Page 54 of Falling Inn Love
“That despite the circumstances, it’s good for all of us to be together.”
“I can’t wait to move home to New Hampshire,” Allie tells me. “When he’s cleared for travel, I think I want to move back. I am so ready.”
“Will your job let you work remotely?”
“We have been remote, but I still have to help with big events sometimes and go into the city. I’ve asked repeatedly to be able to be fully remote, but they don’t want me to leave the state of California and be so far away that I can’t go into the city as needed.”
“We could definitely use your help around the inn if you moved back.”
“I would love that. I can’t wait to be home. Speaking of the inn, Mom told me what Hamilton did. What a sleazeball. How dare he?”
“What’s a sleazeball, Momma?” Caleb asks.
“A bad guy, honey.” She quickly changes the subject. “I hear the nurses have a thing for you,” Allie teases me, making a pretend throwing up gesture. “They’re all asking about you. If you’re single or not. What should I tell them?” she asks with a smirk.
“Taken,” I say, returning her smirk.
“Oh, really,” she says, shocked.
“I’m seeing Beth. I think it’s serious.” It feels good to say it out loud. She means so much to me and I want my family to know about us.
“She still talking about leaving?” my mom asks worriedly.
“We’re still working on that. But we really like each other and I’m making sure she knows how much I want her to stay. How much I can’t imagine not having her with us.”
“I like Beth a lot,” my mom comments, leaning back in her chair.
“I’m happy for you, Evan. It’s about time,” my sister says.
I roll my eyes but smile at Allie. She gets on my nerves, as sisters do, but I’m so thankful for her. At the end of the day, family is all we have. I’m just glad they’re all okay.
TWENTY-ONE
BETH
Busted.
* * *
A delivery arrives, I believe for the fall festival, and I meet the truck around back. When I open the barn door to unload the truck, I can’t believe what I see inside.
“What in the hell?” I say out loud when I discover my car parked in there. I find Pete cleaning out the fire pits. My hands firmly on my hips, I ask him point blank, “How long has my car been in that barn?”
He gives me a deer in the headlights look, then shakes his head and wanders off.
Fuming, I open my phone and take a picture of my car. I text the image to Evan.
Beth:BUSTED.
He calls me immediately, but when he answers with a simple, “Hey,” I can’t be mad at him. Just hearing his voice puts me at ease and makes me miss him more. But he doesn’t need to know that now. Not right away.
“How long has my car been in the barn? And how much do I owe for the repairs? I need answers!”
“It’s okay. I traded singing gigs for your car repairs. Sam finished working on it and put it there just before I left. I knew you could drive my truck while I was gone, and I didn’t want to tell you because I didn’t want you to worry about the cost or paying me back.”
“What am I going to do with you?”
“I can think of some things,” he flirts.
