Page 36 of When Hearts Remember

A knot appears in my chest.No way, right?I shake my head. No way, Delaney is definitely who he is. I know it in my gut.

A few seconds later, he puts me out of my misery.

Delaney

No, I’m very much me. I’m twenty-two, almost twenty-three, six-foot-three, and have brown hair and gray eyes. And I know what I want for my present.

Delaney

I want a date…with you. In person.

A pulse batters against my throat and the flush from earlier is definitely back, because the room just got ten degrees hotter.

An array of emotions charges through me, the first and loudest being happiness, the tingling in my chest spreading to my hands and fingertips, and I want to squeal.

He wants to meet me. To date me. He likes me.

It’s not only one-sided.

I swallow, my fingers hovering over the keypad, wondering how I should reply. Can’t be too desperate, but dammit, I’ve always been honest with him, so why lie now?

But then, the doubts sweep in. I think about Mom and how she’s halfway around the world, not a single call or message to me. Then there’s the sad dip of Grandma’s head when I mentioned UNYC. Dayton’s pitying glance before we broke up when he said he had to carry the weight of being at Columbia by himself. Charles and Liam’s sympathetic hugs and pats on the head, telling me everything’s all right because they’ll always support me. Then they all disappeared back into their lives.

I’m invisible once more.

The more I stare at Delaney’s text, the more the uncertainties build—a pressure cooker gathering steam. He just got promoted and is moving up in the world. He has found his footing and direction. He is adulting. What would he want with an average, almost nineteen-year-old who is floundering?

Why would he want you when your family often forgets you?

The thought douses the embers inside me.

Shoulders slumped, I answer him.

Alex

Why ruin a good thing by meeting? Aren’t you worried you’ll be disappointed?

Delaney

How can I be disappointed when you’re you? Are you scared? I can share my info with your friends and let them track my phone if you’re concerned. We can meet somewhere in public.

He’s so damn thoughtful. I find myself wavering.

Alex

Iamscared. But not for the reasons you think. We’re in different places in life and I want to be more sure of myself before I see you.

I gnaw on my lip and add more. I want him tostayin my life.

Alex

And Idowant to see you. If I had everything together, I’d say yes, no questions asked. I just don’t want to screw it up with you. You mean too much to me.

Delaney

You won’t. Trust me, Alex. You won’t disappoint me. Take a leap of faith. Didn’t you used to tell me, don’t wait to live because the clock keepsticking? And there’s a reader for every book? Well, I want to read your book, and I believe inyou.

Delaney

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