AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She gave him one last smile and went inside, digging out her phone before the door was even shut behind her. She dialed Rafe’s number and he answered on the first ring.
“Hi,” he said, his voice low and breathy. “You called.”
“I missed you,” she replied, saying exactly what she was feeling without thinking.
“Can I see you?” he asked immediately.
“Yes,” she said.
“Are you at home?”
“I just got in.”
She could already hear him moving. His breathing sped up as he hurried, and she could hear objects rustling as he gathered his things. “I’ll be there in half an hour—wait. Can I bring Daisy?”
For some reason that made her laugh. “Of course,” she replied.
“I’ll be there soon.”
Rafe made it there in twenty minutes. Abbe was barely out of the shower and dressed when she heard a car door slam, the sound of fast steps coming up the driveway, and the clinking of Daisy’s dog tags. She opened the door before he knocked.
“I’m sorry,” he said, stepping forward immediately and sweeping her up into a hug.
“I overreacted,” she said, speaking over him as he kicked the door closed behind them and moved them deeper into the room.
“No, you didn’t. What happened was like begging someone to give you an interview, and then not even bothering to show up,” he said, putting it in business terms, which Abbe knew he understood much better than relationships. “I’d be incensed.”
She laughed lightly, winding her arms around his neck. “But I’m not angry. I never was.”
“You were hurt,” he said. “Which is worse.”
She nodded, running her fingers through the hair on the back of his head. “Your sister came to visit me,” she said.
His eyes flashed, expecting the worst. “What did she say?”
“Something that worked in your favor, obviously,” Abbe said, making Rafe laugh.
His smile fell quickly. “Abbe, I’m not going to make a lot of promises and tell you I’ll never cancel on you again or I’ll never miss a date, or any of that impossible shit.”
“It’s not fair of me to expect you to.” She let out a sigh. “I’m trying to get past this, Rafe, I really am.”
He dipped his head in acknowledgment. “Iamgoing to prove to you that you can count on me, though.”
“You don’t have to prove anything,” she said, pulling his mouth down to meet hers.
Fifteen
Abbe stayed in bed with Rafe as long as she could on Sunday morning, but finally had to pull herself out of his warm arms.
“But what if we’ve had it all wrong, and our pets actually prefer to sleep in? What ifwe’rethe ones wakingthem?” he protested, trying to shift Abbe under him. Again.
She was giggling so much her joints were turning to jelly. “Rafe, I have so many appointments today! I’ve got to get all of these animals adopted.”
He finally rolled onto his back, giving up. “Fine! Go save some lonely man from his misery.” He looked at her warningly. “With a dog. Not by kissing him in the park.”
Abbe stopped pulling on clothes and turned back to look at him. “I did not kiss you. You kissed me,” she said.
“Ha!” Rafe exclaimed. He read her expression. “Oh, you really think I kissed you, don’t you?” He shook his head like she was crazy. “You literally jumped on me.”
