Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
I stayed out on the lake, soaking up the sun for the better part of two hours, trying to figure a way out of this mess. The only conclusion I came to was walking away. I think I’d known for a while that was the only choice. But I wouldn’t leave her high and dry. I’d find her a house and rent it for her so she had a place to go. And I’d be there for her as much as I could, just not as her fiancé and not living in the same house. I’d reach out to her father, too, try to encourage him to work on their relationship again. She was going to need as much support as she could get.
Decision made, I sat up and dug my phone out of my pocket. Lynn Walker was the real estate agent I’d used to buy this house. I scrolled through my contacts until I found her number and hit Call. She answered on the second ring.
“Fox Cassidy. How are you, hun?”
I guess my number had been saved in her phone too. “I’m good. How are you, Lynn?”
“Surviving on coffee and good intentions. What can I do you for, son?”
“Umm... I have a friend looking for a rental, preferably a house in Laurel Lake.”
“I don’t think there’s much in Laurel Lake for rent at the moment.”
“What about Hollow Hills? Somewhere near the rink might work.”
“Let me do some research. Is it for one person or a family?”
“Just one person.”
“What’s the budget for the rent?”
Money was the least of my concerns. “There isn’t one.”
“Any requirements, like a big yard or certain number of bedrooms and baths?”
I shook my head. “Only requirement is it has to be in a good neighborhood and have security. It’s for a woman living by herself.” Neither this town nor the surrounding towns were unsafe, but when Evie drank, she didn’t pay attention to things like locking the door. So a good security system was important.
“Okay. Let me see what I can do, and I’ll get back to you in a jiffy.”
“Thanks, Lynn.”
After I hung up, I stayed out on the lake a little while longer, second-guessing whether I was doing the right thing. But when I walked into the house and found Evie burying a bottle in the garbage can at nine in the morning, I felt better about what I’d set in motion. Now I needed a time when she was actually sober enough to break the news.
“Do you think you could not drink today? I want to sit down and talk later.”
“About what?”
“About us.”
“What, like how you don’t even kiss me anymore?” Evie’s eyes filled with tears. “You don’t even like me, do you?”
I could smell the alcohol on her breath. This wasn’t a conversation I was going to have with her drunk. I might have to wait a while, but I thought it was important for her to understand how I’d come to the decision I had to make.
“Evie—”
She started to undress, pulling off her top first and then reaching for her pants. “I bet you’ll fuck me though, right?”
I wasn’t sure where this was coming from. We hadn’t had sex in weeks. “Evie, stop.”
She didn’t listen. She reached around and unclasped her bra. “Oh, come on. Let’s just do it. It’s the only reason you keep me around and you know it.” Half dressed, she walked over and threw her arms around my neck, pushed up on her toes, and pressed her lips to my chin. “Come on. Touch me.”
“Please stop.”
She grabbed my hand and brought it around to her ass, forcing it on me. “Grab it. It’ll make everything better.”
I shook her off and took a step back. “No, it won’t, Evie.”
“Fucking touch me!”
I swiped my car keys from the hook and headed for the door. Evie continued to scream at the top of her lungs as I walked out. She followed with barely any clothes on as I marched to the car.
“Go in the goddamn house, Evie!”
“No! Come in here and fuck me!”
I shook my head and got in. As I pulled out of the driveway, I saw Mrs. Craddox across the street peeking through her blinds. Great.
I rolled down the window and screamed from the car. “Get in the goddamn house, Evie!”
She flipped me the bird, but turned around and stomped back inside at least.
I didn’t know where the hell to go, so I went to the place where my head was always the clearest: the rink.
Ten hours later, I was lying on my back on the bench in the penalty box. I’d sat in the office most of the day, then once the arena closed, I’d laced up and skated some aggression out. Now I was tired and wanted to go back home, but the thought of sleeping on a twelve-inch-wide wooden plank in the penalty box was actually more appealing. Maybe I’ll go to my mom’s.