Page 91 of Devoted Enough

I felt her hand on my arm as she gave it a tight squeeze. “You opened your heart along with those beautiful eyes of yours. The big thing now is not to mess it up.”

“Do you think I will?” I asked, my stomach instantly feeling sick.

A lighthearted laugh came from her. “No, I don’t think you will.”

Haven walked back into the kitchen only to have Grace and Uncle Brock arrive only seconds later.

Grace looked at Haven and smiled. “Looks like I found a new job.”

Haven let out a small squeal of delight and hugged her mother. “That’s wonderful, Mom. Congratulations.”

Uncle Brock looked my way and grinned. “I’m going to head on back to the movie. You take care, and we’ll see you next week.”

Grace shook his hand and replied, “Thank you, Brock. You’ve given me the most amazing opportunity. I cannot thank you enough.”

Uncle Brock nodded his head, said his goodbyes to Grace and Haven, and made his way out of the kitchen. My mother walked everyone to the door while I grabbed their jackets. The temperature had continued to drop, and when I opened the front door, a burst of cold wind went past me.

Turning to my mother, I hugged her. “Tell Grams I said thank you for everything. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

She kissed me on the cheek and said, “Be careful driving. If you want, dinner Sunday at our place.”

“I’ll be there.”

“Bring Haven as well.”

I smiled. “Happy Thanksgiving, Mom.”

“Happy Thanksgiving, sweetheart.”

After picking up Haven’s car from her mother’s house, we drove straight to my house. We weren’t in the door two seconds before I pulled her into my arms and kissed her. Haven melted into me, and we were soon lost in the kiss.

We broke apart, and I leaned my forehead to hers. “Thank you for coming today.”

Smiling, she replied, “I had so much fun, Nate. So did my mother. Your family is amazing.”

“I think they are as well.”

“And the job offer for my mother, you should have heard her on the way home. She couldn’t stop talking about it. And the best partishealth insurance! She’s never had that before, so this is huge.”

“It was perfect timing.”

Haven nodded. “It really was.”

I took her bag and started toward my bedroom. “You know, you should bring some stuff to keep here.”

“Stuff?” Haven asked, sitting on my bed.

“Yeah, you know, like, a toothbrush, shampoo, extra clothes, things like that.”

Her brows pulled down slightly. “You want me to keep stuff here?”

I smiled. “Yes. It would make it easier for you on the nights you stay here. You don’t have to pack all your stuff up.”

The corners of her mouth twitched. “You don’t think it’s too soon for me to bring my…stuff…to your house?”

I sat down on the bed next to her. “If I’m being honest, I almost asked you to move in with me earlier before Josh interrupted us.”

“That’s what you were going to say! I was wondering.”