Page 56 of Two Weeks in Tahoe

“Clever,” he nods in approval.

“Thank you,” I reply, my chest and chin puffing out with mock pride.

“You know…you could have moved in here,” Liam muses.

“I thought you might say that. I think this will be good, though. For all three of us. And it’s only temporary. When my three-month lease is up…we can reassess?”

He smiles and nods. “I’ll take what I can get. My independent girl,” he says, giving me another squeeze. He hasn’t stopped doing that since we got here. Like he needs to check in every so often to make sure that I’m real, that I’m not going to drift away again. I’d do the same, but he’s sore and I don’t want to hurt him.

“What about your job?” Liam asks as we wait for Jackson to get dropped off so we can tell him the exciting news. Jackson still doesn’t know about the accident. He thinks Liam was simply in Sacramento for a few days visiting me. We’ll tell him today, though, now that Liam is looking and feeling better.

“I sort of…never ended up taking it,” I say, giving him a look.

“Go on. It seems you have a story to tell.”

“I was miserable the day I got back to Sacramento. But you know me, I was so set on going back. To prove…what, I don’t really know anymore. We just happened so fast, and I was trying to give it time. But nothing felt right there anymore. There was nothing keeping me there. Daniela was all I had. And then I told myself I’d give it a little more time, try the new job and see how I felt. But I didn’t feel good about it, and I didn’t even start. A few days after I got home, I decided to call them and decline after all. I didn’t want to tell you because…well, I was a little embarrassed. And I knew if I admitted that to you, you’d try to talk me into coming back. And I knew I would let you. It would have been all too easy.”

“I could tell you were hiding something, you know. You’re not the greatest at hiding how you’re really feeling, even over video calls. But I didn’t say anything. I wanted to let you sort it out on your own, because I knew that’s what you wanted,” he admits.

I nod. Of course he knew. He’s called me out on this sort of thing before. I guess he sees right through the tough façade that I try to put up.

“I think you know me well enough by now to know that I need to feel a little bit in control. I couldn’t just move here permanently with no plan whatsoever. So, I don’t think I ever told you, but my parents left me a decent sum of money. I can survive for a long time, if I need to. But that’s not what I’m going to do. All week, I’ve been working out a business plan to start my own freelance editing service online. I haven’t felt this excited about anything career-wise since…ever. I’m sure it will be a slow start. But it’s something.”

His face is lit up with pride as I tell him what I’ve been up to. He’s beaming by the time I finish.

“That’s great. I’m really excited for you,” he says, squeezing my knee and giving me a quick kiss.

“Thank you,” I blush. I wasn’t sure how he was going to receive all of this information.

“I might need your help building my website…” I say, looking at him with hope and batting my eyelashes.

“Hmm…” he grumbles in that deep tone of his, drawing out his answer. “That might cost you.”

He’s working his way up my neck in soft gentle kisses, and my body immediately reacts to him. I feel beyond lucky that this man loves me.

I giggle, straightening up and playfully pushing him away. “I was going to tell you everything, that day you were set to arrive in Sacramento…I had a presentation ready and everything.”

He laughs. “So you were sneaking around that whole week, secretly working on this plan of yours? Don’t keep me in the dark like that again. Promise?”

My stomach drops and I nod. Maybe, if I had been up front with him from the beginning, his accident would have never happened. He’s fine now, thankfully, but that night scared the absolute shit out of me. I knew before then that I loved this man, but that fear I had for a little while—the fear that I’d possibly lost him—really solidified it.

He must sense my mind going down that dark path, because he grabs my chin with his long fingers, demanding that I return his gaze. “Hey. It’s not your fault, what happened. Okay? It was a stupid, horrible accident. I can admit that I was forced to grow up a little early, and part of me likes holding onto my youth in reckless ways. I’m not saying I’m going to let go of my sense of adventure completely, but I’m selling that damn snowmobile. Those things are death traps.”

I nod. We stare at each other for a minute, soaking it all in. We’re together now. For good. And it feels so right. Then, it’s like a thought suddenly pops into his head, and I see his smile grow wide as he pops off the stool slowly, still being careful with his body.

“I almost forgot,” he says excitedly.

“What?”

And then I see it. A brand-new, coffee-shop-grade espresso machine. Exactly like the one from my old cabin. He remembered the model from that day a month ago. And he got one for me. At his house.

I beam at him. “You didn’t”

“I did,” he says with pride. “Anything for my girl.”

My heart warms at his words, and I bounce over to him, checking it out as I give him a hug. He got this for me when I was gone, when I wasn’t sure about us. The thought almost makes me tear up again, but I’ve done enough of that.

“Thank you.”

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