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When I pressed the Accept button, his gorgeous face filled my phone screen, and I smiled. I’d had flashbacks of sorts whenever we first started video chatting. Considering the fact that the last time I’d seen him was on my phone as he dumped me, being a little triggered seemed normal. I hadn’t expected it, but it’d faded quickly. Now, whenever I saw his face, I got happy and giddy.
I couldn’t help it.
“Hey, baby.” Tyson yawned, and I ran my finger down the screen, touching his cheek like either one of us could feel it.
“It’s so early there,” I said, as if he wasn’t aware of this fact.
“Our call time got pushed up. We need a sunrise shoot apparently.”
“How are you not exhausted?” I asked because the man worked insane hours.
There were script rewrites and new lines that needed to be learned for the next day’s shoot, last-minute location adjustments, and call-time changes. It was all part of the production and usually couldn’t be helped, but going through the day-to-day with Tyson really made me appreciate the level of commitment he had to bring to a project.
“I am exhausted. I can’t wait to come home to you, Eve. I miss you so much. I’m ready to take a break.”
“I miss you too. I can’t wait to open my eyes and see you there.” I grinned into the phone, and he smiled back.
I’d thought about it so many times even though we hadn’t officially discussed what we’d do when he moved back home. Living in different areas probably wasn’t a big deal to most people, but in Southern California, it was almost long-distance in its own right. It could take hours to get from my place to Tyson’s. And I hated leaving Orange County anytime that I was forced to do it for work. Dread filled me the second I got onto the freeway, wondering how much of my day would be wasted in traffic.
The flip side was that the majority of the movie studios and film stages were in Los Angeles County, where Tyson lived. I couldn’t ask him to always come out to Newport Beach and be the one who had to commute. It was the exact same dilemma and conversation I’d had with myself every single day since he had gotten on that plane with no solution in sight.
“I can see the wheels spinning in your head. What’s up?” he asked.
I wanted to be irritated that he could read me so well, but it was comforting and kind of romantic.
“No, it’s nothing.” I waved him off, shaking my head at the screen. I didn’t want to bring him down or talk about this while he was working. Plus, there wasn’t any rush to figure it all out this instant. It was just something I’d been thinking about.
“You’re sure?” he pushed.
“Promise.” I gave him a soft smile and changed the subject. “But…” I paused before adding, “JJ is looking at all your socials to find her next date.”
He let out a laugh so loud that it made me look around to make sure no one was listening in. I had forgotten we were in private.
“She wasn’t kidding about one of my friends, huh?”
“Apparently not.”
“I might have someone in mind,” he said with a satisfied nod. Before I could ask for more details, I heard a loud knock on his hotel room door, and he told me he had to go. “I love you. I’ll talk to you later.”
“I love you too,” I said before ending the call and pressing the phone against my chest.
Who would have guessed that the same two kids who had fallen for one another in college would find their way back to each other as adults and give their love a second chance?
The thought had always lingered in the back of my mind like a perfect romance novel, but I’d never held on to it. It had hurt too much to live in the fantasy of what-ifs and if-onlys with Tyson Hunter.
But now that it was really happening and the two of us were back together… I was never letting go.
KEY EXCHANGE
EVE
SIX MONTHS LATER
Tyson had come home from London months ago, given his notice on the show, and wrapped up filming in New York. They scrapped his character way sooner than he had anticipated, and he was released right away. He had sold his place in the city and sent all his belongings from there to my condo in Newport without telling me.
The other afternoon, I got home, and a hundred boxes were sitting in front of my garage. I had no idea what they were until I got out of my car and noticed Tyson’s name on all of them. Reaching for my cell, I pressed his contact and waited for him to pick up.
“Tyson, why are there boxes with your name on them sitting in my driveway?”
