Page 50 of Counting the Stars

“I actually think I’ve heard that before.” I turn to him. “But only if their trunks are up.”

“That’s correct,” a feminine voice carries through the room. I pivot to see a petite woman in a blue dress suit. Her dark hair is pulled back into a perfect chignon that shows off a diamond pendant necklace with matching earrings. She exudes class and professionalism, which confuses me a bit because it’s well after midnight. At this hour, I’m usually in a sweatshirt and leggings; if I’m not working the night shift, of course. This must be the one and only Elena Jones.

“Hey, Mom.” Alex walks over and gives her a hug. It’s then I realize how much of a size difference there is between mother and son.

“Mom, this is Gabby. She’sthe oneI was telling you about.”

I blush at the way he enunciates the words. His mom must pick up on it too because she takes a step back in surprise before introducing herself.

“Hello, Gabby. It’s so nice to meet you. Alejandro has never brought someone home with him before… Not that he visitsvery often.” A condescending look washes over her face, but within seconds, she shifts back to being all business.

“It’s lovely to meet you as well. I’m so sorry to keep you up. We hit a bunch of traffic on the interstate.”

“Oh, you’re not keeping me up, dear. I only sleep a handful of hours a night.” She turns to her son. “I’m afraid your father has retired to bed already. He had a long day.”

“No problem at all.” Alex picks up our bags. “We’ll let him rest and see him in the morning.”

“I doubt it.” Elena tsks. “He has to be at the station at four a.m.”

“He didn’t take tomorrow off?”

“Of course not. The weather doesn’t take a day off and neither does he. He’ll make a few recordings tomorrow so the station can play those while we’re at the hall.”

“Hall? I thought you said it was going to be a small gathering at the house with caterers.” Suddenly, I’m feeling the panic that Alex is now vocalizing.

“Yes, that was the original plan, but then the food bank contacted us and said they were running low on donations. We decided to make it a charity event and sell tickets.”

“You sold tickets to your own anniversary dinner,” Alex says flatly.

“It’s for a good cause,mijo.” Elena’s face hardens. “There are people who need our help, and we are fortunate enough to be in a position to support them.”

“I know.” Alex’s shoulders tense as he adds, “I’m proud of the work you do.”

“It’s so good to have you back home.” Elena places a loving hand on her son’s forearm, then turns to me. “Gabriella, it was nice to meet you. I need to work on some final preparations for tomorrow and I’m sure you need to get some rest. You can stay in your old bedroom, but the guest house is also available.”

“Perfect. We’ll stay in the guest house.” Alex picks up his bag and escorts me out a side door after we say our goodbyes.

I zip up my hoodie as we make our way through a path lit with small solar lights. It’s not terribly cold, but the brief meeting with Elena left me with a chill. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that. Nothing went wrong with our introduction, but still, something just felt off. There’s something about the whole atmosphere of this place—it doesn’t give off warm and friendly vibes. Maybe I’m just tired from the drive.

“I’m kind of disappointed I don’t get to see your old bedroom,” I tease as we stop at a house that looks like an exact replica of the main one but on a much smaller scale.

“There’s nothing much to see. I took everything with me when I moved out. I only left some clothes in the closet in case I need them.”

I can tell meeting with his mother has left a mark, which makes me feel bad too. I want my fun-loving firefighter back, and I fear that this trip is going to be tough on him and I hate that. Alex drops his bags in front of the guest house and punches a code on the keypad next to the door. The lock unclicks and we walk inside.

“Wow.” I stop to take in my new surroundings. While the outside looks just like the main house, the inside to this place is much cozier. The place has an open concept with the living room and kitchen area sharing the same space. A dark blue sectional overlooks a beautiful stone fireplace, and built-in bookshelves fill an entire wall on one side. I’m disappointed to see that they’re filled with decorations instead of reading materials.

“The master bedroom is to the left and a smaller one is to the right. Both have their own bathrooms. You can have whichever one you like, or we can share.” I look at him and my heartflutters at the sound of sharing. Alex and I both had off the last few nights and have spent it cuddling on the couch watching TV. We have fallen asleep together each time and I’ve never woken up feeling so refreshed. It’s not a foreign experience for us to wake up together after a platonic night of rest. Well, except for a few kisses and did I say cuddling? Lots of cuddling.

“It would be nice to share. You know, considering I’m in an unfamiliar place and all.” It’s a total lie and he knows it. I just want to be close to him. “But just sleeping.” I feel the need to add that stipulation, not that we’ve ever done anything before.

“I know.” He holds out his hand and leads me to the master bedroom. “I know you’re not ready yet, but I’ll happily take what I can get.”

I change into a pair of purple pajama bottoms and a tank top while Alex goes for his normal sleepwear of boxer shorts. We slide beneath the fluffy down comforter where he wraps his arms around me and I fall into a sound sleep, feeling that all is right with the world.

***

“What was that?” I sit straight up in bed, clutching the sheet to my chest. I was sleeping so peacefully until it sounded like someone with a chainsaw was breaking through the window. My eyes dart around the room. Everything looks just like it did last night. Alex rolls over and mumbles something.

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