Page 11 of Fight For Her
I wavered. I wasn’t ready to tell people about my father passing away or that I had to pack up every possession that my parents owned to sell their property and get my mother into a care home.I didn’t want to drag Verdant Valley Coby into the life I worked so hard to create in Florida. I let my past go a long time ago, and the more I told these people, people I saw almost every day, the more they’d see that side of me. I’d no longer be perpetual bachelor and physical therapist slash assistant Krav Maga teacher. I’d be Coby from Bumblefuck, USA who grew up with an abusive, alcoholic father, a mother who hid in her own skin, and a younger brother who was on the same path as his dickhead father. I’d get pity, and I didn’t need their pity.
I had a hard enough time breaking away from my past by being the first person in my family to attend college. I scraped together pennies to get the hell out of Wyoming, and I met Amy during my residency in California. I thought she was it for me. As much as the idea of monogamy made me sick (look what marriage did for my parents), I knew Amy was the one. Until I made the mistake of bringing her back home with me to meet my family after we eloped. I didn’t blame Amy for finding someone better not long after.I wouldn’t want to be a Barnes either.
So I wouldn’t tell anyone in Palm Cove the real reason I left. They’d forget soon enough anyway once things got back to normal, and I was home.
“Yeah, everything’s fine.” My stomach churned as the lie slid out of my lips.I brushed my hand through my hair again. “A friend from college had a family emergency and needed me to help out at his clinic. Been doing PT in Wyoming all this time.”
Shit. Bad karma stay away.I hated lying to my friends.
Mia made a humming noise. “Oh no, is everything alright? I hope it was nothing too serious.”
“Much better. He just got back to town, and I’m getting ready to head back home in a few days.”After I finished tying up loose ends with the house.
“Hold on.” The phone went silent for a second, and I plopped back down on the bed. Suddenly the call switched to FaceTime. I clicked accept and then there were Shawn and Mia’s faces. They looked tired. Mia had her signature messy bun and was wearing glasses that I’d never seen, and Shawn’s overgrown hair looked like he’d been racking his hands through it.
“Okay, that’s better. Now we can both talk to you,” she said. I flashed a smile, hoping they didn’t see through it to how exhausted I was.
“When did you say you’re coming home?” Mia asked, chewing the corner of her lip. I could see now that they were sitting in bed, propped up by a bunch of pillows.
I did a quick mental calculation. Today was Wednesday. If I hustled, I could finish by the weekend but most likely, it would be early next week. I told them as much.
“Do you have to get right back to work? Because Jill and Mike are getting married in the Keys next weekend and everyone is going. It would be awesome if you could come.”
The way she saidawesomewith those big eyes of hers was not fair. She should work in sales, not accounting.
“Yeah,” Shawn added. “It would be cool if you could come and save me from all this mushy wedding stuff that I know Mia and Kendahl will drag me to.”
Kendahl was going? Was I sweating all the sudden? I cleared my throat, forcing a chuckle. “I’ll see what I can do. After where I’ve been, a wedding in the Keys sounds like a hell of a good time.”
More squeals pierced my ears along with a howl from Shawn’s golden retriever, Remy.
“I’ll email you all the details. And you better respond this time.” Mia crooked her finger, shaking it at the screen like a schoolteacher. “Oh and…” she hesitated. “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but Kendahl has been in sort of a weird mood lately. She’s pissed as hell at you, understandably. So under no circumstances are you to get under her skin.”
I held my hands up in mock surrender. “I’ll respond. I promise.”
She narrowed her brows and brought the phone closer to her face. “And Kendahl?”
I had no desire to get under her skin, whatever that meant, but I did want to make things right. Was I the reason she was in a weird mood? I hoped not. I needed to get her out of my system though. Otherwise, I could never go back to how things were before if that was even what I wanted anymore.
“I’ll make things right with Kendahl,” Smiling brightly at her I added, “promise.”
“Good. You know I like you Coby, but Ken is my best friend. Don’t make me kick your ass.” She passed the phone to Shawn.
“And I won’t hold her back.” He smirked.
I held my hands up again. “I believe you.”
I laid back after the call ended, trying to slow my racing heart. I wanted to go. Hell, I needed a break more than ever. Plus, Jill was a sweetheart. We became friends when I helped her move into her new place after the fire. I’d love to be there to support her.But a wedding? With Kendahl? A romantic, lovey-dovey, magical, beach wedding where the woman who occupied every corner of my mind would be? I knew I wanted to see her to make things right but that was riding on her wanting to talk to me again.
An email from Mia pinged in my mail app, and my heart jumped through my rib cage. I had no choice. I was going to the Florida Keys.
Chapter 5
Kendahl
Floridatookmybreathaway. It was easy to forget how beautiful the scenery was when I spent most of my time in an office. Avoiding Mia and Shawn’s love fest in the front seat, I opted to stare out the window of Shawn’s truck instead. We were halfway across the seven-mile bridge toward Serenity Key, a part of Florida I’d never explored. Waves crashed against the concrete girders and splashed feet into the air. Boats of all sizes skimmed by in the distance, creating patterns in their wake that I could almost trace through the window. Puffy, pillow-like clouds seemed to reach the horizon, blocking the afternoon sun. It was all so picturesque.
“Look!” Mia pointed at her passenger window. “I think I saw a dolphin jumping.”
