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The thought of leaving Nine to carry the load for both of us didn’t sit right with me, but at least it made me realize there could be a workable solution if I just thought it through a little longer.
“I’ll talk to him,” I said. “When I get back. There, are you happy?”
She clapped her hands. “Yes! You know I’m just selfishly trying to get you back here, right?”
I went back to packing the box. “And I love you for it. I do.”
When I finally pulled the truck into the clearing I was itching to see Nine. I hadn’t heard back from him which was disappointing, but I also knew he wasn’t the most reliable about checking email since it was mostly fan mail, and those messages made him self-conscious. He preferred to ignore it all and pretend like fans didn’t exist.
Nacho came streaking out of the cabin’s front door, bouncing and yipping with his tail wagging a million miles a minute. I hopped out and gave him some love.
Nine’s exit from the cabin was much more hesitant. He stood on the porch wiping his hands on a rag. The afternoon sun glinted across his legs, showing off the familiar thigh muscles under faded blue jeans. He didn’t say a word, simply stood there and watched me as if unsure of what to do.
I gave Nacho one last smooch on the top of his head and took off at a jog across the clearing. Nine’s eyes widened and he stumbled down the few steps into the yard just in time for me to fling myself bodily at him. I wrapped my arms and legs around him like a baby monkey and held on tight, soaking in his sweaty, woodsy scent and thanking fate for allowing me to be here in this moment with such a beautiful, kind soul.
His arms tightened around me like thick steel bands, and he let out a desperate sound from his throat that made me want to cry.
“I missed you so much,” I admitted against his lips after kissing him hard. I went right back to kissing him without letting him say a word. Finally, I pulled back just long enough to add, “Lost my phone.”
His entire body heaved a sigh of relief, and he sank down onto the porch stairs. “I thought… I didn’t know. I thought…”
I straddled his lap on the stairs and cupped his face. “I sent you a message in Insta from Evie’s account, and then I emailed you, but I know you—”
This time Nine was the one who leaned in for the kiss. “You’re here. You’re okay. That’s all I care about,” he mumbled between kisses.
We couldn’t keep our hands off each other, but I also didn’t want to take the time to move somewhere like inside the RV. So we simply sat like that on the porch and kissed and hugged for a long time, sneaking shy grins at each other between make-out sessions. The afternoon buzzed lazily on as we began catching each other up on the forty-eight hours we’d spent apart. I told him more about my night out with friends and my shopping trip with Evie.
“What about the part? The last I heard, you were getting a call from your agent,” Nine said.
“Oh.” I flapped a hand like it was no big deal. “Didn’t get it. Which is fine. I wasn’t really expecting to.”
Nine’s smile dropped. “What? But you said the audition went well. Shit. Are you sure? Maybe they’ll give you a callback?”
I ran my fingers through his beard and tugged at it the way I liked to do. “Nah. It worked out for the best because they needed someone really quickly, and we’re doing this. Besides, it gave me an excuse to catch up with my agent, and he thinks he can find me other projects now that I’m getting noticed from our vlog.”
Lying to Isaac wasn’t great. It felt horrible, in fact, but I also knew that if I told him the truth, he wouldn’t let me turn the part down no matter what I said. And even if he did, he’d feel awful and guilty. There was no reason for that. I almost wished I hadn’t gotten the part, but I had to admit my ego had been nicely stroked by the offer.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” he said, rubbing his big hands up and down my back. “It’s their loss. At least you got to see your friends and get a taste of city life again.”
I nodded and leaned my face against his chest, snuggling in closer to enjoy the comfort of resting in his arms. “It was weird though. I missed being here with you.”
The rumble of a laugh vibrated against my face. “That surprises you? Gee, thanks.”
I sat back up and smiled at him. “No. That’s not what I meant. I just… you know, I thought I’d be relieved to get to the city and do my favorite things, but… they weren’t my favorite anymore.”
