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“Be back before the wedding,” he says, as if he’s telling me to convince not only me but himself as well.
“I’ll be here,” I reply on an exhaled breath.
His eyes find mine, his gaze focused and unbreaking as he stares at me. We don’t move, don’t speak, we just watch one another. Then he clears his throat and takes a step backward. “You will, won’t you, Piper?”
I don’t think he really wants me to answer that, but I do anyway. “I will, Itch.”
“Kyle,” he oddly blurts out.
“Kyle?” I ask.
“My name.”
“Kyle,” I whisper.
He hums.
“Kyle Perez.”
I hear his whole name, then think about what that means for me. Mrs. Kyle Perez. Piper Perez. Without meaning to, I burst out laughing. His brows knit together, obviously confused. Holding up my hand, I try to contain myself.
“My name is going to be Piper Perez,” I explain. “P.P.”
His lips twitch into a smile, and I watch his shoulders shake slightly. It’s such a stupid thing to even think about, but I can’t help it’s what entered my head immediately.
“What’s your middle name?” he asks.
“Lou, after my father.”
He wrinkles is nose, and I don’t blame him at all. My father is not somebody I would ever want to name anyone after, let alone share his name. But I think my mother thought it would keep her in his good graces since he wasn’t thrilled to have a daughter. He only wanted boys.
“Piper Lou Perez,” he murmurs.
I wish I could change my middle name, maybe my first, too. It’s a silly thing to want to change, and it’s not as if my mother knew who I would marry, or that my father ever thought I would ever actually get married. He knew what I would be used for the second I was born, and if my mother didn’t think that’s what would happen to me, then she was naïve.
“I don’t hate the sound of it,” Itch says. “Piper Perez,” he murmurs again, as if trying it on. “Yeah. I like it.”
My cheeks heat, and I know they’re probably red. Sinking my teeth into my bottom lip, I watch him for a moment, and then release my lip and give him a smile. “I’m glad you like it, because that’s what it’s going to be,” I quip.
He chuckles. “Yeah, babe.”
We stare at one another for a long moment before he clears his throat and lifts his hand. “I gotta head out, babe.”
“Okay.”
There’s something about the way he’s lingering. I don’t think he wants to leave, but I don’t know how to say that. He says he has to go, and it’s going to be for days, but I already know it’s not my place to ask anything. Even when I’m his wife, it’s never my place to ask questions.
“I’ll see you soon, Kyle.”
His lips curve up into a smile, he dips his chin, then turns and walks out of the room, leaving me alone with my new phone and credit card.
I stare at both items in wonder.
ITCH
Leaving Piper to her phone and credit card, I head toward the bar. I don’t sit down, but I do ask for a shot. I don’t give a fuck what the shot is I have a couple of meetings today, and I need all the liquid courage I can get.
“You ready?” Roadkill asks.
