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“Thanks,” I said, inhaling the scent of him and briefly closing my eyes. Not much had changed, including the musk of his skin - whether it be a subtle cologne or just his natural scent, I wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter though, he smelled amazing.
I unlocked the car doors and had to wiggle the handle a bit to get my door to open.
“Still driving the Honda Civic, huh?”
“Of course, I love this car,” I said with a laugh. “Besides, I’m still paying off nursing school. I’ll buy a new car when this one literally falls apart on me.”
Alex chuckled and opened the passenger side door, staring down at the pile of books in the seat.
“Oops, give me a second,” I muttered.
“I thought you finished nursing school?” Alex asked.
“Yeah, well, what can I say? I’m always learning.” I didn’t mention that I also dreamt of going back to school for my Bachelor of nursing, a dream that likely wasn’t going to happen anytime soon. Not with my budget. I still tried to learn everything I could and to keep up to date with medical research in hopes of making it a reality.
As soon as the seat was clear, Alex climbed inside, almost too large for my compact car, but he didn’t complain about being cramped.
“I’m surprised your dad didn’t buy you a new car for graduation.”
I shrugged and started the engine, ignoring the rattling sound as it started up.
I ignored Alex’s question. Few people knew that my parent’s financial situation was dire, and I wanted to keep it that way.
“I love my Civic. I wouldn’t have let him even if he offered to.” I patted the console lovingly. “So many good memories in this car, you know?”
Then my cheeks turned bright red. From the awkward silence in the car, Alex had the exact same thought I did.
The time we made out after a football game. The only time we had ever let ourselves go. We both had determined it to be a mistake and that we’d never think about it again, but there we were - thinking about it.
“So umm, where are you staying again?” I asked to change the subject.
“The Hilton over on Murdoch.”
I remembered a time when Alex struggled to even survive. He didn’t talk much about his business or his career, but clearly, he was doing better than just a few years ago when he couldn’t even afford to fly out to Denver, much less get a hotel. Much less a Hilton.
I was proud of him, but I didn’t dare say anything. He’d made it clear that he didn’t want to talk about his business early on and I respected that, but it was nice seeing him find success.
I pulled into the parking lot and found a spot. I turned off the engine and weighed my options. Did I say goodbye here in the car and drive off? Or did I walk him to his room to spend more time with him, and risk going inside and staying? I bit my lip and stared down at the steering wheel, gripping it tightly.
“So…. do you want to come in?” Alex asked, his voice almost too low to hear it.
Before I had a chance to question my life choices, I looked over at him and smiled. “Yes, I’d like that very much, actually.”
“Then what are we waiting for?”
I opened the car door, and the next few minutes were a blur as we walked to his room. Alex fumbled with his key card, mumbling to himself as he fought to get it to work. Finally, the lock beeped, and he pushed the door open. I stepped inside the darkness, not sure what to expect once I got past the door.
As soon as the door closed behind us, Alex wrapped those big, strong arms around me, holding me to his chest. His heart thundered in my ear as he stroked my hair gently.
“I’m not sure when I’m going to be back in town,” he said softly.
“I know.” I turned my head and looked up at him. My eyes finally adjusted to the darkness and my pulse raced as I stared at his gorgeous face.
“And you’re okay with that?”
“Alex, I’m an adult. I know we live different lives,” I replied. “I just hope that you try to come here more often. I really missed you.”
“I missed you too, Grace, more than you’ll ever know.”
