Page 85 of Catching Feeling

“Love does that to you, I think. It makes you see the world differently. I’m not an expert, you know that. But I do know that you’re amazing, Viv. You’re confident, and beautiful inside and out. You deserve love and you deserve feeling the way that you do with Reese. Don’t miss the chance to experience it because you’re afraid.”

“Love you, space babe.”

“Love you more, my little murder maven. I’m glad to know that you’re happy here… you know I’ve been worried about you. I just haven’t wanted to push you too hard because I know you don’t like to talk about it, but I know you miss your dad. I’m always here for you, okay? No matter what. It’s me and you. Always.”

I nod. “Forever and ever.”

Hours later, after we crashed from our sugar high and passed out sometime during Unsolved Mysteries, my phone ringing wakes me. I crack an eye open and quickly answer the incoming FaceTime call so I don’t wake Hallie, who’s snoring lightly next to me, her legs entwined with mine.

“Hello?” I whisper sleepily as Reese comes into view. His dark hair is wet and unruly, and of course, to absolutely no surprise, he’s shirtless. The slight dimple in his cheek pops as he grins.

“’Sup, Sweet Tart. Missing me yet?”

My eyes roll, but I bite the inside of my lip to hold back my smile. “I miss you… doing the laundry. There’s a whole pile right he?—”

“Liar,” he cuts me off with a sly grin. “You know you miss my co?—”

I scramble up from the couch, almost tripping when the blanket gets caught in my legs. “Shhhh. Hallie is right here.”

Snickering, he shrugs. “Not like she hasn’t heard the word cock before, babe.”

“Yeah, but I’d rather her not hear you talking about yours being inside of me,” I say quietly as I tiptoe down the dark hallway and slip inside my room, shutting the door behind me. I turn the lamp on and lie down on the bed. The sheets still smell like him from the weekend we spent tangled in them, and it does make me miss him.

“Are you… wearing my T-shirt, Viv?” His eyes darken when they drop to my chest and see Hellcats Baseball Department stretched across it.

“I told you there was lots of laundry to be done. I didn’t have anything else to wear.”

He licks his lips and nods before dragging his gaze back to mine. “Mhmmmm. Guess I’m going to have to stop doing laundry if it means you’ll start wearing my stuff. Or maybe you’ll just have to be naked.”

“Caveman,” I tease as I tuck my hair behind my ear, then flip onto my stomach. “How was the game? I didn’t catch it because Hallie came over for a sleepover.”

“Good. We won, but the next game will be harder. It’s against a team that’s also 7-0, so it’ll be a first loss for either team, but I’m confident that we’ll take it home.” I watch as he moves from wherever he was sitting and walks through the hotel room.

“Are you rooming alone?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “Nah, we generally always have a roommate during away games. Too bad he’s not as hot as my actual roommate.” When he winks, my stomach flips. How is he so attractive literally at all times? “Grant’s my roomie for the night, but he went to grab us dinner. I’m fucking starving. You and Hallie have fun?”

“Yeah, we had a blast. I miss spending time with her. It feels like lately we’ve both had our own stuff happening, and I miss just being able to lie on the couch and binge-watch our favorite shows together. It was really good getting to spend time together, just the two of us.”

After tonight, I made a promise to myself to prioritize spending time with my best friend like we used to, no matter what has to take the back burner.

I missed nights like tonight.

“That’s great, babe. Listen, any time you wanna kick me out and spend the night with Hallie doing girly shit, like naked pillow fights, let me know. I’ll crash on Lane’s couch.” He smirks.

I’m about to respond when I see the door open behind him, and Grant strides in, a bag of takeout in each hand. “Hey, Viv,” he says with a wink, earning him a death glare from Reese and a giggle from me.

I lift my hand and wave. “Hi, Grant. Congrats on the win tonight.”

“Appreciate it, babe.”

“She is not your babe.” Reese scowls at Grant as he flits the camera back to him. “I’m gonna hop off and eat, then probably crash. Just wanted to see your face before bed.”

There are those stupid butterflies.

“Sounds good. I’ll be piling the laundry up while you’re gone so it’s ready for you when you come home.”

He laughs, low and deep, and I smirk as we say goodbye. Not even a full minute later, my phone vibrates with a notification, and I see his name pop up on my screen.

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