Page 76 of Time To Live Again

“Want company this weekend?” He smirks with a hint of insecurity.

I jump off the couch, spilling my drink on my hand and sweatshirt. “What? Really?” I set the glass on the table, relieved I hadn’t had wine in my mouth. “Of course! How?” My heart’s going to burst with excitement. “Hold on a sec!” I dash to the kitchen, rinse my hand under the faucet, shake off the excess water, and wipe it off on my sweatpants. “I’m back.”

“Things got screwed up with my flights, and I can’t fly out until Sunday.”

I curl up on the recliner again. “Omigod, I’m ecstatic. It’s getting harder and harder the longer we’re apart. It feels like weeks, but it’s only been a couple of days.”

“I’ll take a car from the ferry.”

“Nope! The second you walk off that ferry, you are mine. I’ll pick you up and take you to the airport when you leave. You’re flying from Seattle, right?”

“Isn’t that a pain for you? I have no problem finding my way.”

I shake my head and point my finger at the phone. “I want to spend every second I can with you. Don’t deny me this.”

He shakes his head, smiling. “You’re adorable when you get like this. Anything for you.”

I blow him a kiss. “Now I’m not going to be able to sleep tonight.”

“Me either.” He yanks his shirt over his head, pulling more hair out of his bun. Now he looks like a mad scientist. I giggle behind my hand as he pulls on a hoodie. “Can we stay on the phone while I walk home?”

“Of course. You said you had a busy day. What did you do?”

“I went to Corey’s grave.” My eyes widen, but I quickly relax when I see he’s smiling as he heads outside into the dark night.

“And…how did it go? I love that you’re happy.”

During his trek back to the cottage, he tells me why he went and how he talked to Corey and released a ton of emotional baggage.

“And get this,” he says. “When I went to leave, Corey’s mom, my aunt Betty, was standing at my car. I let my wall down. All that heavy weight that was on my chest is gone. We went back to her house and helped plan his memorial with Tonya.”

He unlocks his front door and walks in, turning on the lights. Homesickness—which is crazy—sweeps over me. I miss it there and want to curl up in his bed.

“That’s definitely something to be proud of, Leo. Sometimes you gotta let it all out. It really helps. You wouldn’t believe how much I cried during today’s therapy session. I was surprised the floor wasn’t wet.”

His forehead crinkles. “That bad, huh? Do you like her?”

“So far, yes. I’ll keep going to see what happens next. I understand how you feel, though, after visiting Corey. Tears are cleansing.”

He downs half a bottle of water from the fridge, then sits at the kitchen table. “And you say you’re proud of me? Look at the day you’ve had.”

“And I didn’t even tell you everything. Mom stopped by again.”

“She did? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I wanted to hear about your day first.”

“Shit. Did she yell at you again?” He growls like a lion. I love that he’s so protective of me.

With a blank face, I say, “Only when I talked about you.”

He scowls. “Seriously? What the hell? Why?”

Yikes.“Just kidding. Who can yell about you? You’re sweeter than gummy worms.”

“Those are sour,” he points out, sounding annoyed. “Be serious. Tell me what happened.”

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. Don’t be mad. I promise, there was no arguing about anything. However, she’s skeptical, much like your mom, and didn’t say much. But she commented again on how much I’m smiling. I think it made her feel better. This smiling thing will probably be an issue for the rest of my life. You make me so happy.”

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