AllFreeNovel
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He coughed, and I noticed his position had changed. He might be standing in his doorway as well. “Yeah. But it was a couple of years ago.”
“What happened?”
He let out a frustrated groan. “I—well—it didn’t work out.”
“Love?”
“I think so. Um. I better get back to studying. Talk to you later?”
Guess that was as deep as he wanted to go.
Chapter Six
Hunter
“Are you going to try again?” I asked Lina through the door.
I heard a thump on the other side of the door and couldn’t help the smile. I envisioned Lina’s lips thin with frustration as she bonked her head on the door.
“I…maybe.”
It’d been nearly five weeks since I’d first met the strange beauty, and I’d yet to see her in person other than that one night I’d found her in the elevator. And it’d been nearly two weeks since we’d had the former boyfriend/girlfriend discussion.
Things had been a little strained between us. We’d been talking through her door at least two days a week and online nearly every day, but we conveniently ignored the pink elephant in the room. That was okay with me, though. I shouldn’t have told her as much as I had about Isabelle.
But here I was, standing in front of Lina’s door hoping to hell I’d get to see her in person. Iachedto see her, to hold her. I was dumber than a box of rocks, but my body worked on its own when it came to her. As much as my mind fought me on it, I kept pushing things forward with the visits to Lina’s door.
Lina. She’d not said anything about my nickname for her, but I sure as shit loved how it felt rolling off my tongue.
“Hunter?” Even though her voice was muffled, I still loved the sound of it.
“Yeah?”
“I think I am ready…to try again.”
She’d told me about three more elevator adventures over the past few weeks, and I hated that she’d waited until I was gone to work. The thought of her facing those challenges while I was away hit me harder than I thought it would. What if what’d happened before happened again, and I wasn’t there to catch her? I hated not being there.
In such a short time, through all the texting, emailing, and talking, she’d weaseled her way into my heart more than I liked. Scared the shit out of me…yet didn’t.
“I’m glad to hear that, Lina. You’re strong. You’re ready. I know it.”
“Did youreadthat from me on our last video chat?”
I laughed. “Yes. And…I hear it in your voice.” I remembered that determination in my mom when she’d finally decided to leave my dad.
He’d nearly killed her, and she lay in the hospital talking about how she couldn’t leave him, how weak and stupid she’d been. But when the doctors told her exactly how close she’d come to dying and how insane that monster was…her motherly instinct had ignited. Sure, what I heard from Lina wasn’t motherly instinct, but it was determination, nonetheless.
“I can help you if you want,” I said, hoping she’d let me be part of this. “What’s your goal for today?”
She let out a long sigh and believe it or not, I did, too. God, we were so in sync it was scary. “I want to walk through the lobby.”
“Sweet.”
“You know my graduation goal?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, there’s a new, smaller goal.” She paused. “Halloween is this Friday…I’d like to help hand out candy.”
