Page 40 of The Storms Between Us
thirty-three
I understandwhy Ember is pissed, but I can’t bring myself to agree with her. I know she thinks she’s responsible for all of this bullshit. But she’s not, and I won’t let her take the blame. If I didn’t want to kill the fucker, I’d thank Justin for pushing her here. We may not be in the position we’re in right now if he hadn’t, and I'm thankful for that.
“You’re gonna regret siding with me,” Everett says, slapping me on the back.
“Probably, but I’m not sorry. I love her more than I’ve ever loved anyone in my life, Ev. I won’t be sorry for anything that brought her to me.” I know I should like a Lifetime movie, but I'm confident enough in myself that I don’t care.
“I’m glad you two found each other,” Everett says, grabbing a Red Bull from the fridge, then leaning against the counter and crossing his arms. “I was a little weirded out about it in the beginning because I never wanted to think about my best friend fucking my sister. I still don’t. But I can tell you really love each other and you both deserve to have that in your lives.”
“Thanks, bro. It makes me happy to hear you say that. Especially since I asked her to marry me,” I say calmly, and he chokes on his drink. I can’t help but smirk at his surprise.
“I’m sorry, you did what?!” He says between coughs.
“I asked her to marry me. And she said yes.” I say, looking him straight in the eyes. His gaze is burning a hole through me, but I won’t back down. Ember is mine and nothing he says will change that.
“Are you serious?” He asks, masking his emotions seamlessly.
“Yeah, I am. I’m in this with her forever, no matter what comes our way. She’s made me a better person, a stronger person. I’ve never wanted to look too far into the future. I’ve been content floating through life with no real direction or purpose. But as soon as I saw her, it’s like my world snapped into place,” I say, smiling at the thought of this morning’s events. “I didn’t want to tell you like that. I wanted Ember to tell you how ever she decided was best. But we’re both in the doghouse now.” He stares back at me as if he’s deciding how to feel about this situation. While I want his blessing and approval in this, I don’t need it. It won’t change how I feel.
He looks away, staring into space like he's reaching for a distant memory. “You’ll take care of her,” he whispers. It's a statement, not a question. There’s no question. He knows I will.
“Always,” I reply. He nods his head before a smile spreads across his face.
“I’m happy for her. She deserves somebody who treats her like the amazing person she is. You, not so much. I mean, I guess I'm happy if you’re happy. But you’re gonna willingly commit to be with her forever? You might need to have your head examined,” he says, laughing loudly. I roll my eyes and laugh. The front door opens and closes and I’m hoping Ember changed her mind about staying out or maybe she caught up with Rory and talked it out.
Rory comes into the kitchen alone and sets her bag down on the bar. “Hello, ladies,” she says, heading straight to the fridge.
“Hey Bug, how’d the interview go?” I ask.
“Good. I start next week so I’m gonna sleep in every day this week before I can’t anymore,” she says.
“Did you calm my sister down?” Everett says, and Rory looks at him with a confused expression.
“What do you mean? Why would I need to?” She asks looking between him and I.
“We all kinda got into it. She said she was going into town to meet you. You didn’t see her?” I ask, feeling my anxiety creeping in.
“I didn’t talk to her. She wasn’t in town either. You sure she was coming to meet me?” Rory asks, and I feel my adrenalin already spiking.
“Yes, Aurora. She said she was meeting you at the coffee shop. You’re sure you didn’t see her?” Everett asks, panic coming though in his voice.
“I’m sure, guys. I didn’t talk to her or see her,” she says. I already have her number pulled up in my phone and I try calling her. It rings several times before going to voicemail. I hang up and try again. Voicemail.
“Everett, call her. Maybe she’s just that pissed at me,” I say, hoping that’s the case. He raises the phone to his ear, his brows knit together in confusion. He shakes his head as I hear the faint sound of her voicemail message on his end. I know something is wrong. I can feel it in my bones. I look over at Rory and see she’s already calling her too, but she gets no answer.
“What the fuck?” Everett says, “Why wouldn’t she answer? Where would she go?”
I scroll through my contacts and find Breaker’s number. What I’m about to do may piss her off, but I don’t care. He answers on the first ring as usual, “What’s up, brother?”
“I need you to track Ember’s phone. Now,” I ask, not wasting any time with formalities.
“You sure about that? I can do it but - “ he starts but I interrupt him. I don’t have time for his hesitation.
“I’m sure, do it now.” I say aggressively. He pushes several keys on the other end of the line.
“What the fuck?” He mumbles.
“What? Where is she?” I ask.
