Chapter 8

Em

All she could do was stare at him. Then he winked at her… and started watching the pool game again.

Oh ma geez what was happening??

Em did not particular like these feelings she was having. She really needed to call Evan— maybe her old therapist could tell her what all this meant. She was pretty sure she was having a nervous breakdown.

It’s not that she didn’t love her new therapist, Mara, she did. Mara was very patient and knowledgeable and understanding. It had taken Em a little bit to completely open up to her because… obviously telling someone your entire life story isn’t easy. Especially when you just met the person. And her story was filled with ugliness. Having to relive everything she’d gone through wasn’t easy … it took her back to all the awful shit she’d been through in her life… starting with River ., then her dad.

But eventually she got there. So Mara knew everything now. Still.. something about Evan made her feel comfortable and at ease. He got her through so much hell … she counted on him, and he never once let her down. How do you give that up?

But all these conflicting feelings were making her brain hurt.

To make matters worse, then her phone rang. It was Quinn.

Shit shit shit shit

Why was he even calling her? He doesn’t want to talk, he doesn’t want to work things out he just wants to act like every single thing they’d been through just never happened. It must be nice to be able to disregard major life occurrences like that.

She answered after staring at her phone for five minutes.

“Em.” He said.

“Quinn”. She said back.

Haha. Not letting him get the upper hand.

Jesus she was losing it.

“Can we talk?” He asked her.

She was quiet for a bit.. a long bit actually. So long that he asked was she still there. She finally agreed.. even though she wasn’t sure why.

So she said goodbye to the twins and Grey, telling them she might come back over in a little while. That of course depended on how this talk went. She walked back across the yard to her house where Quinn was waiting. Walking back home felt like walking into the lions den somehow.

But he wasn’t outside like she thought he would be. No he was inside sitting on her couch like he lived there. Oh, wait.

“What’s up?” She asked him after she came in and sat down.

After a few moments of him not saying anything she looked up at him. She noticed he was frowning at her heavily.

“What?” She said.

“Why the fuck are you wearing Asher’s sweater?” He asked.

Shit she had forgotten she even had it on. Well she had warned Asher he might never get it back. But why was he acting mad about it anyway??

“I got cold so he gave it to me. What’s the problem?” She said.

Quinn still looked like he didn’t like her wearing Asher’s clothes but at the moment she could’ve given two shits. He didn’t get to act mad about stuff like that right now.

“What did you want to talk about?” She asked him.

“I brought some of my stuff over. I was gonna ask you if it was okay for me to take the extra bedroom upstairs… or if you had rather I take the basement room.”

What??

THAT is what he wanted to talk about??

He brought some of his stuff over??

Em was getting red in the face she was sure because all the blood in her body turned to lava.

Anger coursed through her…. and she was just about ready to erupt.

She jumped up from the spot next to him on the couch.

“THATS what you wanted to talk about??” She yelled. Quinn looked at her confused.

“You are seriously asking me that question right now?” Emerson exclaimed.. now totally and utterly pissed off.

“Yes.” He said.

“Uuggghhhhh!” She yelled dramatically.

And damn him.. if he didn’t let a little smile poke through at that. And damn her for finding it adorable.

“Was there something else you wanted to talk about?” He asked her.

As if he didn’t know…..

“Ooohhh I don’t know Quinland ..”

She said.

Shit. She got another grin at that. She was seriously losing it.

“Maybe we could discuss WHY you’re doing this?? Maybe we could discuss why you’re having thanksgiving with Finley…. “

She saw a look pass on his face when she said that. Clearly he didn’t know that she knew…

“Maybe we could discuss literally anything in the world besides what room you should take!”

Quinn sighed…. still not offering any sort of explanation… but the look he gave her then.. it crushed her very soul.