Page 26 of Someday

I didn’tknowtrue anger until she left me.

I point at her. “That can never happen again, are we clear?”

I shake my head.

“You know what? I don’t care why you’re here now. I just want you to leave me alone. You wanna see my family? Arrange a time when I’m not there. But leave me the fuck alone.”

I turn and start walking toward the stable doors.

“Theo, you don’t mean that,” she says, rushing after me.

Her hand grips my arm and I turn, getting in her face. But she’s the one who keeps talking.

“You still feel something for me, I know you do. I felt it in the way you touched me just now, your kiss—it’s still there—”

I put my hands on her cheeks. “What I feel for you is contempt. You crawled out of my bed that night, after moaning my name and telling me how much you loved me, and then you left for eight fucking years. That kiss just now was the goodbye I deserved then.”

My hands drop and I stalk out of the barn, ignoring the sound of her crying. I’ve never been able to stand seeing her cry, so it’s a good thing I’m getting the hell out of here.

We rarely ever had cross words before—mostly because the two of us just seemed content with each other. We understood one another. There was never aneedto fight. Just one of the many things that’s changed.

But tonight, all of that needed to be said. The kiss shouldn’t have happened, but I’m glad I put a stop to it. If she’s really gonna stick around, some boundaries have to be in place.

The only problem is now that I’ve seen her body, and it’s even better than my dreams and memories, I have a feeling the fantasies won’t just invade my nights, they’ll take over every waking moment I have too.

And why the hell does it look like she’s living in the barn? I don’t even want to think about if it had been someone other than me catching her in nothing but a towel.

Grinny calls as soon as I’m home. I’m outside with Fred and about to go for a run to get rid of some of this adrenaline. We walk instead.

“Have you forgiven me yet?” she asks.

“You haven’t asked for forgiveness yet,” I say.

I sigh into the phone.

“You know I can’t stay mad at you, Grinny. That’s why you get away with things like butting in my business.”

She laughs. “I deserve that, and you’re mostly right. But I wonder if I’m also getting away with it because you know it’s a good thing Sofie’s back too.”

“Why would it be a good thing? I told you I don’t want to talk about her. I sure as hell don’t want to see her on family dinner nights or any other night.”

“Have you noticed how fragile she seems?” Grinny asks.

“I’m sure she’s uncomfortable being around all of us because she knows she blew everything up.”

“I can’t help but feel there’s more to it than that,” Grinny says. “It was such a busy time during your high school years. A wonderful, chaotic time. With the five of you kids spread out three years apart, and Granddad so busy at the lodge, this grandma of yours had a hard time keeping up. And Sofie, she was part of our family, she just always was. There were times I felt like she might be going through something, but when I’d try to talk about it, she’d brush it off…I remember feeling that way often that last year she was here. But you know how she was—always smiling, always upbeat and positive.”

“Yeah,” I say softly, remembering the way she didn’t even really like talking about herself. Not unless it involved the two of us.

Maybe I smothered her, didn’t let her be her own person enough and that got to her.

“I’ve always wondered what I missed back then…not just with her, but with all of you. Because every night when I fell into bed, it felt like we’d all lived a million years and it was only a day.” She laughs.

“You were so good with us, Grinny. If you missed anything, it was because we were working overtime to sneak something past you.”

“Well, Granddad and I didn’t do everything right, but we’ve always loved you kids more than anything. I’m sorry I invited Sofie to the house without preparing you first, but I loved her like she was mine too…and I still do. I won’t invite her again to a family dinner unless you tell me it’s okay, but I wish you’d hear her out, Theo. It won’t erase the past, but maybe it will help you move on. Wouldn’t you like to be free of what’s holding you back?”

“I think I’ve done all right,” I say, my defenses raring up.

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