Page 23 of Wish Me Home

“You always did like your coffee really sweet.” Aunt Sadie wrinkled her nose as I sat at the table with my coffee. I noticed her mug had nothing but plain black coffee. That was something I had never understood, how anyone could drink it that way.

“I like coffee… kind of.” I shrugged, as if that explained why I doctored it up so much. She seemed to avoid asking about me mentioning that Cody wasn’t big on families. That was fine, it’s not like I could really explain it.

We ate in silence until most of the food was gone. I helped her to clear the table and then do the dishes. We went about doing our own things until that evening. Neither of us were very religious, but Aunt Sadie insisted we attend a candlelight service every year at a local church. They were inclusive, so I felt comfortable attending.

When we got home, I helped Aunt Sadie make dinner. It wasn’t as big as her meal for Christmas day, but she still liked to do something special. The Brussels sprouts were done, so I was helping her take the pan from the oven when my phone pinged with an incoming message.

I smiled because I wondered if I’d hear from Cody at all today. I quickly set the pan down on the counter, pulled out my phone, and opened the message to find a picture of a sad little TV dinner sitting on a counter.

Hot Flight Attendant:I don’t know why I thought this was a good idea.

Chuckling to myself, my heart did a weird little flutter. It was adorable that he was sharing so much of his time at home with me. My fingers flew across the screen as I typed out a response.

Emmett:What is that even supposed to be?

Hot Flight Attendant:The box said turkey with mashed potatoes and gravy. It smells like cat food.

I rubbed at my cheeks because they were aching from the smile that stretched across my face. Aunt Sadie didn’t miss it either as she entered the kitchen and spotted Cody’s message over my shoulder.

“Please tell me he’s not eating that for dinner tonight.” Her voice made me jump because I hadn’t been aware that she was so close.

I quickly shoved the phone into my pocket. “I think that was the plan.”

“No. I refuse. He’s joining us and I won’t take no for an answer.” When Aunt Sadie was on a mission, there was no talking her out of it. Something told me that Cody would turn me down if I invited him for our meal.

Aunt Sadie pulled the foil off the ham, and the smell filled the kitchen. It was glazed to perfection and looked mouth-watering. “Send him a picture of that. He won’t be able to refuse.”

I rolled my eyes and fished my phone from my pocket. Snapping a picture at the best possible angle, I sent it over to Cody with a tempting message.

Emmett:You could join us for this? There’s no way two people could eat all of it.

Nothing happened at first. Maybe it wasn’t the right move to tempt him into joining us for Christmas Eve. Part of me was bummed because we had discussed meeting up and so far we hadn’t seen each other at all. Or at least, I thought we had talked about meeting up.

Finally, the dots bounced on my screen. They stopped and vanished for a few moments. They started up again before repeating the same process. No messages were coming through so I assumed it meant he was rethinking everything he was going to send me. I already knew he was trying to find the right way to tell me ‘No’ when the message finally came through.

Hot Flight Attendant:That looks amazing. And I’m sure the leftovers will be epic.

I ran a hand through the short dark strands at the top of my head. It was a no without directly saying it. For as hot and heavy we’d been in Chicago and as much as he was messaging me now, it seemed odd that he wouldn’t entertain it.

Emmett:Why can’t you just say yes and join us?

Hot Flight Attendant:Emmett…

Emmett:Cody…

I didn’t wait for the response, instead, I powered off my phone and shoved it in my pocket. My face burned with embarrassment that I kept trying with a man who… well I wasn’t sure what the hell he was doing.

Aunt Sadie crossed her arms across her chest and leaned against the counter. “He really turned us down?”

I nodded, moving to grab the plates from the cupboard to set the table. She didn’t question me as she grabbed utensils from the drawer and set them out. It shouldn’t sour our holiday, but I was pissed that he turned me down again. No wonder he was alone, although it wasn’t entirely fair for me to think that way.

I dropped into my chair and Aunt Sadie sat across from me after she served the food. She held her hand out to me and I grabbed it. She gave it a gentle squeeze, giving me a soft smile.

“I wish I knew what was going through his head, Emmett. He’s crazy to keep turning you down.”

Setting my fork down on the table, I let out a heavy sigh. I suddenly found myself no longer hungry even though I’d only had a few bites. It was a shame because the food was fantastic. Aunt Sadie had made an orange and honey glaze on the ham and the Brussels sprouts had been roasted in bacon grease.

“I don’t…” I took a deep breath, pinching my eyes closed, fighting back the emotions because it felt stupid to get emotional over a man I’d barely known for twenty-four hours. “I don’t think I want to talk about it.”

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