But I need to know how he earned back a letter last night.”

“A caramel apple board… and an orgasm.” I wink.

“Oh my God! You had sex with MY caramel apples? How the hell does that even work?” Violet asks flabbergasted.

“Oh, Vi. If you have to ask that, maybe we need to talk to Liam. It sounds like he might need to spice up your love life.” Emma reaches over to rub Violet’s shoulder. She scowls in return.

My phone buzzes from the table next to me, but I ignore it knowing who it is.

“Is he also blowing up your phone with dirty texts?” Lauren waggles her eyebrows at me. “Brad loves when I do that around other people.”

“I wish. But it’s my ex. He doesn’t think that we actually broke up.”

“Shut up. Neil is still texting you? Do you want me to respond for you? I’m in the mood for it.” Emma sticks out her hand to take my phone.

“Oh gosh, no. I’m just ignoring him. He only cares because Daddy is up his ass to get me back to Portland. He knows I won’t answer his calls but he doesn’t know that I left Neil and him.”

“That sounds like fun. I know a thing or two about exes who don’t get the fucking point.” Lacey rolls her eyes before regaling me with the story of her ex-husband, and her current husband’s ex-wife who made the beginning of their relationship almost impossible.

And now, I don’t think I can complain about Neil. Ever.

“Hey, Peach. Think I can steal you away?” Hunter approaches from behind my chair.

“Only if you stay the hell out of my kitchen! I heard what you did with my food last night.” Violet narrows her eyes at him.

But Emma is fresh with a comeback. “Like you can talk! Do you remember why I have my own office and a new desk now?”

Violet’s cheek flush in the light of the fire. “Whatever.”

“I’d love to be stolen away by you.” He reaches his hand out to pull me up.

As soon as I’m up, the ciders hit me a little harder than they were, and I stumble on my feet.

“Woah, you okay? Need some water? Or snacks?”

I shake my head, which I instantly regret. “Maybe.”

“Okay, wait right here.” He sits me on the bench before leaving.

He returns with a plate of cheese and crackers and a cupcake. “I didn’t know if you wanted savory or sweet so I went with both.”

“Why are you so good to me?” I hiccup. “I used to think I wasn’t good enough for you. I convinced myself that’s why you left.”

He grasps my face in his hands. “Never, Peach. It was me. I was one hundred percent the problem and I hate myself for making you feel like that.”

“I know you do. You’re more than making up for it now.” I rest my head on his shoulder as I nibble on crackers.

My eyelids are growing heavy and the alcohol is taking effect on me. “You want to go home? You seem like you’re fading.”

“I don’t know if I’ll make groveling orgasms tonight. I can have Wyatt bring me home.”

“Like hell he will. Your home is with me, in my bed. I’m spoiled after last night.”

He scoops me up and carries me to his truck. Before he can open his door my eyes pull closed and the warm truck does me in.

I roll over in the most comfortable bed I’ve ever been in. The sheets and pillow smell like Hunter’s signature scent. But when I reach out, I find the bed empty.

Grabbing my phone I see that it’s almost ten in the morning. I can’t remember the last time I slept this late. I also have a text from Hunter.

Hu: Sorry. I had to go help the guys clean up the inn. I left a pod in the coffee pot for you and a mug next to it. I’ll be home this afternoon, feel free to help yourself or call me if you want to go home.

Me: Sorry I slept so late. I’ll be okay, I’m sure I can entertain myself snooping through your medicine cabinet to find all your deep dark secrets.

Hu: Snoop away. I have nothing to hide from you, Peach. I’ll bring home lunch and coffee from Esther.

Me: Oh, yes please. Esther knows my usual.

Hu: winking emoji

Stretching, I throw the covers back and head off to the kitchen in search of coffee. I find the pod and mug exactly where he said it would be on the counter with his coffee bar set up. He takes his morning bean juice pretty seriously. He could work at Emerald Roasters with this set up.

I set the mug under and smash the brew button on my espresso. I add some brown sugar in the bottom of my mug for a brown sugar espresso. One of my favorite drinks.

Going to the fridge I find the cream, and vanilla syrup on the bar. Once I get my coffee made, I grab a blanket off the ladder in his living room and head out to the porch he has in the back.

I settle onto the bed swing he has installed overlooking the cliffs and curl up with my coffee. The quiet morning with the chill from fall is something I could get used to every morning. If I’m not careful I’m going to end up here a lot more than I’m welcome.

But. He did bring me back here instead of my own house last night so maybe I am welcome.

The slight breeze coming off the ocean rocks the swing and it’s the most peaceful experience I’ve had in a long time. I snap a photo of the sun peeking through with the fall foliage lining the cliffs.

My phone rings in my hand and Neil’s name pops up on the screen.

Sighing, I decide to just answer. I can’t ignore him anymore or he’ll just keep calling.

“Hello, Neil.”

“Evelyn! Where the hell have you been? Your father is losing his ever loving mind. He won’t stop calling me because you haven’t called him back.

You need to fix this. And why the hell is the complex calling me telling me that you’ve removed your name from the lease?

I’m getting tired of dealing with the fallout of this temper tantrum.

It’s time you come home and get to your duties. ”

He rambles on without so much as a greeting, or asking me how I’m doing.

“I’m doing wonderfully, Neil. Thanks for asking.

I will call my father when I’m good and ready.

You can tell him that I’ve left you and that you’re no longer responsible for me.

Since I’m not coming back to Portland, I need my name off the lease in order to rent a place here. ”

“This is pure bullshit and you—”

I hang up. I don’t need to listen to him. He can ramble to someone else. But at least I know he got the paperwork for the lease. Hopefully he’ll sign it and be done with it. The leasing company is one of his larger clients so I can’t imagine he’ll start a problem and draw attention to himself.

Gathering my mug and blanket, I head back inside. I wasn’t lying when I said I wanted to snoop through his things. I want a hint at the man he is today, behind closed doors.

Dropping my mug into the sink, I decide to wash it since the large picture window overlooks the backyard. I want a feel of what it would be like to live here, doing the dishes after cooking dinner for him, maybe a kid or two.

It scares me how much I’d like that.

With my mug set on the drying rack I head off to the space that most interested me when I toured it briefly the other day. The library.

Pushing the door open I’m greeted by a room only half full.

One half has sports memorabilia and a large television, while the other half has a whole wall of built-in bookshelves.

In the middle of the two halves sits a large couch that looks like it would be a cloud to lay on.

Next to the bookshelves is another blanket ladder filled with fluffy neutral blankets that look like they’ve never been used.