Ever: The Ever Trilogy, Book One (Volume 1) (17 page)

My house?
My questioning thoughts were cut off when he finished his sentence.

“…
not
her pants.

I’m sorry,
what? Did he just say what I think he said?
Fury bubbled up within me.
My pants?

“You know how badly I need this, Tobias.”

“You’re right. I do know that. You’ve made it
very
clear on
numerous
occasions. What I don’t know is
why
.
Why
do you need this so badly? Why
this
family?”

This family?
This was just getting weirder by the second.
It’s your own fault. I mean, who does this?
I mentally chastised myself again for my eavesdropping.

“I … I can’t tell you why. Just get the job done, Tobias.”

“I just need a little more—”

“A little more
what,
Tobias? More
time
? Oh, now I’ve heard everything! There is no more time!”

His father was laughing at him now, and I couldn’t believe the menace in his voice. Maybe this was why Toby never wanted to hang out at his house or talk about his family. His dad sounded like a total jerk. And a crazy one at that. I mentally crossed inviting the two of them over for dinner off my list of things to do.

“You have until the end of the week to get the information I need, or coming here will be a complete wash. Get rid of that child, Tobias.”

Child?
I had never even met his dad officially. Heck, I’d only even seen him that one time. How could he dislike me so much? If I was being honest, it hurt my feelings. I had never been so disliked by anyone—at least, anyone that I knew of. And knowing is half the battle.

“Oh, and Tobias? One more thing. I’ve already called in Gregor.”

Gregor? What’s a Gregor?

I was startled out of my puzzled thoughts by the door opening and Toby almost running right into me in his haste to leave the house. He stopped in front of me, nose to nose, our toes almost touching. I smelled his familiar scent of Irish Spring soap and light cologne. His eyes blazed with anger, their dark blue shade intensified.

“Ever. What are you doing here? What time is—?” He glanced at the time on the screen of his cell phone. “How long have you—?”

As Toby swung the door shut behind him, I caught a quick glimpse of his father glaring out at me.
Wow.
If looks could kill.
All the hairs on my body stood on end under that stare, relief pulsing through me when the door slammed shut between us.

Toby saw the confusion on my face and must have assumed I’d heard part of their conversation, because he went right into trying to explain what he thought I’d most likely heard, grabbing me by the hand and leading me to the car. I got in and sat down, too stunned to say anything or even buckle up.

What was that all about?

I couldn’t shake the terrible feeling I’d gotten from his dad’s stare down.

“See, Ever,” Toby began once he was settled in his seat, “you don’t understand Ted—I mean, my dad. You don’t understand my dad. He doesn’t see the point in me dating and spending so much time with a girl.”

“Oh. I see. He wants you to date
lots
of girls.”

Toby reached over and took my hand. “No, no. It’s not like that at all. He doesn’t want me to date
any
girl. Period.”

“Oh,” I answered, not really knowing how to respond. And then it hit me. “Oh. Since your mother left?”

He paused halfway through backing out of the driveway, his hand going slack in mine, and looked over at me. I realized my mistake—
he’d
never told me about his mother leaving. I had heard it via the neighborhood gossip mill, but
he
had never told me
.
In fact, it may or may not have even been what happened.

Oh no.

He considered me through slightly squinted eyes for a long few seconds before leaning over and kissing me, just a brief, tender sweep of his lips against mine. I admit that wasn’t what I had been expecting him to do. He lingered there, just inches away from my face.

“Yeah. Since my mom left. He just doesn’t see the point anymore.”

“I’m sorry, Toby. I shouldn’t have said anything. I know you don’t want to talk about it. You don’t have to. I get it. I shouldn’t have brought it up. I’m sorry. I don’t like to talk about certain things either, like my sister, and—”

Shit.

His eyebrows rose slightly. I was rambling. I was feeling so awkward over what I’d just said about
his
life, that I almost went way too far into my
own
family history. I was about as eager to tell him about my dead sister as I was ready to tell him about Frankie.

“You have a sister?”

There it is. The question of all questions.

“Had. I
had
a sister. She died before I was born.”

Toby’s eyes widened ever so slightly. “Oh, I’m sorry, babe. I didn’t know.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t talk about her, so … .” I shrugged. No big deal. It’s not like I’d known her.

He kissed me again and turned his attention back to driving, not pushing me further, as if knowing I didn’t want to go there. That’s the last either of us said about his dad or my sister. I guessed I’d have to wait for the details. I was okay with that. He’d tell me more when he was ready. And one day I’d tell him about my sister
. If we’re still together in August,
I thought to myself. Yeah, I’d tell him then. We celebrated her birthday every year.

“So, tell me how to get to Friday’s from here. It’s off Katella, right?”

“No, no, it’s off the 22 freeway.”

I directed him to the Block, which was pretty crowded, being a Friday night. We had to walk a little ways to the restaurant from our parking spot. When we got there, we surpassed the large group of people waiting to be seated as Jess waved us over to a table in the corner where she and Greg sat waiting for us.

Where Toby was tall and lean, Greg was bulky and muscular. He had the body of a football player, and he wore a college letterman’s jacket in those familiar rival colors. I knew instantly what had drawn Jessie to him and it wasn’t his massive chest, chiseled jaw, or cheesy Hummer … the letterman’s jacket sealed the deal. Who cared that his alma mater was USC instead of UCLA? A letter was a letter. His hair was dark brown and cut short. His eyes were hazel, and his nose was strong and chiseled like his jaw, with the telltale bend of a nose that had been broken once or twice—probably on the football field, I imagined. He was quite a few years older than us, and I assumed he was probably nothing like the boys Jessie had dated before. She must have been in heaven.

Jessie made the necessary introductions as a frazzled looking waitress herded us into the booth so we’d get out of the walkway. She took our drink orders and quickly hurried off. I picked up a menu, opening it to see what I wanted to eat, and reached down for Toby’s hand. When I found it, I was surprised to find it balled into a tight fist at his side. I looked up at his face and noticed his jaw was rigid and tense, and he was staring hard at Greg.
What the heck?
Jessie was engulfed in her menu and hadn’t noticed the tension coming from Toby. I looked next to her at Greg who seemed to have the same intense look in his eyes, returning Toby’s heated stare.

What the heck? Do they know each other?
This was way too weird.

I gently nudged Toby’s hand to get his attention. My touch seemed to snap him out of his funk, and he broke eye contact with Greg and turned his head in my direction. I shrunk back reflexively when the full heat of his stare was directed at me. Seeing the confused look on my face, he slightly shook his head and smiled at me, his playful side back again. He snatched my menu, breaking the tension.

“Hey!”

“Oh whoops! The waitress only gave us two for the whole table. Guess you don’t get one.” He held it just out of my reach and then whispered, “I’ll trade it for a kiss.” He nibbled my ear before pulling away, sending a happy feeling down into my toes.

I gave him a brief kiss on the cheek, not being one for public displays of affection, and he frowned at me.

“That’s not what I meant.”

I knew, but I just smiled my biggest smile, and he gave in, holding the menu between us. Jessie pushed her menu between her and Greg, and we all sat in silence for the next few moments, the strange intensity between the two guys fading away.

The strain of the fight with his dad had left Toby extra quiet, and without him to prompt me, I wasn’t incredibly talkative either. As if not having much to say wasn’t already bad enough, I occasionally caught something weird passing between Greg and Toby. I’d see a look from Greg that resulted in Toby’s body growing tense again. Or I’d see a tightening in Toby’s jaw, followed by a smirk from Greg. It was all very strange, and it made for a slightly uncomfortable evening, though somehow, Jessie remained completely oblivious to it. I wondered if I could possibly be imagining things.

About halfway through the meal, Jessie apparently had enough of the strange silence and began talking up a storm, telling stories and asking questions. Before long,
newscaster
Jessie arrived, and we were all actively engaged in the conversation.

”So, Toby, how many girlfriends have you had before Ever?”

“Oh my gosh! Jessie!”

Eyes wide from shock, I looked over at Toby. He’d tensed up, and his jaw was tight again. I couldn’t believe Jessie had asked him that. Wait. Yes I could. We’re talking about Jessie after all. Always the reporter.

“What? It’s not that hard of a question, Ev. I mean, it’s not like I asked him boxers or briefs.” She looked at Toby expectantly and batted her long lashes.

“I’ve only had one serious girlfriend before Ever.”

Greg scoffed, and I looked up at him quickly, but he ducked his head. I felt Toby’s hand tighten ever so slightly on mine.
What is up with these two?

“Only one, huh? What was her name?”

“Oh my god, Jessie!
Stop!
”

“What? It’s not like we’d actually know her, right? I mean, he just moved here from Idaho. Let Toby answer the question.”

“Montana, actually. And you wouldn’t know her.”

Jessie finally caught on to his tense reaction to this line of questioning, and I watched her eyes glisten from the hint of a story.

“Ooh, touchy subject. Was she a psycho?”

I could have sworn Greg scoffed again at that.

“Yeah,” Toby answered, “It’s probably pretty safe to say that.”

“I’m sorry, Toby. I don’t know what’s come over my friend here.”
Yes I do. It’s Jessie. She can’t even help herself. You’ll get used to it.

PS. Your ex was a psycho?

Toby leaned over and kissed me on the nose, and then whispered quietly so only I could hear him. “It’s cool, babe. Cotton candy, remember? I think I can handle it.”

He leaned back, and I was pleased to see his familiar smirk was back in place on his face, and his eyes were less tense. He turned the conversation back to Jessie, and within minutes, she was talking to Greg and ignoring us completely. Toby and I were sitting back and watching quietly, relieved to no longer be in the spotlight.

With Jessie’s prompting, I managed to learn a little bit about Greg, like where he went to school, where he worked—small stuff like that. He seemed like a good enough guy, but I was having trouble ignoring how strange Toby acted when he’d first seen Greg, and the uncomfortable tension that still slightly lingered between them.

After we’d ordered dessert, Jessie excused herself to the bathroom, and her not-so-stealthy nod to follow her was hard to ignore.

“Wow, Ev, I can see what you see in him. He’s so quiet and mysterious, but you can tell there’s
so
much going on inside that head of his. It’s like he’s watching and analyzing everything. He’s like a puzzle just waiting to be solved! And he’s
so
your type. I totally give him my ‘best friend stamp of approval.’”

She giggled and turned her attention to her reflection in the mirror. I hadn’t known I had a
type
since it had always just been Frankie, but I was glad she approved. Plus, I had to agree with her; he was pretty fantastic.

“I’m just happy to see you’ve focused your attention elsewhere. You know, away from—”

“Yeah, Jess. Thanks for bringing him up.” I shook my head, staring at her in the mirror.

She had the dignity to look apologetic and change the subject.

“So, oh my gosh, can you believe Toby’s ex was a psycho? I wonder what
that’s
all about. Like, do you think she was just a stage five clinger, or like … an
actual
crazy person who chased him down the street with a candlestick?”

“Easy there, Jess. This isn’t a story waiting to be discovered.”

“Fine. You don’t let me have any fun.” She turned back to the mirror and puckered up. Halfway through reapplying her pink lip-gloss, she added, “Well?”

“Hmm? Well, what?”

“Geez, Ev, what do you think of Greg? Isn’t he
amazing
?”

They’ve already sent Gregor
.

Toby’s dad’s words randomly floated through my head.
No. It couldn’t be. Could it?
That would just be way too weird.
Greg. Gregor.

“Helloo, Earth to Ever? Is anyone home?”

Whoops.
Of course she wanted my ‘best friend stamp of approval’ as well.

“Oh, yeah, Jess, he seems pretty cool. And
he’s
definitely
your
type.”

“I know, right?”

Pleased with my response and my approval, as lackluster as they were, she gushed about Greg for the next five minutes before we finally made it out of the restroom and rejoined the guys. The tension was still there, hanging in the air between them, but Jessie was oblivious to it again as she slid back into the booth next to Greg.
Gregor?
I looked at him then,
really
looked at him, trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. If they were even supposed to fit together in the first place. I was probably just being silly.