“You guys will figure it out. When it comes to love, things always work themselves out.”
We talk more about Nick, and then I change the conversation to Marcus and Dan. Violet looks at me when she mentions getting Dan and Mia’s wedding invitation in the mail and how tacky it is to be inviting her and Marcus.
“They’re the ugliest invitations I’ve ever seen, Ev,” she says, chuckling. I nod and smile.
“I’m happy for them,” I say, and my confident voice scares me. I look at Violet, shocked. “Did I really just say that?”
She laughs. “You are so in love with Nick Wilder that this didn’t even phase you. Do you remember your reaction to their engagement?”
“Ugh, yes,” I say, trying to forget that night.
“You’ve come so far, Evi. All this time, you thought you were helping Nick to move on, and yet, he’s helping you to move on. You need each other. You’re helping each other.”
*
Later that night, I check my phone, and my whole face melts into a smile when I see a text from Nick.
As much as this time to think was needed, I really fucking miss you. I think that says everything either of us needs to know.
I grin and reply.
I am awake. Thinking about you. Wishing you were here. I miss you, too…
I drum my fingers along the screen, waiting for his response. There isn’t one. He must’ve fallen asleep. I toss my phone on my bed after twenty minutes, and I go get ready for bed. As I’m brushing my teeth, I hear my phone start to ring. I spit out my toothpaste and rinse my mouth. I run back to my bed and pick up without looking at the caller ID.
“Hello?”
“Good. You’re still awake.” It’s Nick, and hearing his voice makes my body feel like someone is pouring warm water over my head. I love the way he makes me feel like that. I laugh.
“Yes, still awake. I was waiting for a text from this one guy…”
“I decided to call you instead. Wanted to hear your voice.”
“I see,” I reply, smiling into the phone. I feel like a giddy highschooler.
“I can’t believe I’m about to ask you this… but I don’t think I can go to sleep again without seeing you.”
“Nicholas Wilder, are you requesting a booty call?”
He laughs so hard that I start to laugh too.
“I didn’t even think of it like that, but I guess it doesn’t look good because it’s so late, does it?”
“Not exactly,” I say, guffawing. “I’ll be right over.”
“Evi?” Nick asks right before I hang up. His voice is quiet, and I can tell he’s about to say something serious. “We’ll figure it out. You know that, right? Us, Bria, your job… it’ll be okay.”
I smile and clutch my chest with my hand. This man…
“I know that now. I did have three agonizing days to think about it.”
He chuckles. “Drive safely.” And then he hangs up.
I stand, excited, eyeing my leggings and T-shirt. I take them off quickly and change into a pair of skinny jeans and a tank top that slightly shows off my stomach. I don’t usually dress “sexy,” but desperate times call for desperate measures. My heart is racing, and I grab a cardigan and my purse before slipping on flats and leaving. I tiptoe down the stairs and write my mother a quick note, leaving it on the dining room table as I leave.
It’s raining, so I cover myself with my cardigan. I slip into my car quickly and reverse out of the driveway. I’m practically shaking—that’s how nervous I am. I merge onto I-90, and the rain starts to catapult itself onto my windshield. I slow down, dropping my speed to fifty MPH, and I cross the river.
I’m over Mercer Island now—not far now. I don’t even turn the radio on. I’m too nervous. I get into the right lane to exit into Bellevue, and that’s when I see the dog walking right in my path, a couple hundred feet ahead of me on the off-ramp.
I don’t mean to slam on my brakes.