One Good Thing by Millikin Jennifer

Author:Millikin, Jennifer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: JNM LLC
Published: 2020-04-06T16:00:00+00:00

* * *

I’ve been looking around, finding some things I want to do in the area. None of them can be done without a vehicle, and I’m not going to keep borrowing Louisa’s Jeep. I want something of my own, and I think I’ve found it.

To get it, I need to borrow the Jeep one more time. And for that, I need to go to the main house and ask Louisa. Which means maybe I’ll get a glimpse of Addison. And, if I’m lucky, maybe I can sneak a kiss.

We said goodbye at my cabin without a touch. No kiss, no embrace, not even a high-five. Anybody could’ve seen us, and since we hadn’t discussed what we’re doing, what this thing between us even is, we parted without any physical contact.

Such sweet sorrow.

I open the back door and step into the main house, looking around for signs of Louisa or Addison. From a small hall that shoots off the main room, I hear the rumbling sounds of a washer or dryer. I’ll check there first before calling out for anybody or ringing the bell Louisa keeps on the table in the foyer.

I know she’s the proprietor, and I’m technically a guest because I’m paying to stay here, but ringing a bell to get her attention bothers me. She’s a grandma. Addison’s grandma.

As I approach the laundry room, I hear hushed voices. My mouth opens to let whoever it is know I’m there, but then I hear my name, and my mouth snaps closed.

“It was just a walk in the woods, Grandma.”

“You’re already lying to yourself, Addison. Don’t lie to me, too.”

“Grandma,” Addison half-scolds, half-whines.

“Brady doesn’t seem like the type to run around laying his lips on women for no reason.”

“I know,” Addison concedes in a soft voice I have to strain to hear.

“Are you ready to move on with your life?”

“I’m here, aren’t I?”

“Don’t sass me, Addison Louisa West.”

Addison laughs.

“I’ve been on this planet long enough to have learned something, and here’s what I know. Good things have something in common with bad things. They come whether you’re ready for them or not. You just have to be brave enough to grab on to them.”

I’d like to say I feel guilty for listening in on their conversation, but I don’t.

Backing up a few feet to the living room, I take a breath and call out for Louisa.

She pokes her head through the doorway, tucking a strand of gray hair behind her ear as her gaze darts back into the room behind her.

“Hey, Brady,” she says, straightening and walking closer. “What can I do for you?”

Tucking my hands into my shorts pockets, I roll back onto my heels and ask, “Can I borrow your car? This will be the last time, I promise.”

Addison’s head appears in the hall. “Why for the last time? Are you leaving?” Her voice is high-pitched, her eyebrows squishing together and her head flinching back a little, as if her concern has caused her physical pain.

“No,” I assure her, one hand extending into the air between us.

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