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CHAPTER21
~ MILLIE ~
I tilt my head upward, letting the stream of hot water relax my muscles after our morning run.
Eleven miles.I smile just thinking about how quickly I’m closing in on my goal of 13.1 miles for the half marathon. I’ll definitely be ready by winter.
I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of running, long before Dax even came into my life. I’d see people going for a jog here and in Atlanta and even in California when I was attending Stanford.
I envied the way they could do that—just go for a run in the morning as though the mere action of it somehow puts them in a kind of community. I don’t know why I didn’t do this a long time ago.
I even volunteered in the last two half marathons here in Tybee. I had fun doing it, but I felt like I was on the outside, looking in.
Now, I’m in the club. It didn’t even cost me any kind of gym membership and I didn’t need to purchase any expensive equipment.
I just put on some shoes… and run.
And in just one more week, I’ll be running without Dax.
My earlier smile fades into a frown as I scrub the suds into my hair.
He doesn’t want to worry about me, worrying abouthim. He even said he feels lucky that he can focus on the mission when he’s deployed. I sulk inside, and then scoff audibly when the irony of it hits me.
I didn’t want to worry about him, so I built a wall between us.
Nowhedoesn’t want to worry aboutme, and I’m getting the same treatment.
Karma is a bitch.
I step out of the steamy bathroom and Dax is still here. He usually goes to the beach after our run to follow up our workout with a tougher one of his own—some more running sometimes, or a swim or a couple hours in his kayak, depending on the weather.
“You’re still here.”
“Yeah,” he says, one hand curiously hidden.
“What have you got there?” Suspiciously, I eye where his hand disappears behind his back. And I hate the thoughts that trickle into my mind. Fantasies, really—about a future that I simply won’t have with this man.
But for one brief moment, I indulge in it.
And in it, time has passed, precious memories made. The bond between us has strengthened, and he appears before me like he is now, his hand behind him.
Then he moves his hand… and in it, I see a tiny velvet box. And he gets down on one knee…
I literally shudder.Stupid fantasy. Snap out of it, Millie.
His next movement pulls me back to reality when his hand reveals one of my favorite coffee drinks, with plenty of whipped cream.
I liked my fantasy better. But I’m still grateful for the coffee.
“Oh, wow—thanks! How did you make it all the way to Frankie’s and back while I was in the shower?”
“Hey, I’m a fast runner.”
“I kind of forgot that. You have to hold yourself back so much when you’re with me.”
He waggles his eyebrows. “You didn’t have me holding back at all last night though,” he says as he hands me my coffee drink and pulls me closer.
I love the feel of his body against mine like this. “Ohhhh…. You’re making it difficult for me to not call in sick this morning.”
