4. Mylo

4

Mylo

The second cup of coffee I pour helps out as much as the first. Delilah has a stash of different flavored liquid creamer to pick from, but I opt for a single packet of sweetener to get me through the next cup.

“Didn’t sleep too well?” Henry’s flipping through a newspaper, skimming over the comic section. “Was a windy night. Weather is getting worse and worse the closer we get to Christmas.”

The wind might’ve been blowing against the house, but it wasn’t what was whispering in my ear. A sweet husky voice was too busy haunting me.

“Something like that,” I mumble before taking my first sip. The burn is a nice distraction as I’m reminded of troubling thoughts.

“Supposed to get a foot by tonight. Might get a few groceries in case we’re snowed in.” He’s mostly mumbling to himself, flipping through pages. “It’ll be a good idea to slip out before Delilah starts getting ideas of making fruitcakes for the relatives.” His mouth twitches, hardly hiding his amusement for his wife’s love of baking even the worst kind of treats.

There’s a stir in my chest from seeing his happiness. At one point, I felt the very same. Shame mine only lasted as long as the honeymoon phase. All but a couple of months.

“Want to come with me? I’ll take the company. I’d ask Cas to spend some quality time together, but I’m sure the time difference is kicking her butt. She called it a bit early last night.” He scratches his cheek and closes his paper. “It’ll take her a minute to adjust.”

After what Cassidy’s told me, I’m sure she’ll have plenty of time to do just that.

“Not like I have anything better to do.” Shrugging a shoulder, I watch Henry leave the table and make his way over the fridge. Held up with a few seashell magnets, he plucks off a list.

A long list.

Of course, he doesn’t warn me of what is needed until after I agree.

“Just a few ingredients,” he promises with a knowing smirk. Bastard. “If Del wants to bake all week to keep her hands busy, we have to make sure we have everything she needs.”

Already signing my afternoon away with the guy, I finish my coffee and hope to get a hit of caffeine before my exhaustion takes over. Joining him, I take his list and look to see what we’re going to have to hunt down as we make our way out.

The roads aren’t awful, barely covered with a thin layer of snow. Fairland has a small grocery store tucked away, filled with hardly more than just necessities. Henry insists on taking a trip out of town. I don’t complain, not like it’ll matter.

As long as he doesn’t take this trip and turn it into some kind of therapy session, I’ll go wherever he wants. Thankfully, he doesn’t bother asking me how I’m doing. He’s done enough of that to see my answers aren’t changing much.

Did Delilah tell him how I reacted to Cassidy’s question about Natalie? I think I reacted better than I had a couple of months ago.

“Can I smoke?” Trapped in the truck with him, just thinking about the divorce makes my throat itch.

Henry shoots a glance my way, his mouth curving. “Not a chance.”

Sniffing, I dig a piece of gum out of his glove compartment. Not even mint flavored, I have to use his wife’s favorite fruity flavor to get me through the drive.

By the time we reach the next town over, we spend two hours going through aisles plucking things off of shelves. I’m ready to pull out my hair by the time we hit the checkout line. The poor cashier gives our cart a dreaded look.

Two hours is plenty of time for snow to build up. The drive back is going to be even slower.

“What did you get me into?” I mutter under my breath as we pack all the bags into the truck. A few groceries, he says. “Never again.”

“You looked like you needed the distraction,” Henry starts before clasping a hand on my shoulder. “If Del would’ve come, it would’ve taken us three. She loves looking at everything.”

Remembering to never join the two, the best I can do is shake my head. I’m sure I’ll spend the entire trip back complaining.

* * *

“Knew it was a good idea to go out before this mess started.” Proud of himself as we glide along the slippery surface, we somehow make it back to the house in one piece.

Henry is the type to try and carry in everything in one big load to impress his wife with his strength. Doesn’t hurt that the air is nipping at our skin, urging me to get inside as soon as possible. Can’t rush and risk ruining any of these ingredients. Delilah will have my head if I slip on my ass, checking on her eggs before she thinks about asking how I am.

The thought makes me crack a smile.

Hands full, we quickly make our way inside. After kicking the snow off our boots, we make a straight shot toward the kitchen. Henry is the first to enter, announcing our return. Finding the two women inside, my steps slow to a sudden halt when I see Cassidy swiping at her face.

Her eyes are stained pink, her eyes glossy. Looking my way for only a moment, her eyes drift away just as quickly.

An unfamiliar sensation stirs in my chest. There’s this need to wrap an arm around her, to console her. I might not know what upset her, but I want to promise not to let anything make her cry again.

Sniffing, she hops off the barstool. Passing me, she pauses. “I’ll be enjoying some fresh air in case you want to fuel your bad habits.” Muttering the invite, she leaves without another word.

Before I jump at the chance to join her, I catch Delilah looking our way. She looks worried. I’m sure I could ask her what happened, but Henry easily draws her attention away to ask himself.

Giving those two some space, I head right back outside and leave the unpacking for them.

Cassidy is slapping the seat, shoving away all the new snow. Cursing under her breath, she huffs out of pure frustration when she can’t get it all off.

I don’t know what fuels me to touch her. However, the moment I make contact with her shoulder, she caves. Looking at me again, her mouth purses. She’s holding back more tears. Fuck.

“Come here, sweetness.” Muttering the words, I draw her close. A hug shouldn’t be lethal or dangerous, but something feels right when she sides into my arms. She hugs me like she needs this as much as I do. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

Her hair smells nice, her body is warm. Each inhale makes my head spin and I’m hugging her closer. I don’t care that she’s soaking the front of my jacket. Hell, I wish her sweater wasn’t in the way so I could draw calming circles against her back to soothe her.

“I told her about Florida.” Her words tickle my throat as she buries herself closer to steal all the heat my body has to provide. “Turns out, admitting I’m a failure is much harder than I expected. Here I thought I could handle disappointing them, but it took a bit more of a toll than I expected.” She sniffs and the laugh that leaves her lips is hoarse.

Clutching her closer, she sighs against my throat. “First off, you’re not a failure, so don’t start spouting that shit.” She rumbles with a more authentic chuckle at my words. Pulling away, I take in her flushed cheeks and nose. She picked the worst place to try to calm down. It’s fucking freezing out here.

Squeezing her arms as I pull away, I lead her back over to the seat and sweep away whatever is remaining. Taking a seat, I’m still touching her. Her shoulder, her arm, I squeeze whatever she’ll let me touch. Now isn’t the time to want to have contact, but the need for it is there anyway.

“She says I can stay as long as I want.” She sniffs and wipes at her eyes. “You know how they are. If a stray cat came their way, they’d rush out to buy food. They take in whatever comes their way.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” I mutter with a small shake of my head. I didn’t even have to ask, they practically dragged me into their home as soon as I lost my place. “They’d kidnap that cat off of someone’s porch.”

She laughs at that, her smile momentarily returning. God, I just want to swipe away the streaks freezing on her cheeks. Something tells me if I touch her face, I’m going to do something stupid. Something I can’t take back.

Instead, I keep my hands pressed against her sweater.

Her smile melts away and a sigh slips from her lips. “She’s telling him now, I’m sure of it. I didn’t think I’d have the strength to tell them both together or separately. Probably better this way.” Ruining the sleeve of her sweater to swipe at her running nose, she shivers. Glancing my way for just a moment, she chews on her lip before wiggling close enough to be pressed against me. I guess we’re both freezing.

I shouldn’t wrap an arm around her shoulder, but I do. I squeeze her arm and sigh.

“Thanks, for this. Didn’t mean to show you my ugly side there.” Another swipe of her nose later, she’s leaning against me. Her hair is tickling my chin. The same vanilla scent is haunting me with every inhale.

“We’ll consider this an IOU. You haven’t seen me drunk,” I mutter as I look out toward the falling snow. “Henry had to drag me out of the bar the last time I felt sad. Not a pretty sight at all.”

She hums in consideration. Turning to look at me, she gives me a blinding smile. Much better than her earlier expression. “So, I guess no eggnog this year?”

“Probably not a good idea,” I agree with a light chuckle.

Though, plenty of time has passed since then. The empty hole in my chest doesn’t feel as vacant. There’s something else there lurking, silent and waiting. I haven’t figured it out yet. In truth, I’m a little worried about what I’ll find.

Despite the cold air, neither of us leaves the seat to seek warmth inside. Rather, Cassidy is the first to shift and it’s only closer to my direction.

Her head weighs down my shoulder and for a moment, I feel at peace. This feels right . Much to my horror, I don’t want this woman to move an inch. Hell, in truth, I want to pull her closer.

She’d be much warmer if she was on my lap. All curled up in my arms. Hell, I can think of a few ways for us to warm up. The fact that I can think this way with Cassidy leaves my body stiffening.

She must realize something is up because she turns to look at me with confusion. As if realizing how close we are, her eyes widen.

“Oh!” Jerking like she’s caught herself doing something taboo, her body stiffens as quickly as mine. Her cheeks pinken with new purpose. Jumping to her feet, my side cools instantly. “Sorry about that!” She stumbles, putting a few feet between us. “Caught in the moment…or something.”

Instead of feeding more into her last statement, she gives me her back as she drifts toward the front door. “We should go inside before we freeze to death out here.” Lingering at the entrance, she looks my way. “Coming?”

Hunching forward, I pull out my crushed pack. “Still need to smoke,” I tell her hoarsely, “I’ll join you in a few minutes. You go deal with the two of them. Don’t get upset anymore, alright?”

She nods slowly. Pursing her lips, she stares my way for a moment before making her way inside.

Leaving me alone, I curse under my breath and shove the pack back into my pocket. Not in the mood to smoke, I rub my face like it’ll shove all the stress away.

As if that’s possible. My stress only grows when I realize I’m fucking hard. Terrible timing. As if last night wasn’t haunting enough, my body has betrayed me again.

Haven’t looked at a woman once since Natalie, and now all of a sudden, I can’t keep my mind out of the gutter.

Henry’s daughter. What in the fuck is wrong with me?