LORI. I FORGOT about Lori.
Shit.
How could I forget about her? Not she existed or she was my little sister. No, I doubted I could ever forget those facts. I forgot she might get all super sleuth suspicious about me suddenly helping out her friend.
How would she know? My mistake was thinking I could organize and rally a group of men together to move the studio to my place and no one would ask why. My other error in judgment centered around once again trusting one of my cousins. That side of the family had an issue in their bloodline. Or all got dropped on their heads as babies.
Okay, I didn’t explicitly say not to tell anyone, and maybe me renting a big truck for the weekend might have piqued some interest, but did Dale have to tell his mother? Grown man gossiping to his mother about a truck rental? What was that about?
Post move, we all sat around drinking beer and teasing Hailey for owning a lot of shit most people would think of as garbage, or at least a tetanus shot waiting to happen. Not to mention the weight and sharp edges had us all nursing a few bruises and a cut finger or two after moving torches, welding supplies, metal scraps, shovel heads, pic-axes, a bunch of rusty nails, and dandelions made from said nails. The guys complained, and suggested she should take up quilting or knitting.
The late afternoon sun and the heavy lifting warmed us enough to sit on the tailgate of the truck, in chairs on the lawn, or on the ground nearby, drinking our beer and giving Hailey a hard time about her hoarding. I sat in one of the Adirondack chairs and watched her jean-covered legs swing over the tailgate of the empty truck.
“You know, you can get most of this stuff at Island Recycling anytime,” John advised.
“Where do you think it all came from to begin with?” she responded. “There and any salvage yard between Seattle and Spokane.”
“I think it’s pretty cool,” Carter said, smiling at Hailey. “I’d love for you to tell me all about your art sometime.”
“So lame, bro,” Erik snarked at his older brother. “Women like the direct approach. Watch.” He stood and walked over to the tailgate. We all tensed, Hailey most of all. He stared into her eyes and lifted his chin. “Let’s have dinner some time.”
I scoffed, Hailey laughed, and John snorted. These two were hopeless. The Kelso brothers were like golden retriever puppies. In their late twenties, they hadn’t grown into their hands and feet yet. Lanky and eager met overconfident and spoiled. Classic island boys. Erik worked at Useless Bay Coffee in Langley, while Carter did grounds work at the golf course on Holmes Harbor.
They reminded me a little of myself. And for that reason, I frowned at their attempts to flirt with Hailey. They were up to no good, and I knew exactly what their end-game would be. In her pants, or die trying. Luckily, their moves were as smooth as gravel.
The sound of tires had me craning my neck around the truck. Lori’s minivan pulled to a stop a few feet away from the truck’s front bumper.
“Hi, brother,” she said and gave me a wave. Her smile, which only I could see, scared me a little. It was the exact smile Mom used on us as kids. Shit. She’d only given birth a few months ago and already had the scary mom face down perfectly.
“Hi, sister.” I widened my eyes and made the “I’m innocent of whatever you think I’m guilty of” face.
She greeted John and the Kelsos, then turned to Hailey with faux surprise all over her face. “Hailey, what are you doing here?”
Hailey’s eyes flashed to mine and I shrugged, letting her explain exactly what was going on here. Better for Lori to hear it from her than me. Plus, I had no idea what version to tell my sister. Or how much she already knew. Other than the lawyer, I hadn’t told anyone yet about the lawsuit. After being assured it was completely frivolous, I wasn’t sure if I’d bother to tell either of my parents.
Hailey explained her lease being canceled and needing a place to store her studio. The way she described my offer made the whole thing seem innocent and brotherly. Feeling like a saint, I rolled my shoulders. I could be the good guy sometimes.
Lori narrowed her eyes at me. “That’s so . . . sweet of you, Tom. So . . . unlike you.”
John spoke up. “Kind of surprised me, too. Until he explained how he always saw Hailey as a kid sister because you two were so close.”
I had no memory of saying such a thing to him. Thinking about Hailey as one of my sisters turned my stomach. I finished my beer and stood up, waving the empty between my fingers. “Who needs a fresh one?”
“I’ll take a beer.” Lori walked ahead of me into the shop where I kept a beer fridge.
I slowly followed, dreading the inevitable lecture about something she didn’t understand.
Lori jerked open the fridge so hard the bottles rattled in the door and on the shelves. Huffing, she pulled out a Woodchuck cider. The way she ripped off the bottle cap had me wanting to cup my balls. She was riled up.
I cut her off before she had the chance to begin. “I’m not sleeping with Hailey.”
“Not yet, you mean?”
Not anymore, I thought.
“No. We’re friends.”
She choked on her first swallow, and cider fizzed over the top of the bottle and on to the floor. “Since when?”
I thought about it. November? December? When had we shifted from random sex to actually hanging out?
“Around Pops’ funeral, I guess.”
“And you didn’t feel the need to tell me?” Her eyes flashed with anger.
“Why would I? Do you tell me about everyone you hang out with?”
“I have a baby. I don’t hang out with anyone!” Her voice rose.
I lifted my hands in innocence. “Okay, okay. You know she’s working down at the boat yard, right?”
She nodded and waved for me to continue.
“Well, we work together. What am I supposed to do? Ignore and shun her because she’s your friend? That’d be rude, don’t you think?”
“You can be polite and professional, but this,” she flailed her arms around gesturing at all of the metal work crowding my shop, “this is not something you do. Since when are you friends with women?”
“Ashley and I have been friends for years.”
She snorted so hard she burped. “Ashley has been in love with you for years. Only she’s too stupid to tell you.”
“You’re crazy. She’s not in love with me. We have an understanding. We hang out some times, and then we don’t see each other for months. Doesn’t sound like love to me.”
“I’m not crazy. She’s biding her time until you’re ready to settle down. Trust me, women know these things.”
“I know Ashley. She’s no more interested in relationships than I am. Hell, I haven’t hung out with her in months.”
“So who are you ‘hanging out’ with lately? Hailey? And since when did you stop calling her Idaho? It’s always been your obnoxious thing with her.”
“Are you asking who I’m fucking right now? Really? You really want me to discuss my sex life with my sister? How about you and Nick? How’s your sex life?”
“We’re not talking about me. And yes, I am, if you plan to fuck my friend.” She scowled at me.
I glowered at her, then opened the fridge to get a beer for myself and the rest of the guys. Before standing up, I gritted my teeth and said, “There’s nothing between Hailey and me. You have nothing to worry about.” I stood up and set the beers on the workbench.
“You swear? I will personally kick your ass, or have Nick do it, if you touch her.”
“First, you’re a helluva lot scarier than Nick could ever be. Second, I’m not swearing anything. If I say there’s nothing going on between us, then as your brother, I deserve your respect to be taken at my word.”
If this was one of those chick movies my sisters obsessed over while growing up, this would have been the moment of the big misunderstanding where Hailey would overhear me, misunderstand, feel hurt, and the whole thing would turn into major girl drama in front of my eyes.
Instead, she stood in the opening to the shop, laughing.
Lori stared at her like she’d lost her mind. “What’s so funny?”
“Me and Tom.” She continued laughing.
“Don’t you mean Tom and I?” I asked, an edge lacing my words, making them sound harsher than I meant. What was so funny about us hanging out? We hung out.
Hailey stopped laughing and cocked her head and winked. “Come on, Lori, quit giving your brother a hard time. You know I’d never stoop so low to become one of his harem. Girl’s got to have standards.”
What the hell?
“Hey—” I verbally stomped my feet.
Lori was too busy laughing to notice the subtle shake of Hailey’s head.
In the Land of Mixed Signals, Hailey was Queen. The wink, the insult . . . the harem? I didn’t have a harem. Certainly not recently. Or ever. Harem implied all at once. Maybe more of a stable. A small stable. Wait, was I the horse? Or an ass? Donkey? What was a mule?
“What’s a mule?” I asked.
Both women stared at me.
“Out of the blue much?” Lori asked.
“Like the drink?” Hailey asked.
“The animal,” I clarified.
Their eyes met and both women fell into laughter again.
“It’s a donkey and a horse,” Hailey explained. “Why are you thinking about mules?”
“Long story.” I sipped my beer and gave Hailey a look I hoped conveyed ‘we need to talk because what the hell was that harem bullshit you were saying and do you really think I have a harem, a stable, or a conclave of women?’ as well as I thought she was hot in those jeans. It was quite the expression.
She responded simply with a raised eyebrow. Her gaze settled on the old recliner for a few beats before she met my eyes.
From Lori’s comment about Ashley, to Hailey’s mixed signals, my head spun. I needed fresh air and less estrogen. Outside, boisterous male voices greeted me when I settled into one of the chairs.
Hailey laughing over the thought of being with me pissed me off. What was so funny? I knew I had limited boyfriend experience, but I wasn’t an ogre or a troll living in my parents’ basement.
“Where’s my beer?” Carter asked.
“Get your own beer,” I said, sipping from my bottle. Given my bad mood, I wanted everyone to leave, and soon.
I got my wish an hour later. Mostly because the Kelsos finished the last of my beer and started talking about getting burgers up in Freeland. John decided to join them. Lori still loitered around, sticking close to Hailey’s side. What did she think she would accomplish? I’d never throw a woman down and have my way with her in front of everyone, especially if we were a real thing.
I still had to return the rental to Lynnwood and pick up my truck. It could wait until morning, but Lori didn’t know that.
“Gotta return the truck, Lori. Idaho, I’ll give you a ride to your car at the dock,” I stated, leaving no room for Lori to argue. Hailey and I needed to be on the same page and we needed to get there before the great inquisition.
Lori huffed and invited her over for dinner later, essentially cockblocking me with a casserole. Not that there was cock to block.
I had no idea what was going on anymore.
I needed to talk to Hailey.
I wanted to hide in my shop and carve wood.
Both desires fought valiantly, but the clear winner was talking, and it freaked me out more than anything.