Page 5 of Control

Forrest’s suggestion caught me off guard. “What?”

My friend shrugged. “You both have to eat, don’t you? I mean, she’s probably going to focus better on a full stomach anyway. You should surprise her. If I were in your shoes, I’d take food to her place and spend an hour with her over dinner.”

It wasn’t a bad idea. I hadn’t done anything like that over these last few weeks, and I had to imagine Evangeline would love it. Though we communicated frequently throughout the week, I hadn’t seen her since last Thursday. Surprising her would likely be a nice treat for the both of us.

“That’s a great idea, Forrest. Who knew you were such a romantic?”

He grinned. “What can I say? Daisy has made me a better man.”

That probably wasn’t difficult for her to do. Forrest was already a good man—we’d been working together for years, and he was one of the best men I knew—so it wasn’t as though Daisy had to work particularly hard to transform him. She had a great man as it was. All she did was enhance everything about him that already made him the man that he was.

Laughing, I said, “Then I’ll be sure to thank her the next time I see her.”

“Yeah, she deserves the credit. Alright, man, I’m going to get out of here. Thanks again for helping on this project today.”

I shook my head dismissively. “No problem. See you on Monday, Forrest. Have a good weekend.”

“I will. Enjoy your dinner tonight, Ty.”

As I hopped into my truck, I felt a renewed sense of excitement wash over me. It wasn’t all that I wanted, but an hour with Evangeline after not seeing her for more than a week would be better than nothing at all.

With a plan in mind, I drove home, grabbed a quick shower, and took off again. I grabbed Evangeline’s favorite meal from her favorite local restaurant and drove to her apartment.

Since she lived in the downtown Steel Ridge area, I parked in the first spot I found and walked the two city blocks to the building she lived in, taking in the sights and sounds of the town. All the shops along the road, mostly mom-and-pop shops, had one form or another of celebration—some still holding on to the last of their Halloween decorations, while most had shifted the appearance of their stores to match that of the city block decorations. It was only one day into November, the crisp fall air had been around for a few weeks now, and Steel Ridge and its residents were preparing for the upcoming holiday season.

Just as I walked up to Evangeline’s building—she lived in one of the three apartments above the flower shop—a young woman was stepping out. I held the door for her and went inside after. It felt like perfect timing, because now I’d really be able to give Evangeline a big surprise.

After a quick climb up the narrow staircase, which creaked with nearly every step, I was standing at Evangeline’s door. So much anticipation had built from the moment I left my house and picked up dinner for us. Now, I couldn’t wait to see her, to give her a hug and a kiss.

When the door opened, Evangeline’s eyes widened in shock. “Ty? What are you doing here?”

My gaze traveled down her body and back up again. She looked like she’d just gotten out of the shower. Her hair was still wet, and she wasn’t wearing anything but a satin robe that just barely covered some of my favorite parts.

For a moment, I questioned whether I’d be able to survive with just an hour of time with her that likely wouldn’t involve taking the robe off her body.

Lifting the bag with our food in it between us, I replied, “I thought you might want to break for dinner.”

She was still so stunned, her eyes darting back and forth. “Oh, um, well, I was really hoping to dive right back into my studying. I wish you would have called.”

My shoulders fell. “I promise I’m not going to stay or try to convince you to take the rest of the night off from studying. I was hoping for an hour, just to have dinner together. I’ll leave right after.”

“Ty, I?—”

“Is that the food, baby?”

At the unfamiliar masculine voice coming from inside the apartment, my body went on high alert. Evangeline moved to close the door to the point only her frame filled the open space, but I put a hand on the door and pressed firmly against it.

With barely any force necessary, I was able to open the door enough to see something that made me sick. A man I didn’t know was standing there, wearing nothing but a pair of jeans.

My mouth got dry, my stomach dropped, and my eyes darted between my girlfriend and the half-naked man in her apartment. I finally settled my gaze on her, and as I searched her face, I couldn’t quite decide if I was more hurt or angered by the situation. Based on the way I was clenching my jaw and my pulse was racing, I figured it was anger that was going to win out in this situation.

“Studying, I see?” I bit out.

“Ty, you weren’t supposed to?—”

“I wasn’t supposed to what, Evangeline? Come and surprise my girlfriend with dinner? Was I not supposed to want to do something nice for you, because you’ve been working so hard? Or was I not supposed to find out that you weren’t doing any studying, that you’ve been cheating on me, instead? What’s this about? Why wouldn’t you tell me the truth?”

Before Evangeline could bring herself to say anything, the man in her apartment approached and said, “Hey, man, I’m sorry. I had no idea.”

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