Chapter 6
How’s the hottest teacher in the Western Hemisphere doing today?
The text from Travis came later that week after my yoga class. Our texts throughout the week had been frequent and increasingly flirtatious.
Oh, so the girls in England are hotter than me? Australia, maybe I’ll give you that. But England? You sure? I shot back with a grin.
I’d met some pretty hot English girls in my travels abroad in college, but I just had to give him shit.
I’m sorry, I meant the world.
I grinned at his response. Good, just wrapping up a class.
Yoga?
Yep... The advanced class. They’ll be hurting tomorrow. What are you up to?
Heading to Sam’s for a bit and then bed. Been a long day.
I threw my phone in my bag and walked toward my car, about a block away. It pinged away a moment later, and I pulled it out to discover a text from Sam.
Having people over, come!
My brow wrinkled. Travis hadn’t made it sound like a party, and despite how short of a time I’d known him, part of me felt insulted that he hadn’t mentioned it.
Oh, yeah? I think I’m just headed home
Sid’s home. We’re celebrating... Pllllleeeaaase? :)
I clicked over to my conversation with Travis.
Sam is inviting me over. That ok with you? I bit my lip, immediately regretting my decision. If he’d wanted me there, he would have said something.
Oh, yeah? Sure.
His response was less than enthused, which immediately put me on edge, but I chalked it up to misreading tone via text.
I sent the text to both of them. Ok, see you shortly.
I ran home to change, excited to see Travis and my friends. I let Able out and threw on a sundress with tights, boots, and a jean jacket. I added a scarf since it was a bit chilly, and after a moment of indecision left my hair down.
“Sorry, bud,” I apologized to a confused-looking Able when I fed him dinner and prepared to leave. “I’ll take you for an extra-long walk tomorrow.”
It was a relatively short drive to Sam’s and I was soon pulling up to their adorable gray house with white shutters.
“Hey!” Sam greeted excitedly after I rang the doorbell. “So glad you could come over.”
“Teacher Emerly?” Hudson’s shocked little voice sounded a second later as he stepped out from behind his mom’s legs with a tiny dog close behind.
“Hi, bud.” I smiled, kneeling down to greet him. “Who’s this?” I asked, despite having met Trixie before. I wanted to give Hudson a chance to introduce her.
“Trixie,” he replied proudly.
“She’s so cute,” I crooned, petting the small dog.
He nodded proudly. “She lufs me.”
“I bet,” I said sincerely with a quick wink to his mom.
“To bed, bud,” Sam said a second later as I stood up. “Daddy’s gonna take you.” She said a second before her handsome husband appeared.
“Hey, Emerly,” Sid greeted. “Nice to see you.”
“Nice to see you, too. Welcome home,” I replied.
I tried like hell not to look around for Travis, but so far had only caught sight of Caden and Danny and another man I’d never met.
“It was kind of an impromptu thing, but I wanted you to be here,” Sam shared once Sid had whisked Hudson off to bed.
I was incredibly flattered that she’d want me to be a part of what was obviously an intimate get-together. “Thank you.”
I followed her through the living room and into the kitchen, where she poured me a glass of wine.
“Hey, Em!” Danny greeted as she joined us in the kitchen.
“Hi.” I smiled, accepting the hug she offered.
“Who’s the blonde?” a male voice inquired.
“The blonde?” I responded incredulously.
Sam waved a hand. “That’s just Theo. We only let him out of his cave on occasion.”
“Clearly tonight shouldn’t have been one of those nights,” I added dryly.
Theo let out a booming laugh, throwing his head back. “I like her.” He pointed at me before he grabbed a beer and left the room.
“Not sure I feel the same!” I called after him.
After Sam had stopped laughing at our exchange, she looked at Danny. “Trav should be here soon,” she shared before looking back at me. “We have to get the deets tonight. I feel like he met someone.”
My cheeks heated. I’d wondered if Travis had talked to his sister about us. Clearly he hadn’t.
I shouldn’t have come. This suddenly felt incredibly awkward.
“Let’s go out back,” she suggested, taking my hand and leading us out back to their beautiful backyard.
We made ourselves comfortable in their plush outdoor chairs, and ignored Caden and Theo’s debate about football. At least, I was fairly sure that was what they were talking about.
Sid emerged not long after, heading directly for his wife. “Hi, baby.” He grinned, pulling her to standing so he could take the seat and pull her into his lap.
“They’re always like this when he gets back,” Caden informed me with an eye roll.
“Good.” I smiled with a wink toward my friend.
“McAllister, thank God! You can help me convince this idiot that the Rams are going to pull it out this year,” Theo hollered, his gaze turned toward the house.
My heart pounded in my chest as I turned to find Travis standing in the doorway to their patio, looking more handsome than any man should.
His gaze met mine briefly before he looked at Theo. “You’re not gonna get much help from me there.” He chuckled, joining our group and taking the seat next to Caden, despite there being one open next to me.
I swallowed back the dread coiling in my belly.
“Trav, you’ve met Emerly, right?” Sam asked. “Hud’s teacher?”
“Sam, seriously? We gave you a ride that night you guys were blitzed.” Caden chuckled.
She smacked her forehead. “Of course. Duh.”
“Is duh still a thing?” Theo asked. “I really don’t think it’s a thing.”
She shot him a glare. “I just said it. So, it’s a thing.”
Theo looked to me as though I was some expert in slang. “Is it a thing?”
“It’s pretty dead in the three-year-old circles I run in,” I replied, earning another deep laugh from him and a collective one from the group.
The guy was growing on me, I had to admit.
“Anyone heard from Declan?” Danika asked. “I thought he’d swing by.”
“He’s dealing with some shit, I don’t think he’ll make it,” Theo replied.
Travis shot a sharp look to Theo. “Does he need something?”
“He’s fine,” Theo was quick to reassure him.
I assumed Declan and Theo worked at Talon along with Sid, but didn’t ask.
We sat outside talking for a while. Aside from a few glances, Travis didn’t acknowledge me, and I knew I wouldn’t be staying much longer. Everyone headed inside when it got too cool to sit outside, and I headed for the bathroom.
“It’s her, isn’t it?” I heard Sam squeal from a bedroom next to the bathroom I was about to go in. “I knew you were seeing someone!”
Travis merely grunted.
My heart sank.
“You like her,” Sam stated. “And as you should. She’s smart and beautiful and fun.”
“She’s quirky,” Travis replied with a noncommittal grunt.
Quirky? Of all the adjectives he could use to describe me, that was what he settled on? Was this some kind of joke to him?
My eyes burned with tears that I furiously blinked back as hurt like I hadn’t felt in years coursed through me.
I turned on a heel, no longer needing the bathroom and unable to hear anymore. What I needed was to get the hell out of there.
“Em, you okay?” Danny asked worriedly when I practically ran for the front door.
“Fine,” I stammered, knowing I was a second from losing it. “I just, um—I forgot I have to take care of something. It was good to see you.”
With that I streaked out to my car, needing to get the hell out of there. I fired the engine up and tore away from the curb.
I wasn’t sure where I was headed. I didn’t want to go home, not yet.
For a little while I just drove, unsure of my destination, relieved when the inevitable LA traffic delayed my decision.
Finally, I ended up at the beach. With the cold air against my face and the salt water palpable in the air, I took my first deep breath of the evening.
There were things I didn’t love about Los Angeles. I’d struggled to find my niche. There were only two real seasons, summer and a winter that hardly counted. But being able to come to the beach whenever I wanted? That was a nice perk.
I sat in the sand for a long time, letting the cold air numb my limbs, trying to let Travis’s words roll off my back.
I’d thought he appreciated my quirks. I’d thought he might want to explore things. Not keep it a secret that we’d spent time together.
As I made my way back to my car, exhaustion weighed heavily on me. Sadness did that. I was well versed in the feeling.
I’d left my phone in the car and it immediately pinged when I started the engine up. A quick glance showed numerous text messages, none of which I planned to read or respond to.
Instead, I headed for home, ready to fall into bed and oblivion.