The Vincent Boys 02 - The Vincent Brothers

carefully, bro,” I replied.
    He nodded, “Yeah, I’m getting that loud and clear.” Clearing his throat, he shifted his feet again. “Do you, uh, love her? Lana, that is.”
    The fact he’d felt the need to clarify it was Lana he was asking about pissed me off. I didn’t like her being compared to Ashton. She was so much more than what I’d had with Ashton. There was no comparison.
    “Yes,” I clipped out.
    “I mean, do you love her more than—”
    “Don’t you fucking say it,” I snarled. That was a cliff Ethan didn’t want to step off. Ethan’s eyes widened in surprise.
    “Okay. I get it,” he backed away and moved toward the door.
    “That’s all you wanted to say? Find out if Lana was available? You know she left me right? No one can find her.”
    Ethan swallowed hard and shook his head slowly, “Uh, no, I mean I heard something. I wasn’t sure.”
    “I gotta go if that’s all you needed.”
    Ethan turned and headed out the front door. “Good luck in Florida. I’ll uh, see ya when you get back. Looking forward to hearing about it. The rest of us are going to have to live vicariously through you and Beau now. Since our football days are over.”
    His voice was still tense but I could tell he was trying to calm me down. If I was a good friend, I’d apologize. Right now, I couldn’t. I’d do that next time I saw him. Slipping my hand in my pocket, I rubbed Lana’s letter gently between my fingers. I had to find her.

Chapter Twenty-Three

    Lana
    My freckles were just getting worse. SPF 80 wasn’t even helping. Sure, my skin wasn’t red but my freckles were getting a tan. Not something I wanted. Even so, this was good therapy. Laying out here in my safe shaded area made me feel like I was hidden from the world. I was hidden from everyone who had the power to hurt me. Too bad it was a fleeting thing. I’d have to leave at the end of the month and head back to Alpharetta and my mother. I did not want to think about that. Facing her, after hiding away for over a month, would be difficult. But I was still checking in.
    She kept trying to get me to talk about Sawyer. It always ended with me hanging up. I figured she’d eventually stop it. Maybe when we got the wedding invitation from Ashton in a few years she’d finally let go of her hopes that Sawyer Vincent was interested in me. My stomach rolled and I fought off the sick feeling that thought instigated.
    “Lana?” A familiar voice interrupted my thoughts and I shifted around to see Ethan standing behind the chair where Jewel normally lounged. in She wasn’t here today. She’d taken off on a shoe-buying splurge.
    “Ethan?” I replied in shock. I hadn’t expected to see him again.
    “Hey, uh, sorry to just show up but you can’t exactly be reached by phone these days.”
    Oh. He’d tried to call. That surprised me. “It’s okay. Do you want to sit down?”
    He looked down at the chair beside me and thought about it a minute before he walked around and took a seat. He must intend to stay awhile.
    “So, what’s this about? Is there something you wanted to tell me?”
    Ethan didn’t lie back in the chair. He sat on the edge facing me with his elbows resting on his knees. His head was under the shade of the umbrella and the serious expression on his face worried me. If this was about Sawyer, I wasn’t ready for that.
    “You, uh, enjoying yourself?” he asked
    “Yes, but I have a feeling you didn’t just drive an hour and a half to ask me if I was enjoying myself.”
    Ethan chuckled and shook his head, “No, I didn’t.”
    “Didn’t think so. Spill it Ethan.”
    “It’s about Sawyer—”
    “Never mind. Shut it, Ethan. I retract that. I don’t want to know what you have to say,” I reached for my bag and started to stand up. “If you want to visit and talk about the weather and try one of Jewel’s tropical drinks you are more than welcome. But I will not talk about Sawyer.”
    “Wait, please don’t go,” he begged, standing up with me.
    “Are you going to ignore my wishes?” I asked.
    His shoulders slumped and he shook his head. “No. I won’t bring him up.”
    Sitting back down, I put my bag back beside me and reached inside to get a granola bar. I grabbed an extra one and handed it to Ethan who had also sat back down.
    “Here, have a granola bar.”
    He reached for it and gave me a weak smile, “Thanks.”
    We sat in silence and ate our granola bars. Once I finished mine, I turned to look at him.