“Of course, babe,” I said, dipping down to kiss the top of her head. “I’m notthatbad.”
“I’m buying you a new duffel,” she insisted.
We moved to the front seats. I slammed my door shut before buckling my seat belt.
“My duffel is fine,” I said.
She laughed and stretched out in the passenger seat. “Clearly not. You’re busting out of it every time. You shouldbe a pro at packing by now, considering you’ve been living out of that thing for months.”
“I’ll figure something out eventually,” I said. “Maybe whenever we get settled.”
“I’m not worried about it.” She beamed at me—fuckingbeamedat me.
I’d never get sick of this. To think, there was a time I was worried I wouldn’t be enough for her. Now she looked at me like I hung the stars. I ruffled her hair before placing my hand on the back of her headrest and turning my head to reverse the car out of the driveway.
“Wait!” Mattie called, sprinting down the porch stairs, waving a sweatshirt. “You forgot this in the laundry pile.”
Frankie rolled down her window and snatched it. “Thanks.”
“See you in a few weeks,” Mattie said, still panting from her short burst of exercise.
“See you,” Frankie said. “And I promise, we’ll find somewhere more permanent to stay that’s not your basement.”
“No, stay.” Mattie pouted. “August flew by, I mean it. You can stay as long as you want.”
“I think Giles might prefer his privacy,” Frankie said.
I’d prefer my privacy too. The basement room had been fine, but I was definitely looking forward to having a place of our own.
I’d joked about buying us a camper, but while Frankie seemed excited about that idea when it was just for me, she hadn’t been too keen on it for us as a couple.
We pulled away, heading straight for Denver. The summer heat had finally faded as September brought the promise of fall with it. Pretty soon, winter would be here. I could practically sniff it in the air. I was looking forward to teachingsnowboarding lessons for the entire winter season this year in Key Ridge.
The summer had been a blur of smiles and laughter and lazy nights spent wrapped around each other. After I’d made my grand gesture at the airport, Frankie had turned down that job in New York, almost having an anxiety attack in the process. But after she’d dropped the news and hung up the call, she’d giggled maniacally and jumped up and down. I was kind of worried I’d created a monster.
Instead of heading straight back to Key Ridge, I’d bought a flight to Atlanta instead so that Frankie could officially leave that phase of her life behind. She showed me around the city and we spent a few nights in her condo, slowly selling things online as she realized she didn’t really like anything she owned. Her roommates were less than welcoming; they had their noses stuck in the air the whole time.
“You turned down a job for aguy?” one had said.
“You’re moving to the middle of nowhere?” the other asked.
Frankie barely gave either of them the time of day, choosing to spend all her time frolicking around the city with me instead. She’d said it was funny how she’d had more fun with me in a few days in that city than she had in all the years she’d lived there. Seeing something through the lens of being stupid in love did that to you, I guess.
It also made me even more sure that even if I had followed her to New York, we would have been just fine too. Having a partner like her completely balanced my life in every way.
When we’d gathered all her stuff and caught a flight back to Key Ridge, Mattie’s squeal had nearly broken the sound barrier.
At first, I had thought I would bail on the rafting gig, butJay had said Frankie was more than welcome to come and stay in a cabin. She could help out with meals and the place had internet. Driving down there had cemented for me that this had been the best decision. Arriving there with her hand in mine felt like winning the lottery. The summer that had started to dim, once again shone with possibility now that she was by my side.
The summer months went by fast. While I guided rafting tours, she spent days enjoying the weather or casually job hunting, trying to decide what she might want to do next. She’d completely freed herself of any prior preconceived ideas she’d had about what her career should look like, and only searched for things she thought might add value to her life.
Being a rafting guide had been fun—up until mid-July, that is. I had finally convinced Frankie to go on one of the tours with me. During an especially violent wave, she got knocked in, nearly giving me a fucking heart attack. Thankfully, she’d remembered everything I taught her and we were able to get her back inside the raft without further incident. When we got back to land, she even had a glint in her eye and said it was fun. I, however, was permanently scarred and refused to let her go again. I couldn’t handle it.
Funny, I used to be the king of pushing people to their limits. Now I was acutely aware of just how fragile Frankie was at any given moment. Maybe I wouldn’t be attempting to convince her to give snowboarding another try this winter after all. I’d feel much better if I knew she was safe and cozy in front of a fireplace somewhere.
“You sure Charlie and Nathan won’t mind us staying there? It’s so weird. It’s like she’s my new boss, and I’m staying in her guest bedroom. I barely know her.”
Funny enough, Frankie had gotten back in touch withLila. Apparently, what Lila had said about the job at her start-up had really stuck with her. She ended up interviewing remotely and landing it. Now we were headed to Denver for a couple of weeks so she could onboard in person and get to know the team. I was pumped to be back in town for a bit to spend more time with Harrison and my brother.
