Page 123 of Hate You, Maybe
“All I can say is the guy was an absolute wreck the night you ended up at Tequila Mockingbird. He was so worried you might think he’d lied, he brought me into the search for you. You two didn’t see him or talk to him. So you have no idea.”
“I saw him,” I pipe up. “And talked to him.”
Bridge arches a brow. “Sober?”
I scrunch my nose. “You have a point.”
“Anyway,” he continues, “no man gets that freaked about a woman he doesn’t care about. He cares about you. A lot. And that might be the actual reason you haven’t heard from him.”
“Well, that’s just dumb,” Loren quips.
“Is it?” Bridger cocks his head. “Or is Dex protecting himself?”
“Ooh. Maybe both,” she says.
“Well.” I swallow the boulder lodged in my throat. “Either way, he’s telegraphing that he’s not emotionally available.”
Loren shifts her focus to me. “What does your telegraph say?”
I heave a sigh. “Message received.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Dex
“Hey, Kendal. Play the video of Dex singing again.”
Jojo chirps this over her plate of fried chicken. It’s Monday night, two days after the storm, and we’re at family dinner. See also: My sisters have been tormenting me over this footage ever since Kendal shared the video in our group chat.
“Great idea.” Landry nods at the serving bowl next to my dad. “We can prop your phone against the mashed potatoes.”
“Haven’t we all seen that clip enough?” I grumble.
“Never,” Jo quips.
“The video’s on the group chat,” Kendal says. “You don’t need me to play it for you.”
“But we should watch it together, though, while Dexter’s with us.” Jo grins, extra chipper tonight. “We’re in the presence of greatness, and you’re the only one allowed to have her phone at the table.”
“Only because Tim’s home with the kids,” Kendal says.
Today Rowan came home so wiped out and cranky after preschool, Tim offered to stay home with her and Wally.
“Poor thing,” my mom says on a sigh.
“Which one?” Landry snorts. “Tim or Rowan?”
“Me,” Kendal says. “Being a mom isnotfor the faint of heart.”
“Well, don’t worry, Jo.” Landry flashes her a smirk. “Once we crank out a couple babies, we’ll get to have our phones at the table, too.”
“Whoa.” Jo fakes a gasp. “Is Brock aware of your plan to crank out babies? Is that why he’s not here tonight?”
Landry frowns. “Brock’s downtown volunteering with storm cleanup.”
“Oh.” Jo wrinkles her nose. “I was just joking, but now I feel like a jerk.”
“You said it,” Landry quips. “Not me.”
