Page 34 of Steeled

Eyes wide in wonder, Mitzi demanded, “What happened? Tell me.”

“When I left work last night, Lawson was here. He told me he needed to talk to me and that it couldn’t wait. But before he could tell me a damn thing, Creed showed up.”

Mitzi’s face contorted in horror. “Creed? As in,Creed Nash?”

“The one and only. And he just—he just talked to me like…like he was passin’ through, and he wanted to look me up.”

“What?!”

“Yeah,” she huffed, throwing her hands up in agitation. “He told me he wanted to meet Evie. Except, of course, he didn’t know her name or the fact that she’s even a girl. Gosh, just thinkin’ about it makes me angry.”

“What’d you say?”

“Over my dead body. I can’t see any reason why I should do that to my baby girl. Not one reason.”

“Nora-Jean, why the hell didn’t you call me last night?”

Her answer got caught in her throat as the gravity of everything she’d been holding back was let loose inside of her. She choked on a sob she hadn’t seen coming and stared atMitzi through teary eyes. When she could find her voice, she whispered, “Because I was with Lawson.”

As her tears spilt over onto her cheeks, Nora’s vision cleared, and she was able to see as Mitzi’s face went blank. “What do you mean, you were with Lawson?” she asked carefully.

“He was here, when Creed showed up. He was here. And he wanted to check on me, so he came over after I put Evie down. He came over and—and I didn’t mean for it to happen, but I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t stophim. I couldn’t. It was Lawson and—the last time he touched me, I was twenty-four years old, sayin’ goodbye to my Marine. I didn’t know then that it would be the last time.

“But last night he was there, and he wanted me, and I wanted him. God, I wanted him. And it felt so good, Mitz. I know that’s too much information, but it was better than I remembered, so I was selfish, and I let him stay.”

“Oh, my god, Nora!” gasped Mitzi. She laughed as she reached across the space between them, cupping her hands around Nora’s cheeks. “Babe, this is amazing!”

“I want to believe that,” murmured Nora as she shook her head. “But I can’t. It’s a mess. The whole thing is a mess.”

“What are you talking about?” Mitzi insisted, attempting to dry Nora’s tear-streaked face. “You and Lawson were meant for each other. Everyone knows it. The whole town has been waitin’ on you to get back together since you broke up!”

“MB, it’s not that simple,” protested Nora, taking hold of Mitzi’s wrists and pulling down her hands. “We’re not back together. We slept together, sure, but I kicked him out first thing this mornin’. We’ve barely spoken to each other in six years. I have Evie, and now Creed is sniffin’ around—”

“Okay, okay—take a breath,” demanded Mitzi, grabbing hold of Nora’s hands.

Feeling lighter after sharing her news, Nora found it easier to pull in a deep breath.

“Good. Now, do you want the truth or not?”

Sinking further into the seat, Nora relented with a nod. “Always.”

“Right. First things first: if Creed wants to meet Evie, it’s not your dead body he has to get over. He’ll have to plow through a whole lotta people before he even gets to you. You’re her biggest ally, but you’re not her only one, and don’t you forget it. One text, and you’ll have the entire force of the Shelbyville Police Department keepin’ an eye out. Got it?”

Nora freed a smile. There was a reason Mitzi wore the badge of best friend.

“Got it.”

“Great. Next—you lovin’ Lawson is not selfish, it’s destiny.”

“Mitzi—”

“No, babe, I don’t want to hear it. You fell in love with Lawson Steele when we were freshman in high school, and you never stopped lovin’ him. Not when he broke your heart; not when you broke his; not when you tried to move on with Creed; not even after Evie was born.

“Now, I know there is no one in the world you love more than Evie—but there’s also no one in the world you love more than Lawson. Not even me. And don’t even try to argue your way out of it. If it weren’t true, you’d have moved on by now. Lawson, too. It goes both ways.”

“MB, you’ve been beatin’ that drum—”

“For way too long. I know. It’s about damn time you two figured it out.”

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