Page 146 of Anyone But Her

Chapter Twenty-Seven

End of August

Taylor

"Can't you pack later?" Luke asks, pulling me back down on the bed.

"I could, but I really need to start now or I'll forget stuff."

"If you do I'll drive up there and drop it off. It'll be an excuse to see you."

"You don't need an excuse. You can come visit whenever you want."

It's the end of August and I'm leaving for school in a few days. I'm excited to go back but also sad because I'll miss Luke. But at least things are better for him now. A lot better. He has his own apartment that overlooks a golf course.

Getting his own place was good for our relationship. We finally have privacy and can do what we want without getting annoying looks from my dad or Cal. My dad still isn't thrilled I'm dating Luke and he gives us disapproving looks when he sees us holding hands. Cal is the same way. He accepts that I'm dating Luke but if we kiss when he's around he gets really annoyed and tells us to stop.

Luke's family has no problem with us dating. His mom loves me. I think his dad likes me but it's hard to tell because he doesn't say much. He's not much of a talker. He did make a comment that I'm a lot better than some of the other girls Luke dated. I asked Luke what his dad meant by that but he wouldn't tell me. He didn't want to talk about former girlfriends. He says that part of his life is over. Now he only wants me. He wants a future with me.

I'm not sure I can commit to that yet. I love Luke and could see us together in the future, but I'm worried that having a long distance relationship might change things between us. We'll talk on the phone and text but it won't be the same as seeing each other every day. And with our busy schedules it might be hard to find time to even talk on the phone. I'm worried we'll grow apart.

"What's wrong?" Luke asks as I lie on his chest. "You seem sad."

"I am sad. I don't want to leave you. I'm excited about going back to college but I'm sad that I won't see you anymore."

"Hmm." He kisses my head. "That is a problem, isn't it?"

I sit up. "You don't seem that upset over it."

"I don't?"

"No." I notice his lips turn up, which irritates me. I push on his shoulder. "Why are you smiling? You're supposed to be sad!"

He frowns. "Is that better?"

"No. Because you're just pretending. Why aren't you sad? Aren't you going to miss me?"

"For a couple weeks, yeah, I'll miss you like crazy."

"And then what? You won't miss me anymore?" I'm getting a little concerned. Is he just going to move on after I leave? Forget about me and find someone else?

"I won't need to miss you."

"You're not making any sense."

He sits up. "Did I tell you my coach is moving?"

I turn so that I'm facing him on the bed, folding my legs in front of me. "Your golf coach is moving? Like leaving town? But you love that guy."

"He's the best coach I've ever had. Improved my game a million percent. Well, maybe not a million but he's made a huge difference in how well I play. I actually feel like I could compete with the pros now."

"But he's leaving so what are you going to do?"

"Go with him."

"What?"

"I'm going to move. I can't give him up. He's the perfect coach for me. He knows my weaknesses. Knows my strengths. When you find the perfect match, you don't just let it go."

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