Chapter Thirty-Five
Colton
Carter spots me first. His smile is wide as his eyes meet mine. I lift a finger to my mouth telling him to be quiet or rather hinting to him not to give me away. He nods. I show the stewardess my ticket, and she points to my seat at about midway through the plane. I’m the last passenger on the plane, but I had to wait in a corner off to the side for a while so Evie wouldn’t see me and the surprise wouldn’t be ruined. At least I think it’s a surprise. My brother…huh, it makes me laugh still to say the word brother. Jake is my brother through and through. It’s funny that we share some of the same mannerisms even though we weren’t raised together and it’s a little freaky how much he looks like my father, but he’s a true, honest version of him so I can’t hold his looks against him.
My father had finally come clean to me about the truth behind the fire, and my mother and brother’s departure. I even confronted him about threatening my mother with Jeffrey Davis, the drug cartel leader. My father confessed to everything and began to tell me that his motives were pure. I told him that if he ever asked Jeffrey Davis for any favor, I would make sure the FBI received a file on him that would inevitably lead to jail time. I, too had connections in the prosecutor’s office, and I was, after all, a Mathis. Dad was less than pleased, but he made his bed a long time ago, his greed pushed him to choose power over family, and now he had to live with the consequences. There was no place for him in politics and no place for him in my life or Jake’s. He was going to die a lonely old man.
I lean over and tap her shoulder, her dark blue eyes turn around, and she sucks in a quick breath. Before she can say anything, I begin to sign, “Evie, I’m sorry. You will never know how sorry I am that I ever doubted you. I know what happened. I know that you feared for my life, and Jake and Carter too. I want you to know that my father isn’t a threat anymore.” I pause. I had rehearsed this many times in the car, but if I got even one of my motions wrong, it would take away from what I was trying to say. Evie remains silent, staring at me like she was trying to convince herself I was real. “See here’s the thing. I can’t live without you…no…I don’t want to live without you. You make my life whole. You make my heart feel warm…I didn’t know what love was until I found you.” I pause, thinking I did a pretty bang-up job as long as there were no mistakes. I look down and whisper to Carter covering my mouth, “How did I do?”
He laughs. “You nailed it. Only you told her that she makes your heart feel like poo.”
I burst into laughter. “You’re shitting me,” I reply.
“Wish I was,” Carter responds, laughing so hard he is holding his stomach. I told him he was shitting me because the pun was intended and he got the joke. He is a great kid who likes to joke around so I couldn’t miss the opportunity.
Evie stares at us quietly, not saying a word. “Say something,” I finally urge her.
She moves her mouth, but it is like she was grappling with what to say. I fear I am too late. “You don’t need to do this, Colton. I know we would have to see each other eventually because we share family but this gesture or whatever it is, isn’t necessary,” she responds, and I have to say it wasn’t what I was expecting, but Evie did tend to knock me off my feet.
“Me getting on this plane was not a friendly gesture,” I snap. I am feeling heated and angry and way too excited having her this close to me, yet feeling like she was an ocean away. “I am telling you that I am in love with you,” I say, waiting for the words to click. I had stopped signing because it still took a lot of effort on my part. I know reading lips takes a great effort on Evie’s part, but I am still willing to learn, to practice until things became more fluid for me. Only now I wonder what the hell I am doing. When she left me text messages in the first days after the scandal broke she had wanted to patch things up, she was worried for me, but I was blinded by all the lies my father had been telling me my whole life to see what was indeed in front of me.
I wasn’t going to live in the dark anymore. This was me taking life by the balls. Doing what I wanted to do. Jake had told me that she was hurting and sad. The thought that it was me who caused her pain made me feel ill, and I knew I had to do something about it.
She finally speaks. “Colton, you thought you were in love with me, but it was just you remembering Jake, you were intrigued by the fact I was deaf. You wanted to learn how to sign because you longed for the deaf brother you lost. Well, now you have him back. I hope your life is more fulfilled now, but you don’t need to project your loss anymore. You sure as hell don’t owe me anything.” She purses her lips then signs, “sorry” to Carter. I think for the curse.
I blow out a breath and shake my head. “You are so damn stubborn. I don’t know where you came up with that stupid ass theory, but it’s a stupid ass theory.” I look down to Carter and apologize too. Then I remembered Al giving me a similar theory. I was going to have choice words with him when I saw him if it was him that planted these ridiculous assumptions in Evie’s mind.
Carter waves me off. “No worries. The kids at school say a lot worse than the “s” word.”
Evie’s mouth hangs open.
“Give me your hand,” I demand her, extending my own for her to take.
She looks confused and maybe a little shaken, but she gives me her hand. There isn’t much room in the aisles, but I pull her toward me. She looks like a skittish cat, and I remember the night we first danced at the gala. She had a similar look on her face. “I’m going to kiss you now,” I say, and I need some response from her that she was okay with that.
“I…” she mutters.
“I want to kiss you now,” I repeat. “I did not fall in love with you because of some weird projection theory. I fell in love with you because you are kind, and caring. I love the way you care for Carter, I love how passionate you can be about helping others.” I pause because I loved her passion in bed too, but I kept quiet given our audience. “You are beautiful, feisty and stubborn. I love everything about you. Now, I need to know if you love me back. I only want a one-word answer.”
Her mouth which had been hanging open snaps shut and I see her give a slight nod. Then her lips curl at the corners, that warm smile that she keeps just for me. “Only one word?” she says, and I knew I have her. She is playing me.
“Dammit woman,” I joke. I hear the laughter of some other passengers behind us. Then one guy shouts. “Kiss him.” She can’t hear him. Then more passengers begin to cheer, “Kiss, him, kiss him.”
Carter taps his mother on her hip and signs to let her know what is happening around her. Her eyes widen, and she bites her lip nervously as she looks over the plane and takes in all the passengers chiming in together. She bursts into laughter, the apples of her cheeks turning a beautiful rosy color. I capture her lips, kissing her with everything I have. She kisses me right back, and it is hot. Her lips on mine make my body stir in ways I didn’t know existed. I am ravenous for her, and I am also kissing her in front of one hundred eighty-four other passengers some of whom are clapping and cheering.
I slow the kiss, and we press our foreheads together for a moment so we can catch our breath. “I’m coming to Canada with you.” I pull my head away, so she has a clear view of my lips.
“I figured as much,” she shrugs and goes back to her seat. The seatbelt sign had come on.
I look at the older woman sitting beside her and ask if she’d mind switching seats with me. Mine was two seats ahead. “Glad you two worked it out,” she says before getting up. “Saw your whole story play out in the newspapers. That must have been a nightmare.”
I nod in agreement. It had been a nightmare that was on replay for days.
“You can’t fight fate,” she says, moving into my seat.
“No ma’am, you can’t fight fate,” I agree and take a seat between Carter and Evie. They both look up at me with a smile. I take Carter’s hand in my left and Evie’s hand in my right. “This is exactly where I should be.” I look to Evie knowing she needs to see my lips. She blinks, and I see the recognition in her blue eyes.
“I’m glad you’re here,” she signs.
“I can’t wait to see Grandpa Jack again. He told me I needed to work for it if I was going to get you. I have to thank him for the good advice. And for warning me that you are a real spitfire too,” I joke. Evie punches me in the shoulder. The plane took off and Evie, Carter and I flew across the country into the sunset.