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“I love you, too,” he replies, taking a deep breath that stutters around us. “I got you a birthday gift.”
Raising my brow, I give him a small grin. “I told everyone no presents.”
He shrugs before lifting off my lap, picking up his book and handing me something from inside it. My throat dries when I see the picture of me, him, and Izzie in the backyard at Tris’s house, smiles on our faces.
“I thought you could stick it to the side of your chair so we’re always here with you.”
My hand flutters to the base of my throat, rubbing against the lump. “Clay,” I whisper, my voice barely audible. “This is perfect.”
Looking back at him, he smiles wide before asking, “Can I come over more now we’re friends again?”
“Of course you can,” I tell him, looking up as a shadow appears from the doorway of the kitchen.
Nate gives me his secret smile, his gaze moving to Clay as he says, “Head on out back, bud. Food is ready.”
Clay nods, giving me one last hug before spinning around and heading through the kitchen, leaving me, Nate, and my new favorite picture.
“You okay?” he asks, moving toward me and crouching down.
I consider the question, wondering if I am okay. And when peace washes through me mixed in with the laughter from outside and Frankie’s cries, I nod because I know I am; in fact, I’m more than okay—I’m finally home.
I hear the distinct strumming of a guitar as I wheel down the hallway, followed by Maya’s raspy voice as she sings a line in the song she’s been working on. She told me just last week something has unlocked within her recently and she’s been flooded with lyrics she just has to write down. I pause at the start of the living room, watching as her eyes close before she strums one last time and puts the guitar down next to her on the sofa. She writes something in her notebook she’s always carrying around with her before picking up her cell and I clap my hands to announce myself, causing her to jump out of her skin.
“Oh my God!” Her hand flies to her chest as she jumps up off the sofa, her cell flying over the floor and coming to a stop in front of me. “You shouldn’t sneak up on people like that!”
Raising my brow at her, I say, “We’re Nate free.”
“We are?” she asks, her lips quirking up on one side.
Since I moved in with Nate he’s been at home almost all of the time, only going into the city when it’s absolutely necessary.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to have him here all of the time, but sometimes I need a break from him. Maya comes to visit more than anyone else, and we’ve developed a friendship that has her talking openly with me—boys being the main topic of conversation.
So today when Nate had to go into the office for the first time in weeks, I practically fist bumped the air knowing Maya was coming over.
I nod my head in confirmation, waving at myself and the clothes I’m wrapped up in.
“What’s the plan?” she asks, her eyes lighting up with mischief.
“I thought we could head over to the lake, maybe even dip our toes in the water.” I barely contain my smile as she widens her eyes.
“But… you… I…”
“Chill out, Maya. I’m joking.”
“I swear, you’re out to get me.” Shaking her head, she walks toward me and picks up her cell. “Let’s get going.”
Wheeling toward the kitchen, I halt when I look down at my feet. Even though I can’t physically walk through the woods, I still want to have the feeling like I am.
“Can you do me a favor?” I ask her. “Could you grab my walking boots from the bedroom?”
Shrugging, she spins around and heads back up the hallway while I lean down and take the Converse off my feet one at a time.
“Are these them?” Maya asks a couple of minutes later, holding up the walking boots Nate bought me all that time ago. I’d refused to wear them because they hadn’t been worn in, but right now it doesn’t matter, so I say, “Yeah.”
Taking them from her, I place them on my lap, sorting the laces out before bending down and trying to get them on my feet. The hardness of the new boots makes it almost impossible to do it myself, and when sweat starts to bead on my forehead, I throw my hands up in the air. “Can you help me?” I ask Maya, hating that those words have come out of my mouth but wanting to go to the lake for an hour to see the view and watch the water as I remember what it felt like against my skin.
“Sure.” Her eyes meet mine, a softness and understanding shining in their depths before she kneels down, taking one of the boots and pushing my left foot inside it, tying the laces before moving to the right foot.
