Page 90 of Dreaming of Dawson

“You do?”

“Yeah. I need to go back to my aunt’s.”

“What for?” I ask and she smiles, like I’m being foolish. It’s a feeling I’m beginning to share… not for the first time. I’d assumed she’d want to stay here for as long as possible, not leave at the first opportunity.

“Because I don’t have any clean clothes,” she says, stating the obvious and I nod my head, realizing the error of my ways. “And unfortunately, although I don’t usually work on Wednesdays, I have to today.”

“You do?”

“Yes. Peony took a call yesterday, and one of the brides we’re dealing with is asking us to move her entire seating arrangement around, with very little time to spare.”

“I see,” I say, unable to hide the disappointment from my voice.

“Hey…” She bends slightly, getting my attention. “I’ll be back later.”

“To work?”

“To be with you,” she says.

“And you wanna keep doing things that way, do you?” I ask. “You wanna do your job at the apple orchard in the mornings and then come here for your shift in the afternoons?”

“Yeah, I do. I enjoy my job with Peony, and I don’t wanna give it up… but if it’s okay with you, I’d like to make a few changes to what I do when I’m here.”

“You would?” I step back slightly, fear gripping my heart as I notice the goosebumps on her arms. “You’re cold,” I whisper and pull her with me out of the shower, grabbing a towel from the shelf and wrapping it around her before pulling her close in my arms. “Is that better?”

“Yes, thank you.” She looks up into my eyes and I kiss her forehead, just briefly.

“What do you wanna change?” I ask, needing to know.

“I’d like to come over straight after I’ve finished at Peony’s. You don’t have to pay me any more, but I’d like to be here… with you.”

Thank God for that.

I hold her closer still, unable to stop myself from smiling. “I want you to be here, too, babe… and of course I’ll pay you.”

That said, it feels wrong to be treating her like an employee after everything we’ve done. But I’m not sure how to get around that. Not yet. It’s something I’ll have to think about…

“I—I could bring some clothes back with me, if you want?” she says, stammering slightly, like she thinks I won’t be absolutely thrilled with that idea.

“Does that mean you’ll be able to stay over without having to rush back to your aunt’s?”

“Yes.”

“In that case, bring as many clothes as you want.”

She giggles. The bells are still there, but I’m getting used to them now, and I rub my hands up and down her back, partly to dry her off, but mostly because I like it. She pulls backeventually and reaches behind me, grabbing a second towel and handing it to me.

“Shall we see if there’s time for us to have our first breakfast together?”

I nod my head, grinning, and wrap the towel around my hips, taking her hand and leading her out of the bathroom and back to my bedroom. The bed’s a wreck, but that’s not surprising. I slept in it… at least for a few hours, and I leave Macy drying herself, and wander over to the nightstand, checking the time.

“It’s seven-fifteen,” I say, turning back to her.

“That’s okay. As long as I leave here by eight-thirty, I should be fine.”

That only gives us just over an hour, and I think we both realize that’s not very long. It’s not long enough for us, anyway.

“Do you want me to go grab your clothes from the other room?” I ask as Macy quickly towel-dries her hair.

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