Page 25 of Waiting to Love You

“No more worrying. Everything will turn out just fine.” Leia throws her arm over my shoulder as we walk toward the entrance.

I take two steps before I freeze, my eyes widening in surprise. I was hoping to have more time before I ran into the root of all my problems. More time to come up with a plan on how to deal with all the warring emotions running through me. But fate had other plans.

“Seth.”

Chapter 7

Bristol

“Hello, Bristol.” His gravelly voice sends a shiver down my spine. It should be illegal for this man to still have this kind of effect on me after all this time.

“How have you been?” Seth stares at me intensely, waiting for me to reply, but I honestly have no words.

I can see the question in his eyes, like he’s trying to understand why I’m being so standoffish. I would love nothing more than to throw my arms around his neck and breathe in his scent, letting him know how much I’ve missed him, but the world doesn’t work like that. People change. How do I know if he wants anything to do with me anymore?

My eyes roam his body, cataloging everything about him. Seth looks almost exactly like he did the last time I saw him. His skin is a little darker, but being in the desert sun will do that to you. The addition of a scruffy beard gives him a rugged “mountain man” look that makes him even more delicious than before. I clench my hands into fists, resisting the urge to brush the few strands resting on his forehead out of his face.

“Hey, Seth. How have you been?” Leia breaks the silence as she squeezes my shoulder.

Seth tears his eyes away from me to focus on her, giving us both a bright smile. “Hey, Leia. I’ve been good. Just got out of the Marines and decided Tyson’s Creek was a good place to settle down.”

His eyes shift slightly in my direction, leaving no room for confusion. Seth is back in Tyson’s Creek for a reason: me. Wait. He’s staying here. For good? My entire body stiffens as images of us taking Rebekah to the park or having someone to wake up with her in the middle of the night flash through my head. I open and close my mouth a few times, trying to come up with the correct response, but my brain doesn’t want to cooperate.

Thankfully, Leia swoops in to save the day. “That’s great.”

“How have you been? Finally made an honest man out of Riggs?”

“I wouldn’t be caught dead within ten feet of that man if my brother didn’t force me to.”

“Keep telling yourself that,” Selina grumbles. “There is a very thin line between love and hate, my friend.”

“That there is,” Seth responds, his eyes shifting back towards me as if he’s waiting for me to say something.

The last thing I need is to give him the impression that he is getting to me or that I have something to hide. I do, but he doesn’t need to know that yet. Right now, my main concern is getting out of this situation. I can worry about the rest later.

“Where are you staying?” Audrey chimes in, saving me once again from having to say anything to Seth.

I scowl in her direction. The point was to end this conversation as quickly as possible. However, having more information about where he is will make him easier to avoid.

“With the Thomases.” He pauses, gripping the back of his neck. “Brady and I are staying in the apartment over the garage. It’s nothing special, but all I need is a bed to sleep in.”

Holy fucking shit! He’s practically my neighbor. There is no way in hell I’m going to be able to keep Rebekah a secret for long, but I need to try. I doubt he’ll take too kindly to seeing me walking down the street with a stroller when he is out for his morning jog. It would be practically impossible to pass her off as someone else’s child.

“Isn’t that a coincidence?” A sly smile crosses Selina’s face. “Bri lives?—”

I jab her in the side, stopping her from finishing that sentence.

“It was nice seeing you, Seth, but we have an appointment to get to. Trust me, you don’t want to stand in the way of four women and their spa day.” I laugh nervously as I rush past him toward the door of the coffee shop.

“Wait, Bristol.”

I turn around slowly, keeping my eyes focused on the ground.

Please don’t ask me out.

“I was wondering if you would like to get dinner together. I’d love to catch up with you.”

Seth steps closer as he reaches out and lifts my chin, and his golden-brown eyes take my breath away. “I’ve missed you,” he whispers before wrapping me in his arms.

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