Page 141 of Always You

My eyes widen in shock, not knowing what to think of this. “He confessed he loved me when he was still here?”

“Pretty much. Look,” she continues, “he thinks he doesn’t deserve you. But trust me when I tell you, he loves you. It’s written in his eyes. Even a blind man can see the love he feels for you. He’s just a scared fool.”

I stare at the countertop for a while, replaying Mama’s words over in my head.

“If that’s true… what do I do?”

“Nothing, sweetheart.” She gets up and presses a kiss to my hair. “It will work out. Your souls are linked. They will never be able to stay apart for long.” On that note, she grabs her bag from the counter, ready to head out, as if she didn’t just drop a hugebomb in my lap. “I’m going. We might go for drinks later, so don’t wait up.”

I give her a small wave and mutter,“Bye, Mama,”still stunned about her confession. Part of me wants to believe it, meaning the big part pounding against my ribcage, but my mind is telling me to let it go, to stop hurting myself by thinking this is more than just friends. My heart is begging me to not let my mind get in the way, but too much has happened for me to fully give it control like that. He’s engaged to someone else, for crying out loud.

Brushing my thoughts away, I get up, just as the doorbell rings, and head over to open the door.

“I brought food.” Julie smiles wide, holding up a bag from the sushi restaurant.

“You’re the best!”

She walks in, her denim playsuit snug around her hips, and I follow her to the kitchen, where she puts the bag in the fridge for later.

“Saw your mama heading out.”

“Yeah, she’s going out to dinner with a friend. She actually said something weird just now.”

“Yeah, what’s that?” She leans over the counter with an intrigued look on her face.

“She thinks Hunter is in love with me.”

Julie’s lashes flutter up and down, an anticipating look coming my way when nothing follows before she breaks out into a laugh. “That’s it? Babe, the entire town thinks Hunter is in love with you.”

“After all these years, still?” I ask, surprised. I can see how they did when we were still seniors in high school, but now? He’s been living in LA for the last five years, and I’ve been… well, here.

“Well, maybe not everyone still believes that, but the ones close to both of you? Yeah, for sure.”

“Do you?” A frown creases my forehead.

“Believe Hunter is in love with you? One hundred percent.”

“What?!” I call out.

“Don’t play dumb, Charlie. You might have needed some more time, but it was love at first sight for him.”

“You can’t be serious?”

“Dead,” she replies with a straight face.

“He loves me. I know that. But he’s notin lovewith me.”

“Charlotte Roux, that boy has been in love with you since the day you first met. He’s just too stupid to admit it.”

My head is spinning, and I grab the cold surface of the counter, trying to keep myself on my feet. Sucking in deep breaths, I shake my head, needing a minute to process this.

Because what if they are right? What if he really loves me, but is too scared to admit it? Am I going to let that slide? See if faith one day brings us back together? I don’t know. That’s a huge gamble, and I’m not sure my heart can handle it.

“I’m gonna take a quick shower,” I say, needing a minute to order my thoughts. “I’ll be back in twenty minutes.”

“Sure, girl.”

A few hours later, I’m making our third cocktail with our bellies full of sushi while chatting at the breakfast bar. After the shower, I pushed my thoughts aside, not willing to address anything Hunter Hansen right this minute.

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