Page 49 of All Too Well
“Get the stories then.”
“Yes, just like that,” she says on a huff.
“I’m serious, Ainsley. You’re not a sit-back-and-wait girl. You’ve always charged ahead and gotten what you wanted. It’s one of the things that I love about you.”
“Again with the profession of emotions. Who are you?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know.”
Ainsley leans in. “It’s why I’m here. To uncover all your layers.”
“There’s not much you don’t know. Besides, I don’t have layers.”
“I think you do. You’re a great dad who loves his daughter with all he is. You’re a fireman who is willing to put his life on the line for anyone in need. You’re a former elite athlete who walked away from the sport and never looked back. Most importantly, you’re the captain of a college Frisbee team. Very many layers there to take off.”
“Are you propositioning me to get undressed? Because I’ll take my shirt off right here.” I stand and she grabs my arm, pulling me down.
“Lachlan!” Her cheeks turn bright red. “You know that’s not what I was saying.”
“Do I? I thought you wanted me.”
“I do. I mean, I don’t! Not like that. Oh my God. We were having a perfectly normal conversation, and then it went pear shaped.”
I grin. “It’s fun making you blush.”
I’d like to see her blush in other ways. Not that there can ever be an us. She’s in New York and I’m in Ember Falls. It would never work, and I’m not stupid enough to think there’s a way around it.
I moved here to set down roots, which were something I never had. For the first eleven years of my life, I moved every threeyears. I didn’t know what a home felt like. My dad was climbing the ranks of the navy, which meant we were following along with him. It was hard. I never had a sense of home, not until we finally moved to Norfolk. Once Dad was there, we bought a house next door to the MacKinleys.
My life changed because Dad decided to end his career there. That meant I got to spend seven years in one place. I had friends, and a best friend I didn’t have to say goodbye to.
All my life I watched people leave.
My father for deployments. My friends when they had to move. My mother when she chose to give up on life. Rose’s mother when she walked out.
I will never do that to my daughter.
Ever.
She comes first. She’s always my choice. I’ll choose her because I know what it feels like to never be chosen.
I’ve provided that stability, and I’m not going to move to the city, and I will never ask Ainsley to give up her world for me.
It’s just better this way.
Her brown eyes meet mine. “I’m glad one of us enjoys it, but seriously, I want to write better pieces, only the opportunity hasn’t come to me yet. I’m hoping this article opens the door for me.”
I inch closer, inhaling her perfume and fighting the desire that is a constant around her. “No one ever gets everything they want, but if it matters to you, if it’s something worth fighting for, then put your gloves on and get in the ring.”
“And if I get knocked out?”
“Then you get up again and punch back.”
She gives me a sad smile. “One day I hope you’re willing to take your own advice and fight for what you want.”
“I have everything I’m allowed to have.”
That causes her to shift in her seat and then look at the mat. “They’re starting.”
