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“I’ll stop by the shops and look too.”
Natalie snuggled into me.
“It’s such a relief to be here with you,” she said.
I couldn’t put into words how wonderful it was to come back from somewhere and know that she was waiting for me. Or to leave work and know that I was going to pick her up so we could go have dinner.
My life wasn’t quiet anymore. It was bright and bold and I had things to look forward to. New business ventures, a wonderful relationship, and incredible friends. Sure, my family wasn’t the best, and there was always drama with my brother, but you couldn’t have everything.
“What are you smiling about?” Natalie asked.
“Life,” I said, kissing her.
* * *
Natalie endedup finding a nice candle when she was out, so we decided to use that for the welcome present for Charlie. Natalie had made sure to ask Linley what scents she’d like and went with an apple cinnamon smell.
She’d been able to get Gretchen to limit her venue nonsense to the early afternoon, so we left together in my car to go to Linley’s with the candle in a gift bag.
“I keep telling her she needs to stop stressing out because it isn’t good for the baby, but she just gets herself all worked up. It’s like she’s competing for the wedding and baby shower gold medal. Like anyone really cares,” she said.
Honestly, I was tired of hearing about it, but so was Natalie and she needed to vent, so I listened.
“Hey,” I called through the door as we walked into Linley’s apartment.
“Hey, come in,” Linley said from the kitchen. Gray was setting the table and Charlie leaned against the island.
“Hey, Charlie, it’s good to see you again,” I said. “This is my girlfriend, Natalie.” This was the first time I was introducing Natalie as my girlfriend to someone new. I didn’t know if I’d ever get sick of it.
“Hey, welcome to Castleton,” Natalie said, handing over the gift bag.
“Wow, you are so sweet, thank you,” Charlie said. “This has been quite the welcome.”
She had the same little donut earrings in, and her pink hair was up in a messy bun. She was casual in a cropped t-shirt and jeans.
Honestly, she was pretty cute. Not my type, but I took a glance at Natalie to see what she thought. I caught her looking at my ass, so I didn’t think she was Natalie’s type either.
Linley had gone all out with shrimp risotto and a salad topped with asparagus and radishes and lemon vinaigrette.
“Charlie made the dressing,” she said, like a proud mom.
“It wasn’t that big of a deal,” Carlie said, looking down at her plate.
“It’s really good,” I said. Charlie smiled at me. After the initial cheerfulness, she’d sort of wilted a little bit. I wondered if the grief over her breakup was wearing on her.
Linley and Gray kept the conversation going, as did Natalie. I told them about my business ventures, and Gray gave me some social media tips.
“I’m renting some studio space. If you ever need room, you’re more than welcome to share it,” he said.
“Thanks, I think I need to start doing some stuff in a more well-ventilated area,” I said. “I worry I’m going to poison myself with fumes someday.”
If only the cabin had a shed or garage or something, but it didn’t.
“Yeah, I’m happy to share, as long as you can deal with wood shavings,” he said.
“Deal,” I said.
Charlie didn’t eat much and was still quiet as we had coffee and dessert. Linley kept trying to draw her out, but she kept giving short answers to everything. I shared a look with Natalie. This might have been too soon.
