I had to let out a giggle as I looked around. It wouldn’t surprise me if she were watching us. Crazy bitch.
Heather walked out of the house, carrying a box, and she seemed to be struggling. I’d never seen Josh move so fast in my life as he took the box from her. Even on the football field, the bastard had never run that fast. Heather and I were planning on going out to dinner tonight in Mason, and I couldn’t wait to drill Heather about her trip with Josh from Mason to Austin. She’d been avoiding me like the plague all week. Something must have happened, and I was going to get to the bottom of it.
I watched as Heather thanked Josh. Holy hell. She was blushing as she looked away from him. He said something to her that made her laugh. She looked over at me, and I smiled at her. Her smile faded as she walked back into the house.
Damn it. Why is she fighting this thing with Josh so much? What the fuck is wrong with this group of friends?
I looked back over at Jeff, who was now pacing back and forth on the phone. My heart stopped for a moment. Oh shit. What if something happened to the baby? I mean, I couldn’t care less about that bitch, but I would never want something to happen to that innocent child. Poor thing was going to have a nut-case for a mother.
Just then, my cell phone started ringing. I pulled it out and looked at it. Ellie?
“Hey! What the hell are you doing, calling me on your honeymoon?”
“Hey, sweets. Um…Gunner is talking to Jefferson right now. We’re in Miami, waiting for our next flight. ”
“What? I thought y’all weren’t coming back until next week. ”
“Yeah… well, Gunner got a call late last night. His dad had a heart attack. ”
“Oh my god, Ellie! Oh no. Is he okay?”
“I guess. His mom, Grace, called last night and said she was at the hospital. His dad was stable. The doctors told him that he needed a serious amount of rest and relaxation. Somehow Grace was able to talk him into going to the ranch to visit his mom and dad. ”
“No shit. Wow. Well, you know when something life-changing like that happens, you tend to think of things differently. You know what I mean?”
Ellie let out a small sigh. “Yeah,” she paused for a moment.
“Ari, how are you?”
I sucked in a breath of air. She knows.
“When did you find out?”
“A couple of days before the wedding, I knew something was wrong, and made Gunner tell me. I’m sorry that I didn’t say anything to you. I felt like it wasn’t my place. ”
I felt the tears coming again. Shit! “S’okay, Ellie. I know it had to have been hard for you to keep that from me. You won’t believe how I found out though. ”
“Will it make me hate my own brother?”
I let out a laugh. “No, but you’ll hate Rebecca even more!”
“Yeah, like that’s possible. I’m ready to choke her until she spills the truth. ”
“Glad to hear that! I’m glad you’re coming back. I actually need to talk to you about a few things. ”
“Okay…well, we should be in around four. Are y’all heading out to the ranch?”
“Yeah, Josh and Jeff have the whole house almost cleared out. We’re making a trip out there now. I think Josh and Heather were planning on staying the night. We can all catch up, that is, if y’all aren’t too tired by the time you get in. Heather and I were going to go into Mason for dinner. Do you want us to wait?”
“Hell no, I won’t be too tired! I can’t wait to see you. It feels like I’ve been gone forever. Why don’t y’all go ahead and eat? There is a bar on Main Street I think. I’m sure Jefferson knows about it. Maybe we could all just meet up there? Damn it, they’re calling our flight. I’ll see ya in a few. Love you sweets. Kiss and hug Jefferson for me. Hang in there. I’m almost home. ”
The moment I hung up with Ellie, I could feel my stress lifting away from me. Things would be so much better when she got here. I’d felt so alone this last week. Even with Jeff and I being so close, it still felt like I was lost.
Jeff walked up to me. He hugged me so tightly that I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
“Was that Ells?”
“Yeah, she told me about Gunner’s dad. Is he going to be okay?”