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ONE
Lottie
I’m startingto wonder why I still live in Los Angeles. I dread leaving my apartment to go get groceries since I know it will take me an hour in this traffic to get anywhere.
“I should just move already,” I mumble to myself as I dig through my dresser to try to find a clean shirt.
I keep telling myself that I should find a new city, somewhere cheaper. I think that maybe it’s time that I get a change of scenery or maybe an apartment that didn’t cost an arm and leg, but I know that I won’t. I could never leave when my family is here.
I live here with my brother, Rhett, and his best friend, Anson. They’re the only bit of family that I have left, and I would hate to be away from them. It’s more than that though.
I’ve been in love with my brother’s best friend since I was just a kid. He was like a knight in shining armor, riding in and rescuing me from my awful parents. Well, maybe not rescuing since he was just a kid himself, but he did his best to protect me.
My brother did too and the three of us grew close, bonding over our terrible parents and childhoods. The more time I spent around Anson, the more I fell for him. He was so charming, even when we were kids, and so patient with me. There were times when Rhett wanted to watch TV or ride his bike, but Anson would stay and play dolls with me. He’s the one who bought me my first art pad and who encouraged me to start my own business.
I fell more and more in love with him with each passing day. Now, it’s been years and he’s ruined me for any other man.
Too bad for me, he only seems to see me as his best friend’s little sister and not the love of his life.
I sigh as I slip the shirt over my head and pad barefoot out of my room and over to the kitchen. My coffee is probably ice cold by now but I barely slept last night and I need all of the caffeine that I can get.
I wince as I swallow a mouthful and grab my phone. I pull up my to do list, ignoring the big bold sentence at the top of the list. I need to go get groceries, finish up my latest client’s project, and pick up the apartment a little bit.
My eyes stray to the thing at the top of the list and my heart kicks against my ribs as I read the words.
ANSON COMES HOME!!!
My heart is racing and I swallow hard as nerves hit me. Both my brother and Anson are in the Navy. They’re SEALs to be exact and they tend to get deployed pretty regularly. This is one of the only times they have been deployed together. They were split into separate teams for this last deployment and now Anson is coming home and my brother just left a few weeks ago to start his.
I’m both excited and nervous to be alone with Anson for so long. I know that he’ll have to do training and meetings on the base, but he’ll have some time off. We’ll be alone in this apartment every night, and I’m not sure that I’ll be able to hold myself back from confessing to him that I love him.
It will be nice not to be in this apartment all alone anymore. I try to focus on that and not that I’ll be alone with Anson as I pick up the kitchen and wipe down the counters. I’m not sure when Anson will get here but I’d like to have all of my errands done before he gets home.
My phone rings and I jump to answer it, wondering if it’s Anson. It’s not. Instead, it’s my best friend, Goldie.
“Hey, aren’t you at work?” I ask, and she sighs.
“Yeah, but I’m not doing anything. Boss Man is in a meeting so I’m just sitting here. Bored out of my mind.”
“And so, you thought of me,” I joke, and she laughs.
“I did. I’m glad that you get it,” she says. “So, today is the big day…”
“Yep.”
There’s a moment of silence where Goldie waits for me to start to ramble about Anson coming home. She’s been listening to me gush about him for the last fifteen years, and she’s all for me telling him how I feel. She doesn’t get that me telling him could ruin everything between us.
“He’s coming home today. I still need to go get groceries and clean up a bit, but he could be home at any time,” I start, and I know without her saying anything that she’s smiling.
“Why don’t you just tell him that you love him already?” She suggests for the millionth time.
“Because when he rejects me, it will ruin everything,” I remind her, and she sighs.
“Okay, then don’t say anything. Just walk around the apartment naked. When he gets home, just be like, ‘oh my gosh! I forgot that you were coming back today! This is so embarrassing,’ but like let him get a good look, and then he’ll just ravish you,” she says.
“Who is ravishing who?” Goldie’s boss asks.
“How was the meeting?” She counters, and I’m sure that he’s glaring at her.
