Page 23 of Until I Found You
Nine
Halle
Clicking the turn signal, I pull onto the gravel road that winds down to Callum and Ellie’s house. Wes got an RV for us to drive to Chicago where we’ll spend the weekend celebrating their upcoming wedding.
I’ve spent the last two weeks thinking about this trip. On one hand, I’m thrilled to spend the weekend with my friends, but then on the other, I’ve been lost in thought about what it will be like to be in Chicago. In the city Graham escaped to when life got to be too tough.
When he gave up on us and decided I wasn’t worth it anymore.
Callum and Ellie originally met when they were boarding a bus, traveling back home from Chicago. Callum had spent the weekend visiting his brother, Mason, and was coming back home to Arbor Creek.
Ellie grew up living in a small town, Garwood, outside of Chicago. Ellie didn’t have it easy. She boarded a bus, moving to Arbor Creek, and moved into a house Kinsley’s grandfather was renting out at the time. We’ve heard the story countless times of how she was boarding the bus and fell into Callum. He loves to talk about how he swept her off her feet.
Pulling up in front of their house, their driveway is bustling with people. Mason and Brea are here, unloading his truck with their bags. Brannon and Dean are standing in the front yard, laughing about something. I hadn’t expected to see Dean here, considering he lives in Chicago, but he must’ve been visiting.
Parking next to Mason, I check my appearance in the rearview mirror. I was fully expecting to see Graham here, but by the looks of things, he’s not here. There’s a small knot in my stomach forming at the thought of him not coming this weekend.
That thought is quickly pushed out of my mind when I hear the deep rumble of a pickup truck pull up beside me.
Glancing over, my heart starts to come back to life as I take in the profile of his handsome face. He’s wearing aviator sunglasses and a black fitted T-shirt.
“Damn it,” I mutter to myself.
I’ve gone to war in my head over the thought of going to Chicago. I hate everything about big cities and the thought of going here leaves me frustrated. Looking at him and how delicious he looks, I am even more frustrated. Not just the sexual kind.
“You can do this, Halle. You have a plan and you’re going to execute it to perfection.”
Turning back to the rearview mirror, I untwist the cap to my lip gloss and expertly apply the shimmer over my lips before rubbing them together. Fixing a few strands of my hair, I slide the lip gloss back into my purse and push open the door.
The last two times Graham and I have been around each other, I could tell how hard it is for him to stay away from me. There’s a familiarity there between us. Even though he’s fighting against it, I can see he’s struggling to keep his distance.
The plan for this weekend is to remind him of what he let go of when he left me. I want to drive him so crazy he lets go of the control he’s been holding onto and gives into what I know he’s been missing.
As soon as I step out of the car, I spot Brea over the hood of my car. Her long brown hair is wrapped in a messy bun sitting on the top of her head. Her eyes always stand out like crystals with her long eyelashes.
I pop the trunk and begin pulling out my suitcase.
“You need any help?” Brea asks, her voice full of excitement.
Once she’s standing close enough to me, her voice drops down low enough so only I can hear her. “You’re doing it, aren’t you? Hals, you’re dressed to fucking kill right now. When he sees your legs, he’s going to be falling all over himself.”
Brea chuckles, her laughs start carrying on. “I can just picture him now. Oh, God, this is going to be good.”
“You’re damn fucking right I’m doing it.” I smile, wiggling my eyebrows up and down. “He thought he could come back to town lookin’ like a fucking snack and thought I wasn’t going to want some. Try again. I’m not going to be the one to give in though. Nope,” I say with the pop. “Not happening. He walked away and gave up on me. It’ll be him who will be crawling back to me, not the other way around.”
“Damn straight.” Brea laughs.
The sound of honking behind us has us both turning our heads over our shoulders to see who it is, when we spot Wes pulling up the driveaway. Kinsley is sitting next to him, hitting the horn as she waves enthusiastically.
“She lives for this, doesn’t she?”
“Oh, God, yes!” I giggle.
Hoisting my suitcase out of my trunk, I set it on the ground as I see Graham and his large frame out of my peripheral. My knees get a little weak just being near him, but I force myself to get it together.
Giving in, I glance over at him, and I feel like I could come on the spot at the way his arm flexes holding his gym bag in his hand. Rubbing my lips together again, I drink in his tan skin over his broad chest to his handsome face. His light brown hair almost looks underneath the sunlight.
I hate that he’s wearing sunglasses. I wish I could read the look on his face when he sees me.
