Page 104 of The One Who Saw Her: Boone

Jo was perched on the edge of the counter with a beer in one hand, legs swinging lazily. She wasn't helping—more like supervising with zero authority—but Vivi didn't mind. Then Jo's eyes darted to the back door, then over her shoulder, like she was expecting a wild animal.

"What are you doing?" Vivi arched a brow and dusted off her hands.

"Thought I saw him." She didn't need to say who. The venom in her voice did all the work. "Figured he might be heading home for dinner."

"Eli left two days ago. He was deployed to Costa Rica." Vivi shook her head. "He's gone. No tail, no chase, no mysterious lurking. You can relax."

Relief washed over Jo's face in a way that was almost comical. Almost. Then Jo's gaze landed on the pies and her jaw went slack. "Wait. How did I miss this?"

"Miss what?"

"These pies. They look—" Jo leaned in, practically reverent. "—edible."

Vivi gave a small, satisfied grin. "Not only edible. Blue ribbon contenders."

"I don't even know how that's possible. For a city girl who wouldn't know a rolling pin from a paddleboard, you've made actual masterpieces," Jo said and Vivi's heart did a happy little flip. The shock and awe on Jo's face was basically the highest compliment in existence. “City-girl with skills that could shame the locals. Damn Vivi, you’ve actually done it. They look better than my gran’s.”

"Your gran was a good baker?"

"No, but she was a mean shopper."

Vivi laughed and she could hear the sound was different from the one she'd brought to Bridlewood. Her whole body felt different. And not just from the surface-of-the-sun sex, but from what had happened after.

I guess I'm signing up for the ride of my life.

He'd said life. As in, he could see himself spending it with her. And the crazy, terrifying, wonderful thing was, she could see it too. Staying in Bridlewood didn't feel like twisting her dreams around a man—it felt like all her dreams were lining up in the same place all at once.

Jo popped the cap off another beer with the edge of the counter and squinted at Vivi like she was trying to read her soul. "What's got you smiling like you just found out peach pie has zero calories?"

Vivi froze mid-crimp, heat sliding straight up her neck. "Nothing."

"Vivi." Jo pointed her beer bottle at her. "I know that face. That's a man face. Wore it once myself."

She set down the pie tin and sighed. "Fine. I'm thinking about Boone."

"Thinking about him or thinking about him?"

"Both. Okay? I'm pretty sure I’m in love with him."

"Shocker."

"That obvious?"

"Girl, you walk around like you've found a new religion."

"I think I have," Vivi said softly. "And now I can't stop wondering how to have a relationship without losing myself in it. I've barely figured out my own life and I'm finally building something. I've disappeared into other people before and I refuse to do it again."

Jo set her beer down. "Vivi, you're out here fixing everybody else's problems, even when nobody asked you to. How about you use those meddling, busybody superpowers on your own life for once?"

Vivi wiped her hands on a towel. “What if my superpowers are like psychic powers? They don’t work on yourself."

"Okay, start with what you want."

"In my heart, I know I can have both. My work, my dreams, and Boone. I can be in a relationship without letting it swallow me whole."

"Specifics."

"First, I want my own place in town. I've never lived alone, not once. What kind of adult goes through life never living on their own?"