Page 4 of Waiting to Love You

“I don’t believe that one bit, Bristol.”

“And why is that?”

“I know we just met, but you have to admit there’s something here between us. It might be nothing, but it might also be everything. I only want a chance to find out.”

“I can’t.” She turns to leave, but I grip her arm, pulling her to a stop.

“Why?”

“Why? Can’t you take no for an answer?” she huffs, wrapping her arms around her waist as if she’s trying to protect herself from some unknown threat. Her eyes remain focused on a spot on the floor, and my heart aches at the thought of not being able to catch another glimpse of her beautiful eyes. My hand moves on its own, resting my finger below her chin and forcing her to look at me.

“You haven’t actually told me no yet, darlin’.” I grin, my eyes searching her face for any hint as to why she’s fighting so hard to resist the connection between us.

“You’re a Marine,” she blurts out, taking a step away from me and turning around. “I refuse to tie myself to a man who will come in and out of my life every few months. Been there, done that.”

“But…” I begin, wanting to tell her that the separation is only temporary. The end of my contract is coming after our next deployment. We can take our time finding out where things might go between us and then decide together whether this is something worth pursuing, but I don’t get a chance. Bristol immediately cuts me off.

“But nothing, Seth,” she snaps, not even bothering to turn around. “Thanks for offering to help me clean up after class, but I got it from here.”

I open my mouth to say something but decide against it. My mind is racing with a million questions, wanting to know who hurt her so badly that she doesn’t even want to take a chance to see where things would lead with me.

“See you at Crawdaddy’s, darlin’,” I mutter, planting a soft kiss on the back of her head before turning on my heels and striding out the door.

I know in my heart that there is something between Bristol and me. I just need to figure out how to help her see how good we can be together. I’m only going to be a Marine for another two years, and then, who knows? Right now, the only other thing I want to be is hers.

Chapter 2

Bristol

Three Months Later

“Are you sure we can’t just stay here and watch Golden Girls?” I ask Leia as I grab one of the many outfits she’s picked out for me and pull it on before turning toward the mirror. “With how many people I know your dad invited, no one is going to miss us.”

Leia called me about an hour ago and told me she was on her way over before hanging up on me. This isn’t anything out of the ordinary for Leia. If it wasn’t for her, I’d spend most of my time at home, watching Golden Girls reruns and eating peanut butter out of the jar with a spoon. I know it’s not the healthiest of food options, but it’s my favorite.

The moment Leia walked through the door, she shoved me towards the bathroom and demanded I take a shower because we were going out. I grumbled for a few minutes but eventually headed towards the bathroom, where I found Leia on a video call with our other friend, Audrey, trying to choose the perfect outfit for me to wear on this mysterious outing.

“No. You need to go somewhere other than Nurture Space every once in a while.” Audrey snorts as she rolls her eyes at us through the computer screen.

Audrey Wilde and I have been friends since right after my dad was stationed at the military base in New Orleans. My family rented the house a few blocks down from hers instead of living in base housing. My dad had promised my mom this would be the last move, and we would finally put down roots as a family, but as always, he was lying.

Honestly, if I had known that we were going to move again in a few years, Audrey and I probably never would have become friends in the first place, but I’m glad that I didn’t. Audrey and I needed each other back then. I knew the minute I saw her standing at the bus stop with her dark curly hair pulled into a messy bun at the top of her head and her body enveloped in clothes that were obviously two sizes too big that she needed a friend as much as I did.

She tried to keep me at arm’s length, especially when we were at school, but slowly, I convinced her to lower the walls she had up around her heart and slowly let me in. After a few months, she told me she was pregnant by the most popular guy in school and that he wanted nothing to do with her or the baby. Instead of pushing her aside like she expected, I wrapped her in my arms and promised to babysit whenever she needed help.

My parents were the same way, especially after her parents were killed in a car accident. Neither of them hesitated to offer Audrey a place to stay with us, making sure she and her daughter felt as if they were a part of our family, because they were. My parents told her she was welcome to stay for as long as she needed.

But, of course, duty called, and my father was transferred to Tennessee shortly after Love’s first birthday. I begged Audrey to come with us, but she was determined to make a life of her own for the two of them. The two of us have stayed in touch with weekly video calls and almost daily phone calls, even through college. We are as close as two people can be, with hundreds of miles between us. We tell each other everything, even our deepest, darkest secrets.

“Starting a business from scratch is hard,” I retort before pulling off my outfit and reaching for another one off the bed.

After graduating college, instead of chasing my parents around the country until my dad retired, I came back to Tyson’s Creek with Leia. Once I got my bearings, I combined my love for yoga and a business degree to open a yoga studio. Business has been all right—nothing too spectacular, but steady—thanks to all of Leia’s family for their support. I’d love nothing more than to have Audrey right here with me, helping to run the business. It would be a win-win for everyone involved.

“You could always move here. Love and I would love to have you live closer to us,” Audrey retorts quickly.

“She isn’t moving there. I’d miss her too much.” Leia grabs the set of clothes I’m holding and shoves another into my hands. “You could always move here. Audrey.”

“Yeah, what she said.”

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