Old Habits Read online

  I let go of the door and move to the side to watch her discretely through the windows.

  “Damn, you walk fast…”

  I see Tucker’s annoyed and out of breath reflection over my shoulder.

  “It’s Jovie,” I say, unable to take my eyes off her.

  “Yes, it is,” he says, wiping the sweat from his brow.

  It sinks in deeper. “Jovie’s back.”

  He nods. “I’m sorry, man. She asked me not to tell anyone. Pretty sure the emphasis was on you.”

  Jovie turns in our direction and I spin away from the window to avoid her eyes.

  “You’ve talked to her?” I ask him.

  “Yeah.”

  “When?”

  “Got a call for a tow off the highway a few nights ago and there she was.”

  “Did she seem… okay? I mean, how was she?”

  “She’s…” He shrugs. “She was Jovie. Same old, sad Jovie. I gave her a lift to her dad’s and that was it. We didn’t talk much.”

  “She was sad?”

  “I assume so if she was coming back here,” he says, scratching the back of his head. “And she always was a little, ya know?”

  I peek back through the window. “Yeah, I know.”

  Jovie emerges from the stockroom with a stack of new action figures in her arms, nearly running into a rambunctious young boy as she rounds the corner. She hops back without dropping them and lets him pass with an instant smile on her apologetic face.

  My knees always turned to jelly over that smile before. Now is no different.

  The kid continues on and Jovie pauses to watch him go. Her smile slowly fades and she returns to her task of restocking the line of figures along the bottom shelf in the corner.

  A hand waves in front of my face and Tucker snaps his fingers.

  “Earth to Will!”

  I blink out of it and glare at him. “What?”

  “Don’t do that.”

  “Don’t do what?”

  “Stare at my cousin like that.”

  I scoff. “Since when do you care what I do to your cousin?”

  He stands a little taller. “You make a fair point… but really, if she finds out I told you, I’m a dead man. You know what happens to men who cross Jovie Ross.”

  My gaze falls on her again and I get an eye-full of her tight rear as she bends over to adjust a row of dolls. “Yeah, I know…”

  Tucker slaps my shoulder. “Dude…”

  I glare at him again and he takes a step back. “It’s fine, Tuck. I won’t tell her you told me.” Nausea wrecks my stomach. “Not sure I can even bring myself to talk to her at all, to be honest…”

  “Well, good.” He nods. “It’s been like five years anyway. You can’t have much to say to her in the first place.”

  “Four years,” I correct him. “Four years next month.”

  And there are a lot of things I’d like to say to Jovie Ross if I could, actually.

  Tucker tugs at my arm. “Come on. We should get back to work.”

  I dig my heels in for another moment as Jovie wanders back behind the counter. She smiles again at the woman with her son and rings up a little toy dinosaur, her fingers soaring across the register. It’s almost like she never left at all but the black hole in the pit of my stomach reminds me otherwise.

  She’s been home four days and she didn’t bother to even tell me. She went out of her way to hide it, too.

  Fine. That’s fine. If she doesn’t want to explain herself to me, then that’s fine. I don’t need to know why she’s back or what she’s doing now or why she took off in the first place.

  Nope. Don’t need to know.

  I’m fine with it.

  This is totally fine.

  Chapter 4

  Jovie

  “Josie?!”

  I close my eyes and exhale. “It’s Jovie.”

  The woman rushes over to the counter and screws up her face. “Are you sure?”

  I recognize her from high school but I honestly can’t tell you what her name is. “Pretty sure.”

  “I could have sworn your name was Josie…”

  “Nope.” I point to my red name tag. “It’s Jovie.”

  She chews on the corner of her pink mouth. “Huh…”

  “It’s okay. I don’t remember your name, either.”

  She throws her head back and laughs while her mane of wild, blonde hair tumbles about her face. “It’s Natalie! Natalie Jones. Well…” She flashes the ring on her finger. “That’s Wright nowadays. Dickie and I have been married five years, but you know that, you were there.”

  I raise a brow. “I was?”

  “The ceremony was in the town square, silly! Everyone was there!”

  “Oh, right. Of course,” I say, still not remembering a damn thing about this lady. “It was a beautiful day.”

  “I know, right?” She stares at the giant rock on her finger and sighs lovingly to herself. “Anyway, so what are you up to?”

  I glance around the store. “Pretty much this.”

  “Are you married?”

  “No.”

  “Engaged?”

  “No.”

  “Any kids? I have two.”

  “Nope. No kids.”

  “Then…” Her brow furrows. “What do you do?”

  “I actually have some restocking to do,” I say, tapping a stack of figures beside me on the counter. “Can I help you find something or are you good?”

  “Oh, I’m good!” She holds up a stack of fliers. “I just came in to see if it would be okay to hang one or two of these in your window here?”

  “What is it?” I ask.

  Natalie lays them down. “The party planning committee is looking for a little fresh blood just in time to start putting together the Valentine’s Day dance next month. All the info is at the bottom.”

  I nod on the outside but on the inside, I’m screaming. “I’ll have to check with Mr. Trin but it should be okay.”

  “Perfect.” She grins. “Anyway, I think I’ll browse a little before heading to the next door down. You go do… what you do, Jos—vie. Jovie.”

  “Bye, Natalie.”

  She walks off, taking her bright and happy aura with her. She’s not the first person to wander into the toy store since I got here and ask questions. She probably won’t be the last, either. In Clover, your business is everyone’s business. Always has been.

  I glance at the fliers once before shoving them onto a pile beneath the register.

  I stick to the back shelves, taking my time getting the spacing just right between the action figures. One doesn’t merely toss the toys onto the shelf. You must face everything the right way, too. No wonder Mr. Tran hired me back so fast. Whoever the old smock girl was, she did a horrible job.

  I hear the entry bell toward the front and let out an immediate “Hello!” like a Pavlovian dog. Two tiny feet patter down the front aisles, bolting straight for the soldier toys and fighter jet models. I cringe. I just straightened those…

  I stand up and turn around to head back to the counter but nearly crash into someone as I round the corner.

  “Sorry! Excuse me—”

  “Careful, Jove.”

  I hop backward, feeling all the color drain from my face. My eyes stay locked on the floor between us. It’s impossible for that voice to belong to anyone else but I’m not sure if that makes me more excited or terrified.

  I’ve imagined what this moment would be like so many times. I knew that if I came home, it’d happen eventually. I’d be lying if I said a part of me wasn’t looking forward to it but I still wanted to delay it for as long as possible. The news of my arrival would get back to him sooner or later. This town isn’t that big.

  I finally look up as excitement wins out.

  “Will,” I say.

  He towers over me by over half a foot, just like he always did. Will Myers. One look in his eyes knocks the wind out of me. So much has changed but he’s still the exact same. His
jeans don’t have patches sewn into them. His brown hair isn’t greased back and overgrown. His shirt isn’t telling me to go fuck myself.

  My bad boy grew up.

  But his smirk is still there.

  “Hi, Jovie,” he says.

  “What, uh… What are you doing here?”

  “I was just about to ask you the exact same thing.”

  I chuckle at the floor. “Yeah, I bet.”

  “Stopped in to do a little shopping, actually,” he says.

  “For who?”

  Will points over my shoulder and I turn around to see a little boy playing with the toy soldiers in the far corner.

  One look at him and my chest aches. I guess it doesn’t get more grown up than this…

  “Wow,” I say, turning back. “You’ve been awfully busy.”

  “He’s not mine,” he says. “He’s my nephew.”

  “Oh…” I look at the boy again and heave a secret sigh of relief. “Sara had a kid?”

  “She did, yeah.”

  “What’s she up to now?”

  “She’s in nursing school,” he answers. “Her schedule gets pretty hectic on Wednesdays, so I take the kid.”

  I nod along with his voice. “And today is Wednesday...”

  “His dad, Charlie, isn’t around much. I try to help her out when I can.”

  I tilt my head in judgment. “Deadbeat?”

  “Army,” he says. “He’s deployed at the moment. Won’t be back until summer.”

  I pause. “Well... now I feel like a jerk.”

  “Don’t. You have every right to assume.” He chuckles as his gaze deepens. “So, you’re back in Clover.”

  I take a step back. “I’m staying with my dad for a little while until I figure some things out.”

  “Yeah, I heard.”

  “From who?”

  “Tucker.”

  I scoff. “Seriously?”

  “Don’t get mad,” he says. “I practically beat it out of him when I saw your car at the shop. It wasn’t his fault.”

  “Ah, right. At the shop,” I repeat, smiling. “I heard you had a job.”

  He nods. “I have a job.”

  “An actual, real job.”

  “I went to school and got certified and everything.”

  I squint. “Hmm...”

  “What?”

  “Well…” I look him up and down. “You’re wearing clean clothing, you’re trustworthy enough to be left alone with living children, and you’re stably employed.”

  He leans in an inch. “I pay taxes, too.”

  “Wow.” I feign a gasp and he laughs. “You’re like a genuine, responsible adult now.”

  “It certainly took some practice,” he quips.

  “Is there anything about you that hasn’t changed?”

  He lowers his voice to a whisper. “I still have the Bolt.”

  My jaw drops. “No way.”

  “Yes way.”

  “I loved the Bolt.”

  “I know you did.”

  “I take comfort in this knowledge.”

  “I still have your helmet, too,” he says. “And I still know where you live, so I can swing by the next time I take a midnight ride, if you want.”

  My smile widens. “Smooth.”

  “Well, I think you’ll find a few other things about me that haven’t changed.”

  Will and I should not be talking to each other this way. I take a deep breath to try and cool my cheeks but it doesn’t stop me from talking.

  “Sure.” I nod. “If you find yourself riding through the old neighborhood… you can swing by. I’d like that.”

  “Good,” he says, his eyes locked on mine.

  “Uncle Will.”

  We tear our gazes away and turn to the tiny boy standing beside us, tugging lightly on Will’s sleeve.

  “Hey, Andy.” Will greets him and rubs a hand through his shaggy, black hair. “What’s up?”

  “Can we get this one?” he asks, holding up a play set larger than his head.

  “No, buddy,” Will tells him. “If I buy you another one of these this close to your birthday, your mom will kill me.”

  “Please!” He throws on a vicious pout; one so powerful it even weakens my resolve.

  “Oh, come on, Uncle Will…” I tease him with a grin. “Just this once.”

  He glares playfully at me and sighs. “Fine…” he takes the set from Andy, “but we have to keep it at my place, all right? We’ll put it together next week.”

  “Okay!” Andy bounces with excitement and runs off toward the toy soldiers again.

  Will shifts the box beneath his arm. “Thanks a lot.”

  I flick the plastic name tag on my smock. “Just doing my job, sir.”

  “Well, we should get going,” he says. “The kid can get a little moody if he doesn’t eat on schedule.”

  “He and I have that in common.”

  Will laughs again. “You haven’t changed at all.”

  “So, I hear…” I shrug and gesture toward the front. “I’ll ring you guys up.”

  Don’t trip on anything. Don’t trip on anything. Don’t—

  I swerve around a candy display just off the aisle, keeping my head down low to try and breathe through the fire burning my cheeks.

  We reach the counter and Will passes the box over to me. Every time I glance up, I catch him staring at my face instead of my hands or chest or anything else.

  “Thirty twenty-five,” I say, prompting him to pull out his debit card.

  “It really is nice to see you again, Jove,” he says, slowly handing it to me.

  I bite my lip as I swipe. “You know, you’re the first person to say that to me I actually believe.”

  Will’s smile lingers on his mouth for several seconds. He barely blinks. He just stands there, slowly inhaling and exhaling, as my hand hovers next to his with his card clenched between my fingertips.

  “What are you doing tonight?” he asks.

  “I’m here until seven,” I answer without thinking.

  “Sara usually picks him up around then.” He pauses. “Do you want to grab a drink with me? Not a date, obviously, just to catch up.”

  “Uhh…” My thoughts turn to mush in my head, leaving me to run on pure instinct alone. “Yeah. Sure.”

  “I’ll pick you up at eight.”

  I nod, crushed beneath the weight on my shoulders. “Sounds good.”

  “Uncle Will, come on.”

  He snaps out of it as Andy yanks on his arm. “Right… we should get going.”

  I force my eyes downward as I hand over his card and his thumb grazes mine. “Would you like a bag?” I force out.

  “No, thanks. We can carry it, I think.” Will picks up the box and Andy instantly holds out his little arms. “Don’t drop it, all right?”

  “I won’t!”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes!”

  I watch them with a smile, feeling it burrow into my face while something far deeper and colder takes hold of my gut.

  Andy sprints off toward the doors but Will stays back for a moment more with me.

  “I’ll see you tonight, Jovie Ross.”

  A shiver tingles my spine. “Yeah. I’ll see you tonight.”

  The right edge of his mouth curls into that familiar smirk and my knees jolt beneath the counter.

  Will walks off to catch up with Andy as the kid bolts outside. I wait until he’s completely out of sight and the entry bell fades off before deflating every molecule of air from my lungs.

  “Holy shit…”

  I collapse forward to rest my head on my arms and take a few rough breaths.

  That went better than I expected.

  Way better.

  Worst case scenario… I imagined something being thrown at someone’s head. Some shouting or cursing. I can’t say I expected a kind and gentle interaction, complete with an adorable child and Will practically undressing me with his eyes.

  Oh, crap. Did I say he co
uld pick me up on his motorcycle for a midnight ride? I definitely said that part, right?

  I raise my head, feeling that smile return to my lips.

  Will Myers.

  At least he’s not mad at me.

  Yet.

  Chapter 5

  Will

  Jovie Ross.

  At least she’s not still mad at me.

  I think.

  It’s been four years. Surely, if she was still harboring some major hostility, it would have shown through at some point during our conversation. Jovie was pleasant the entire time. It was light and fluffy Jovie with her little, curling smile and her adorable laugh and that new long, wavy hair. Sure, I may have caught her off-guard, and yeah, she was working so she probably had her customer service switch flicked on, but I know Jovie better than I know myself.

  Or knew, I suppose…

  A knock strikes my front door, bringing me out of my trance. Andy hops up off the floor, casually kicking over his toy trucks on the way to answer it.

  “Careful, buddy,” I say, leaning down to pick them up.

  Andy stands on his tippy-toes, trying to reach the door lock but his finger barely swipes it.

  “Hang on…” I laugh.

  “It’s Mom!”

  “I know it’s your mom.”

  I twist the lock and open the door on Sara’s smiling face. Andy rushes at her and she bends over to wrap her arms around him.

  “Hey, sweetie!” she greets him, squeezing tight. “Did you and Uncle Will have fun today?”

  “Yeah! He let me watch shark attack videos!”

  Sara gawks at my wincing face. “He did, did he?”

  I force a chuckle. “I also taught him the value of secrets and loyalty amongst friends but I guess that lesson is a two-parter.”

  Andy hops on the balls of his feet. “And we got burgers and ice cream and he took me to the toy store!”

  Her cheeks fade into a dark pink to match her scrubs. “Hey, Andy, why don’t you pack up your stuff while I talk to my brother for a second, okay?”

  “Okay, Mommy.”

  She nudges him and he takes off to grab his backpack.

  “Kitchen,” she whispers at me. “Now.”

  I groan as she stomps through my living room and down the hall.

  “You know,” I say, entering the kitchen behind her, “you morph a little bit more into Mom every single time you do that.”