Page 55 of Fall at Once

I threw my quilt to the side and sat at the edge of the bed.

I needed more sleep.

My bed felt empty without him, even though he’d never been in it.

I also needed to think—to gather all these swirling thoughts I kept having and form them into something cohesive, a plan I could implement rather than a few random ideas about the direction I wanted my future to take.

Pinning hopes and dreams onto a man was foolish. Thanks to Ross, I’d already learned that lesson. But I wanted to stay in Cozy Creek. I wanted to work with Gigi, live in this apartment, and get to know Cole better.

We had dinner plans this evening to discuss the rest of the details for the fundraiser. His kids would be there, and I took it as a good sign that he was okay with me being around them even before we went on our accidental first date and had ouraccidental first kiss.

I could still see his eyes as he drew back in surprise. There was electricity between us. I had known it was there in theory, and I felt he did as well. But when his lips touched mine, it exploded like I’d always suspected would happen with him.

I couldn’t wait to see him again.

I ran through my morning routine, choosing a skintight black pair of deep pink leggings and matching hoodie to wear on my walk with Basil.

My phone pinged with an incoming text. It was probably Natalie asking if she could join me.

COLE: Good morning, gorgeous. I woke up thinking about you.

My heart banged hard against my ribs as I read, then reread his message, then reread it because, holy crap, it felt good to know he had been thinking about me. Especially since I hadn’t stopped thinking about him all night. I’m pretty sure I even dreamed about him, but I was not about to tell him that.

Putting all your cards on the table was never a good idea—another lesson from Ross.

Why was retrospect the thing that had always made me learn?

From now on, I will keep my head out of the sand regarding love. I had to protect my heart.

MADI: I thought about you too. You turned a bad night into something extraordinary.

COLE: See you at dinner tonight. The kids can’t wait to see you, too—you and your brownies. ;)

I blushed. It’s a wink emoji, not even a real wink.

Wow. I had it bad.

He called me gorgeous. A small squee may or may not have come out of my mouth.

I needed some perspective before my heart ran away with all my newly earned good sense.

We had shared a kiss and a date. We’d had a few great conversations and had chemistry that wouldn’t quit.

But none of that made himmine.It was real, but there were no guarantees that I wouldn’t get my heart broken.

Five years with Ross had never made him mine, no matter how many lies I’d told myself about his intentions. He’d given me just enough hope to keep me hanging on, and whenever I doubted him, he gave me some more. I had been a fool, but those days were over. I would never think about Ross again. He didn’t deserve it. He was out of my life.

Actions over words. That was the key.

Promises were too easy to break.

I made it to Gigi’s right as the sun came up. The deep blue sky burst into pastel hues of pink and orange as the sun rose on the horizon. As I got out of my car to greet her, trees in silhouette defined themselves in the shimmering light to cast dappled shadows on the sidewalk. She was sitting sideways on one of her porch swings with her foot elevated. I loved how pretty it always was here, and selfishly, I was glad to see the boot still on her foot.I wasn’t ready to go back home.

“Good morning, honey. There’s coffee inside if you want to fix yourself a cup and sit with me on the porch for a spell.”

“Hey, Gigi. I’d love to have coffee with you.” Basil ran up to me with his tail wagging, excitedly barking because he knew what we’d be doing. “Hello there, boy. Who’s ready to go for a walk?”

“He adores you. Look at him!” Gigi called.

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