Page 72 of Don't Leave Me

“Aren't you living with her now? How does this change things?”

“I don’t know.” I run a hand through my hair. “I just keep having this crippling fear she doesn’t want me long term. What if this is really just a vacation romance and she doesn’t realize that until I move eight hours away from my family?”

“Pretty sure you’re moving in next door to your family.” Wes motions to Wyatt and I freeze. I never thought about that. I'm still going to have family close by.

“It’s going to take time for me to get a job though and put in my notice here. I might not be able to come right away.”

“Peck and Wyatt are going to help me pack the car. You ladies stay inside and stay warm,” Wes announces as he grabs two bags and waits for Wyatt and I to do the same.

“Want to tell me what’s really going on? We didn’t bring much,” Wyatt asks as soon as the door shuts behind us.

“Peck’s panicking and I think you’re the man to help him.” Wes tosses the bags in the back of his SUV, then he leans against the side and folds his arms across his chest. He stares at us and waits.

“What’s going on, Peck? Talk to me.” Wyatt takes a step closer and his brows pull together.

“What if this is just a vacation romance to her? What if I move to Mulberry Lane and she doesn’t want me anymore?” I voice all of my wildest fears and put them out there for Wyatt and Wes to mock me.

“It’s not,” he says simply.

“How do you know?” I want to scream. I think this fear has been sitting in the back of my head since we first met and I’ve been ignoring it.

“Because it’s Sophia. She wears her heart on her sleeve and she doesn’t know how to hide her feelings. She looks at you the same way Charlie looks at me. The same way Addi looks at Wes. She loves you, Peck. She’s in this for the long haul. She’ll never walk away from you and she’ll never regret a life with you unless you give her a reason to. And if you give her a reason to, you’re going to have a lot more issues than losing the woman you love.”

“So, I'm just freaking out over nothing?”

“Just a little,” Wes snorts with laughter.

“Definitely… Are you moving home with her?”

“Yeah, I think I am.” I nod my head as a sense of peace washes over me.

These two men know Sophia more than anyone else. They know how she feels and how she functions. If they say this is real for her, then I need to believe them. Hell, even if I knew this relationship was going to crash and burn the second I moved, I'm not sure I could willingly walk away from her. I love her too much for that.

“I think we need to prepare for another wedding, Papa!” Wyatt grins at Wes.

“I hope so. I keep telling him I approve and he’s taking a long time. If I had approved of you marrying Charlie this quickly, you would’ve been married before you hit puberty.” Wes chuckles.

“I probably would’ve made better decisions too. Really my past can be blamed on you.” His grin widens even further.

“Don’t blame your stupidity on me, son. I have the weight of my own stupid decisions on my shoulders. Let’s just make sure Peck doesn’t make any.” Wes pushes off the car and starts to climb the stairs to the house.

“Wait, what stupid decisions did you make?”

“That’s a story for another day… with alcohol.” Wes glances over his shoulder at me before disappearing into the house.

“Was it really that bad?” I turn my attention to Wyatt.

“Nah, but he still takes it hard. He almost destroyed everything with Addi, just like I did with Charlie. He didn’t take almost a decade to fix it though.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to do that.”

“Good. Then you act like Blake. You see what you have in life and you hold onto it with both hands. Don’t ever let it go.”

“That’s a plan I can get behind.”

“Are you ok?” Sophia whispers as her family pulls out of the driveway and onto the road.

“I'm perfect, baby.”

---