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She narrowed her eyes. “How bad is it?”
I shrugged, not meeting her eyes. “Not terrible.”
“So, pretty bad. What is it?”
“Well…Nathan and I have decided to move in together. This weekend.”
“You mean tomorrow?” Brooklyn’s eyes widened. “That’s soon, isn’t it?”
“It is.” My fidgeting increased. “But it’s the logical next step. Why wait, you know? We’re in love and getting married, we live close to each other…everything is already in motion.”
“Then why do you seem so uneasy about thislogical next step?” Brooklyn bent to catch my eye. “Nathan didn’t pressure you into this, did he?”
“No,” I reassured her. “It’s just the first time I’ll be living outside of Hemingway. Even in college, I lived at home. And what will happen to my dad when I leave? He doesn’t really have many friends, not many people to keep him company…”
“So you’re worried about your dad?” She leaned in. “Is everything okay? Has he been depressed lately?”
“Well…” I scratched my elbow. “No, not really.”
“Ah,” Brooklyn said, sitting back. “I get it now.”
Now it was my turn to narrow my eyes. “Get what?”
“You’re scared.”
“I’m not scared!” I protested.
“You are,” Brooklyn returned. “But it’s normal. First time living away from home, getting married to a guy you met on the internet…there’s a lot to be worried about.”
“When you say it like that, it sounds so bad.” I laughed. “‘Guy you met on the internet’ makes him seem like a hermit that spends all his time online, trying to pick up women.”
Brooklyn shrugged. “If the shoe fits.”
I threw a pillow at her, and she laughed, too, swatting me back. “In all seriousness, though,” she said as we settled down. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. Nathan seems like a decent guy. And he’s obviously loaded. What could go wrong?”
Yeah, I thought to myself.What could ever go wrong?
ChapterTwenty-Two
NATHAN
Ciara and I agreed to meet late in the afternoon the next day, Sunday, to give her enough time to pack her stuff. What I didn’t tell her, though, was that it also gave me enough time to make sure my house was in order. Literally.
I was a pretty neat person by design, but I still went through every room, making sure there were no stray pairs of underwear and that each room was inviting.
Midway through the day, though, I started to panic. Would she feel comfortable here? She had been at my place before, but it was under entirely different circumstances. She wasn’tlivinghere at the time.
By the time Ciara called to let me know she had finished packing, I had cleaned and recleaned each room, gone grocery shopping and bought triple the amount of food I usually bought, and called Mack for advice. I was desperate for a successful cohabitation with Ciara, and I was losing my ever-loving mind trying to make sure it was.
“Are…you okay?” Ciara asked slowly. “You seem out of breath. I hope I didn’t interrupt you or anything—”
“No, you’re good,” I assured. “You ready for me to pick you up?”
“Yes. I don’t have a lot of stuff, so we don’t have to borrow Harold’s truck like you mentioned yesterday.”
“Great!” My voice sounded strained, even to my ears. “I’ll be there soon.”
“Okay,” she said, still sounding unsure. “See you soon.”
