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“No problem.” He eased me back down onto the bed, and I turned to reach for a tissue.
“I’ll be right back.” He went into my bathroom and rifled around in my makeup basket, returning with two makeup remover pads.
My laugh sounded watery. “What are you doing?”
He sat down, pulling the pads away from my reaching hand. “You do not want to see this.” He drew a circle in the air around my face.
My mouth gaped open at his audacity.
He nodded, his eyes twinkling. “Now be a good girl and close your eyes so I can relieve you of the raccoon mask.”
I laughed again. It sounded better that time.
Gently, he swabbed the pad around my eyes. “There. I think it’s safe for you to go and finish up. Then you need to come and lock your door because I have to get back to Brayleigh so Hope can go home.”
I took a shaky breath and swung my legs off the bed. Looking at myself in the mirror, I admitted he was right to get a jump on things. Red, blotchy, and swollen. How much worse it must have been with mascara running down my face.
I quickly finished the job he started and slapped on my night cream before following him to the door.
“Minty.” He dragged the back of his knuckles down the side of my face. “I want you to come and meet my family. We’re having a barbecue for Canada Day in a couple of weeks. I already told my sisters you might be coming. They’re very excited to meet you. They’ll probably be obnoxious.” He stopped talking and stared down at me. With his thumb he smoothed a line over my eyebrow and whispered, “Come. You’re the first girl I’ve brought home since prom.”
I laughed and turned my cheek into his palm.
“You think I’m joking,” he chuckled. “Will you come?”
I cleared my throat. “Yes. I’ll come. Um, will Hope be there?”
His brow furrowed. “She usually comes. I can ask her not to.”
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll come.”
His eyes searching mine once more, he leaned in and brushed a gentle kiss on my trembling lips. He opened his mouth as if to say something, then seemed to change his mind and straightened up.
“Lock the door, baby.”
“Goodnight, Captain.”
He laughed as he made his way back down the stairs.
I went to bed and cuddled under the blankets we’d left in a tangle from our lovemaking the night before and dared to dream.
Chapter Twenty-Three-Boundaries
Minty
Monday morning, it all came together. The Board, the sponsors, and the funding. The initiative was to provide underwear. Anything else that came in the care package was a bonus, and there were a lot of bonuses.
Apparently, wealthy women found the indignity of not having underwear utterly appalling.
Which was good for us.
The only other time I’d seen something like this come together so quickly was related to a food scarcity program. And it was to that star we hitched our wagon.
With only two weeks left of school, I’d entertained more than a few doubts.
“You look,” Junie cocked her head to the side, her sky-blue eyes flitting over my face with concern, “puffy.”
I turned to offer her a reassuring smile. “Lucky and I had a misunderstanding. It’s settled now.”
