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I let out a snort as I typed back.
Me:I don’t even know what that means.
Colbie:It’s like that weird mind-meld thing that twins have, but for bestest friends.
God, my friend was ridiculous.
Colbie:Just admit it. You heart the guy. There’s nothing wrong with that.
I sat up, staring down at the text thread as I chewed on my thumbnail nervously.
Me:Don’t you think it’s a little too soon?
Those three little dots appeared, blinking on and off on my screen for a solid minute before her reply came through.
Colbie:Are you kidding? You guys have been circling each other since you were twelve years old. I told you there was something more than hate there. And the only people who have the right to decide what’s too soon are you and Beau. Are you happy?
I pulled in a deep breath, holding it in my lungs for five seconds before slowly letting it out. Then I replied,Insanely.
Colbie:Then that’s all that matters.Oh, crap. Gotta go. A murder of high schoolers just came in for an after-school fix. About to be slammed.
I let out a laugh, feeling lighter now that I’d talked everything through with Colbie.
Me:Isn’t it a murder supposed to be for crows?
Colbie:You ever been stuck in the middle of a group of teenagers, all jonesing for caffeine? Well I have, and murder is more than accurate. Talk later. Love ya!
I tossed my phone aside and looked around the bright, airy living room. I really did love Beau’s place. And the fact that he wanted me here only made me that much more comfortable in his space.
With nothing else to do, I got back to unpacking. A couple hours later, his office was set up, and all that was left were things like miscellaneous phone and computer chargers and random keys, the kind of stuff every person in America had tucked into the weirdest places in their homes. I was pretty sure I had chargers for phones I hadn’t had since my early twenties tossed away in my nightstand.
And that was exactly where this stuff was going to go. Out of sight, out of mind. Then Beau would well and truly be unpacked.
I slid the drawer open on the nightstand on his side of the bed and was about to toss the junk in when I spotted a spiral-bound notebook sitting in the drawer. I knew it wasn’t my place to snoop, but my curiosity got the best of me when one of the pages inside slipped out partially, and couldn’t help myself.
Sitting down on the bed, I flipped the cover back and lost my breath, because staring back at me was page after page of my own face.
Chapter Thirty-One
BEAU
My mother had been blowingmy phone up all day. But with work and practice and meetings with the athletic department to discuss the season opener next week, I hadn’t had time to take her calls. I told myself I’d call her back, but now that my work day was over, all I could think about was that Presley would be there when I got home from work and how fucking much I loved that.
All damn day I’d thought about her, not that I didn’t do that every single day already, but it was different, knowing she was spending her day off at my house by herself. I loved the thought of her relaxing on my couch or maybe taking a nap in my bed. I could just picture her walking around barefooted, humming quietly the way she always did. I wanted her to be comfortable, for my place to feel like hers. I wanted her to make my home her own, because she was mine, and I was never letting her go.
I wasn’t delusional enough to think I’d ever be good enough for her, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me from wanting to build a life with her. I might not deserve her, but there was one thing I knew for a fact. No one would ever love her like I would. I’d give everything I had to my name for a chance to make hersmile. But patience was key. I told her I was perfectly happy to wait for her to catch up, so that was what I intended to do.
A grin split my face in two when I pulled into my driveway and spotted her car sitting there. Right where it belonged.
“Bubbles,” I called the instant I pushed through the door. “I’m home.”
I stepped into the living room and stopped in my tracks, my feet rooted to the floor. When I’d left this morning, boxes had crowded the space. Now they were gone. Everything looked absolutely perfect. I was officially unpacked, and it was all thanks to Presley. My Bubbles.
“I see you’ve been busy,” I said with a laugh as I headed down the hall toward the bedroom I soon hoped to share with her full-time. “I’d tell you I had every intention of getting to that myself, but I think we both know that would be a lie?—”
The words died on my tongue when I turned and stepped across the threshold into the bedroom. Presley was there, sitting in the very center of the bed with her legs folded crisscross and my sketchbook stretched out in front of her.
She looked up, her eyes connecting with mine, and my chest tightened when I couldn’t place what I was seeing on her face. There was surprise there, for sure, but I wasn’t sure what else. Was she bothered by finding a book of drawings that were all of her? Did it creep her out? Was it too much for her, knowing I had those because I needed a piece of her with me? Christ, I wish I could tell, but her expression was giving me nothing.
