Page 42 of The Ones We Fight For

Carter’s lips spread across his face in a devilish smirk. The way the apples of his cheeks puffed out in delight over Colin’s frustration was a typical occurrence in the house. “A job? Is that what you’re calling it these days?”

“Make it stop,” Colin huffed under his breath.

“Well, maybe it could turn into something more,” Walker considered, liking Colin’s prior declaration that Scarlett had nothing in common with him. “You never know.”

“Is she nice?” Cooper asked.

“I’ve only talked to her the one time.”

“She’s a sweetheart!” Piper bobbed her head, and everyone broke out into excited conversation over Colin’s prospects. This family had zero boundaries, and Walker figured if he had to deal with years of poking and prodding from Cole and Paisley, Colin would have to take the heat this time. Walker covered his mouth to keep from laughing as a whirlwind of discourse ensued. Colin’s eyes flicked back and forth over each of his siblings in a panic, and he covered his ears to block out the noise.

“Guys!” Walker shouted, hands up to put an end to the conversation. “Let Colin talk. You’re overwhelming him.”

Colin dropped his hands away from his ears and sucked in a deep breath. “I don’t like complicated relationships. I like knowing exactly what I’m getting into, and what I’m getting into is a tutoring role. I don’t see what the major dilemma is or the need for all this.” He waved his hand over all his siblings.

“Try to keep your options open, though,” Walker pressed. “You don’t have to be so strict with yourself all the time.”

“Excuse me if I don’t want to take relationship advice from you,” Colin muttered.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Walker blinked in surprise, mouth gaping like a fish.

“Nothing,” Colin grimaced. “Sorry.” He looked over at Piper, whose eyes jutted down to her shoes with the subtlety of a brick wall.

“Piper? Something you want to share with the class?” Walker stared at her until she made hesitant eye contact.

“I just… okay, I can’t help but notice that you’re really into Talia, but you’re not doing anything about it!” Piper threw up her hands in frustration.

If Walker had been walking during this conversation, he would have faceplanted. Instead, his heart rate kicked up a notch as he floundered for a way to escape the eager look on Piper’s face. What was worse than being called out was not realizing that he had been so outwardly obvious about his feelings for Talia. If his niece could tell, who else knew he was carrying a torch for a woman he should never be considering? It was high time to dial it back on his pining and wanting.

“Look.” Walker closed his eyelids slowly. “I’m not looking to date anyone right now. I’m looking to get my life and everyone else’s life in order.”

“So… you aren’t denying it, then?” Colin asked, sharing a knowing look with Carter. Both of his nephews looked utterly pleased with themselves. Colin was always excited to know information ahead of the curve, and Carter frequently let his older brother in on the social cues he picked up that Colin was generally oblivious to. It seemed Walker’s entire family had been gossiping behind his back for who knew how long.

“I…” Walker swallowed, trying to determine if the best course of action was lying or telling the truth. In the end, he opted for the most amount of truth he could give without explicitly revealing that he couldn’t stop thinking about and wanting Talia if he tried. “I am very fond of her. She’s helped me out a lot. She’s a good friend and a good person. I can’t currently be interested in her in any other way than that. Now, that’s enough talking about my nonexistent love life. Grab your bags, or we’ll be late for school. Colin, take your own car today, since you’re staying after school.”

The room filled with the sound of shuffling feet as the kids obeyed Walker's request and headed out the front door a minute later.

???

The drop-off went smoothly, with no further conversation of possible love interests. It was a relief, since Walker was already in enough trouble with Talia on his own without the added pressure of his nieces and nephews ganging up on him. When he arrived at the coffee shop, Talia was sitting in her car, on the phone, her face pale like she had seen a ghost. She wasn’t talking, but eventually, she pulled the phone away from her ear and stepped out of her newly repaired Lexus wearing an olive green sundress with white lilies printed on it to match her white sandals. Her dress was the same shade as his designated color on the calendar app. It wasn’t significant, but it still made his heart flutter, his brain making connections that didn’t exist. Her hair was pulled up again, the waves of her ponytail blowing lightly in the breeze. She was wearing coral pink lipstick and a swipe of green eyeshadow. It did nothing to soften the blow of how beautiful he found her. Instead, his eyes trained on her defined cupid’s bow, and he imagined what it would be like to kiss her. He could picture her eyes darkening into an even richer brown. Her thick eyelashes fluttered in pleasure as she leaned into him. And when he finally got a taste of her lips, she’d taste the way she smelled, like petrichor and fresh grapefruit. Manna from heaven.

“Hey, Ponytail,” Walker bit back his arousal and waved. Talia returned a half-hearted smile as she made her way over to him. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, it was just a voicemail.” Her eye contact was rushed, and any joy in her expression seemed out of place on her face. It made his stomach sink.

“You don’t have to tell me, but I’m here if you want to.”

He wanted to fix whatever was wrong because he needed her smile to be real. He wanted to be the one to bring it back.

“I’ll tell you later. Promise. Today, I just want to celebrate!” A real grin replaced the fake one, the phone call all but forgotten as Talia held out a brown paper sack to him. Walker took it cautiously, peering inside to find a maple bar wrapped in a wax paper divider.

“What are we celebrating?” he asked, already pulling the delicious-looking donut out, mouth watering from both the prospect of sugar and Talia herself.

“Your birthday, duh!”

“But it’s not my—” Walker stopped mid-sentence, screwing up his face in thought.

“I sure hope it’s your birthday, or last month when we went around to all the schools, you provided a lot of false information about yourself,” Talia teased.

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