Chapter 44: Chapter Forty-Four

Aubrey

I am getting ready for dinner. It is exhausting me. My entire body is exhausted, mentally and physically. A part of me doesn’t want to go, but I will. Having the kids and the dogs around will be a good distraction for me.

A knock comes at the bedroom door. “Aubrey, can I come in?” Everett asks.

“Yes.”

He pushes the door open and steps inside. “Are you okay? You have been in here a while. If you don’t want to go, I can cancel.”

“No, I will be fine. I don’t have much energy. It is taking me longer than normal to get ready.”

“Can I help in any way?”

“Unless you can do make-up or braid hair, no.” I laugh.

“I can’t do make-up, but I can French braid.”

“You can?” I ask, shocked. Where would he even learn that?

“Yes, I dated a woman a while ago who taught me.”

“Do you want me to do your hair?”

I find myself nodding. It is one less thing for me to do. I can put on some mascara and lip gloss. I don’t need a full face of make-up to go to Erica and Hugo’s place. Everett strolls over to my dressing table, picking up my brush, spray, and hair tie before he comes over and kneels behind me on the floor.

I smile at him in the mirror. “Thank you.”

“No bother.” He returns the smile and starts on my hair.

It feels slightly strange, but nice at the same time. I close my eyes. He is being so gentle. It is giving me butterflies.

“All done.” He whispers after a few minutes.

Opening my eyes, I see that Everett has a smaller mirror behind me, so I can see. It is perfect. He can braid better than I.

“Thank you. It looks great.” I beam.

Everett nods, setting the mirror down. I expect him to move from the floor, but he doesn’t. He stays put, our eyes locking in the mirror. I should break eye contact with him, but I can’t. I am frozen in the moment. A lump gathers in my throat as the heat rises on my cheek. My tongue darts along my lips, and Everett mimics my action. I want nothing more than to turn around and kiss him. It would be a terrible idea.

Everett clears his throat, sighs and jumps to his feet. “I will leave you to finish off and meet you downstairs.”

He rushes out of the room. I sigh, shaking my head and focus on what I am doing. Our dynamic has changed a lot recently. I truly believed it was what I wanted, but I am seriously questioning myself. I won’t make any rash choices, not with everything going on.

I shouldn’t stay here for too long—a couple of days at the most. I can’t handle it any longer. I finish getting ready and take a few deep breaths, heading downstairs.

“Everett, I am ready to go,” I call from the hallway.

He appears, with car keys and a bottle of wine in hand. “Let’s go.”

He places his hand on the small of my back. A shudder runs through me under his touch as he guides me out to the car. He opens the door for me, making sure I climb in safely before he does.

“Do you want to stay over or come back here?”

“I am not sure. We can see how the night goes.”

“Okay, whatever you want.” He replies.

I nod and turn to stare out of the window for the rest of the drive.

It had been a fun night with everyone. Good food. Good company and playing games with the kids. The kids are all in bed now since it is quite late. Everett, Hugo, and Erica are inside enjoying their drinks. I have had enough. We are staying tonight after all. I came outside to take a little time for myself.

I hug my knees to my chest, take in the night air, and listen to the trees whisper in the wind and to the distant sound of the lake nearby. The quietness is tranquil. I close my eyes and enjoy the moment.

A blanket is suddenly draped over my shoulders. “You don’t want to catch a cold.”

Everett’s voice makes me glance over my shoulder at him. “Thanks.”

“Can I join?”

“Sure.”

Everett takes the seat next to me. We sit in silence, a comfortable one. Why did he come out? Was it to check on me, or did he need some air?

“I hope you don’t mind me coming out. I couldn’t watch Hugo and Erica kissing and being all cheesy for any longer.” He chuckles.

I swear he can read my mind.

“No, not at all. The two of them are like a pair of horny teenagers at times.”

“It is sweet, but I don’t need to see it.”

I nod. “I understand.”

He smiles and puts his attention on the view in front of him. My attention stays on him. God, why does he need to be so handsome? I quickly turn away before he catches me staring at him.

Abruptly, a few minutes later, Everett jumps to his feet. He takes his place in front of me, offering his hand to me. I look at him strangely.

“Would you like to go for a walk?”

“In the pitch dark?” I ask.

“The place is well lit. We don’t need to go far. I worry that if we go back inside, we will find them dry humping on the sofa.” He laughs.

I take his hand, and he pulls me to my feet, bringing me to his chest. I gasp, his arm wrapping around my back. He stares down at me. I swallow hard, keeping eye contact with him.

“W-w-we should go.” I breathe out.

“We should.” He agrees, but neither of us makes an effort to move.

As the same as earlier, we get caught up in the moment, forgetting where we are. I quickly pull away. We don’t need to get caught being so close to one another. I walk ahead of me, pulling myself together before he catches up with me, which he does only seconds later.

I should have gone inside and not agreed to the walk, but here I am. I can’t change my mind now, it would look strange. I can manage a short walk with him before returning to the house and going to bed. I will need to sleep alone tonight. I can’t climb into bed with Everett, not while we are here. One of the dogs may come in, which will help me settle, but if not, I have a restless night ahead of me. I am still shaken from everything that has happened recently.