Page 45 of Undeniable

He chuckled to himself and attempted to wipe away his smile with his hand. It didn’t work, instead his smile widened as he glanced at me.

My own attention snapped back to the road.

“Arguing really does ease the tension,” he commented.

And I nearly laughed because he was right. It had all dissolved the moment I told him he was being rude. But that was the epitome of us; we were either arguing or awkward, there was no in-between.

“Why did you come?”

His smile vanished, and he straightened in his seat. In such a small space, I felt like it was hard not to be aware of his every move.

“You really are trying to argue,” he muttered.

I narrowed my eyes at the road, confused about how my question was going to start an argument. It was just a question, one that I assumed would be simple enough to answer. Although he’d sidestepped the answer the day before, too.

“I’m not trying to start an argument. I was just curious since this is very out of character and kind of sudden. I’m guessing you weren’t planning on goingbeforeyour car was stolen.”

He sighed. “What happened to not talking?”

“If you’d rather sit in silence, fine.”

He was quiet for a beat. “It’s my hometown, too.”

I scoffed, and he turned to me and tilted his head. “What’s that for?”

All of the thoughts I’d had about how different this was for him spilled out of me. “You’re kidding, right? When was the last time you were in Willowwood for more than a few hours? Or for something besides a major holiday? Now you randomly decide to spend four days there participating in the festival? You can’t tell me that that doesn’t warrant a little speculation.”

“Circumstances change.Peoplechange,” he seethed.

“Sure, but it’s like you underwent a brain transplant.”

The silence between us stretched on and on after my comment. I nearly felt bad, but he couldn’t blame me. I thought his silence was confirmation that he agreed.

“My mom called,” he finally conceded. “I could tell she was upset I wasn’t planning on going, and… it struck a nerve. I knew I had to go, so that’s what I’m doing. Is that a good enough explanation for you?”

In that moment, I glimpsed the man from so many years ago. It was the same thing I’d recognized the night before and really was the reason why I’d agreed to let him come with me. Those small glimpses of the person I’d known before were unconscionable and lethal to the walls I’d erected to keep him out.

It was better if we fought. The guilt and pain were always easier to bear when we were at odds.

“I’m sure she was excited to hear you’re coming.”

He chuckled. “Well, she doesn’t exactly know that I’m coming.”

I whipped my head in his direction, my eyes wide with shock. “You didn’t tell her?”

I glanced quickly between him and the road and caught the shake of his head. “Are you serious?”

“What? I wanted to see the look on her face when I walked in the door.”

“That’s nice, but I don’t think you’ve thought this through completely.”

“I’m trying to do something nice for my mom. I’m not sure it requires any more thought.”

I sighed and tightened my grip on the wheel. “Where are you going to stay? The bed-and-breakfast in town is going to be full and so is the hotel in Smithson.” The hotel in the next town was the only other place to stay if the bed-and-breakfast was at capacity. If you couldn’t find a room at either of those places, the next option was halfway back to Austin.

He shrugged. “I’ll stay with my parents in my old bedroom.”

I decided not to mention the fact that his extended family usually came into town for the festival and would likely be occupying his room. If he didn’t care, then neither did I.

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