Page 60 of Let Me Be the One
Gritting her teeth, Callie said, “Absolutely not.”
“Excuse me.” Tanner stepped away for the garage. “I’ll make sure there aren’t more snakes.”
Shuddering, Callie did her best to be brave. “I’ll be right there,” she told him, astounded and pleased by his careless attitude. Sort of.No, she definitely was. She didn’t need a caveman getting all territorial. It was great that Tanner was behaving reasonably.
Or…maybe he really didn’t care? Could that be? Had the connection she’d felt been all one-sided? Her side? Ugh.
While Callie stared after him, Tanner lifted the heavy garage door—perhaps with a bit more force than necessary, he certainly didn’t struggle with it as she had. Pronounced muscles moved over his shoulders and biceps.
Sutter touched her back, then slid his hand to her neck and tipped up her face. “You’ve gotten too much sun.”
The stark differences between the two men hit her anew. “No, I haven’t.” Prioritizing, she stepped out of his reach and, for the moment, gave all of her attention to him. “You need to go. Right now. We’re done. Over. There’s nothing to talk about.”
“Callie,” he chided again, making her realize how much she hated it when he said her name like that. “We can still go…where was it you wanted to go for our honeymoon? The Cayman Islands?”
“Costa Rica,” Tanner called from inside the garage.
Shaking that off, Sutter said, “Right. I knew it started with aC.” Then his expression softened. “We can still go. And all those beautiful things you put on the registry. There was some kind of bedding you loved, right?”
“Floral,” Tanner said offhand as he walked out with yet another snake. He shot Sutter a look. “Linen.”
It struck Callie that her fiancé hadn’t listened, but Tanner had.What a precious thing it was to be heard. Her heart started rapping hard and wouldn’t let up. She didn’t know if it was the fear of the snakes, or the sudden surge of emotion for a particularly irascible neighbor. “Floral linen,” she confirmed softly.
Tanner didn’t go far, definitely not out of her sight, and then Liam was there to take that snake from him. He reentered the garage and started moving things around.
After anticipating his visit all day, Callie didn’t want to waste another single second on her ex. In a lowered voice, she said firmly, “Listen up, Sutter. We are one hundred percent done. No do-overs. No makeups. No second chances. I will not,ever, marry you.”
Desperation, then a touch of anger, altered his congenial expression. “This is ridiculous. Plans were already made. You know that. You can’t back out now.”
“I already did!”
“No, you had a little fit because I did something stupid. I regret it, but that doesn’t mean you get to ruin everything.” He leaned into her space, which meant bending down because he was similar in height to Tanner. “Our families—your parents,my parents—invested in each other. You can’t just fuck everyone over because you’re pissed.”
Wow, okay, she hadn’t seen that one coming. Never before, not once, had Sutter used that tone with her. She’d seen him annoyed at others, not her, and even then he’d kept it together.
It made her stomach churn to have him speak to her like that. “You need to leave now.”
“Not,” he said through his teeth, taking a step closer, “until we talk.”
Her own temper spiked, quickening her breathing, narrowing her vision. “That’s where you’re wrong.” She turned to walk away, but he caught her arm, making her gasp.
Before he’d even turned her around, Tanner wasthere beside her, his gaze pinning Sutter. “Think hard,” he said, the softness of his voice somehow more commanding, “how you want this to play out.”
Sutter released her, but didn’t relent. “She’s my fiancée, and we have things to discuss.”
“No, I amnot,” Callie said, even more frazzled now that Tanner had interceded. “And no, we don’t. I have nothing to say to you.” In a precautionary measure, she stepped partially in front of Tanner. “I’ll talk to my parents, but I’m not talking to you.”
“Damn it, Callie—” He reached for her again.
“No,” Tanner said. Just that, again quietly, but it landed in the space between them like a thunderclap.
Scowling, Sutter withdrew his hand and curled his lip. “Neighbor, my ass. There’s more going on here.”
She hoped that was true, but Callie wouldn’t verify anything for him, and she definitely wouldn’t speak for Tanner. “Will you please justgo?”
“For now.” He looked at the house and snorted. “Where’s Glory?”
“Why?”
