Page 84 of Extra Witchy

“Come home,” Leanne shouted as soon as Dante opened the door.

He laughed. “Leanne! How’re you doing? Thanks for asking aboutme, by the way.”

Trev could hear their whole conversation from the front room, and he stepped into view just as Leanne flashed a rueful smile. “Sorry. Hey, Dante, how are you?”

“I’m all right. Better when you take his mopey ass back with you.”

“May I come in?” she asked.

Trev didn’t know how to act as she breezed past Dante and kicked her shoes off in the foyer. He’d never had a wife before, let alone left home after an argument.Am I supposed to apologize?At this point, he could admit that maybe he’d overreacted.

“I’m sorry,” she said immediately. “On the way home from the hospital, I cut you off. And I was so thick that I didn’t even realize I’d done it, let alone that I hurt you.”

Wow.

Trev had never been in a relationship where he didn’t apologize first, no matter what actually happened. Sarah had a way of turning everything back on him. Like, if he was more successful, she wouldn’t have snapped at him. And it got to the point that he’d stopped even wondering if it was his fault because italwayswas in some fashion.

When Leanne hesitantly approached him and reached for his hand, he realized he’d been quiet for too long. “Are you still mad?” she asked softly. “If you are, I can give you more time. But…I do think we should go home and talk—without making Dante witness our convo.”

“I’m not. Mad, that is. I’ll get my stuff together.” As he turned to walk away, she hugged him from behind.

Startled, Trev breathed in the sweetness of her scent—orange blossom and juniper—unable to believe how good her touch felt. Not only did she show up to ask him to come home, but she’d also made amends in front of his friend. No excuses either. Which…he didn’t know how to feel about any of it, really. It was a testament to how fucked up his connections had been to this point that he found any of this shocking. His family? They obviously didn’t give a damn. And Sarah… They hadn’t been a good fit, and their relationship had turned toxic.

“I really am sorry,” she whispered. “And you should know I missed you a lot. The condo doesn’t feel like home without you.”

He turned and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair. “You’re making me feel all sparkly, Butterfly.”

“That’s the plan.”

“All right, I need y’all out of my living room. You’re making me feel sorry for myself,” Dante announced.

Trev pulled back and pressed a gentle kiss to his wife’s forehead. “I’ll be right back.”

As he headed for the princess room, he heard Leanne say, “I need to get you a present. Thanks for being there for Trev. You’re a good friend.”

“I sure am, and I enjoy expensive Scotch.”

“I’ll see that bottle of Scotch and raise you a selection of gourmet smoked meats.”

Dante called, “This woman’s a keeper, man. She’s offering me booze and meat!”

Trev laughed, shoving his clothes back in the bag faster than he’d packed them in the first place. Then he took a cursory look around, making sure everything was in order in Evonnie’s room. Since it all looked good, he hurried out, eager to go home.

Leanne reached for him and twined their fingers together. To Dante, she said, “We’ll see you later.”

He nodded. “Better make sure you invite me to the next party.”

“Definitely.”

The drive back was silent but not tense. Trev stole looks at Leanne, unable to believe she cared enough to come looking for him. For the past five years, it had been like living as an invisible person. But now…he left footprints when he passed, and—

I shouldn’t be this touched.

Junie was waiting for them in the parking lot when they pulled in, her old car idling in a visitor’s spot. She bounded out onto the slippery pavement and almost fell, a fairly absurd figure wrapped in clashing colors and a proliferation of scarves. Slip-sliding toward them, she windmilled her arms as she nearly crashed into Leanne.

Trev caught Junie and kept her from knocking his wife down.Why is my mother-in-law such a kid?But he smiled at the hopeful light in her eyes, the tremulous smile she kept pinned to her lips even though he could see that she was braced for a brush-off.

“Sorry to just drop in, but I haven’t seen or talked to you since…”

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