Page 139 of Meet Me in the Valley
“You’re so fucking beautiful.”
“I want you to remember this.” Her voice a breathy command that grips around my manhood like she fucking owns me. “Because when you get back to me, Logan, there won’t be any screens between us.”
She closes her legs, and before I can protest she crawls toward the camera, putting me in a trance that has me hanging onto every movement, every breath, every teasing smirk she throws my way.
When Tia gets close enough, the screen fills with just her face—soft, glowing, completely in control. She blows me a kiss with a wink.
“Merry Christmas, Lo.”
My goddamn minx. Always a tease.
“Merry Christmas, baby.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
TIA
Barefoot in the grass, feeling the earth kiss the arches of my feet is exactly the kind of reset I need after a string of bad days with Mom.
Dad made me give away some pies that were piling up in the freezer to the neighbors when she wasn’t looking. Mom called me Nora more than my own name, despite having already reunited with my sister. But despite all of that, we only sang “Happy Birthday” once, thankfully.
I’m missing Nora and Cali. They couldn’t stay long after their first visit, with Cali in school and everything. And with the whole my-big-sister-being-a-big-shot-Vegas-show-dancer thing.
They came back for Christmas, which was unexpected and amazing. Unexpected because I didn’t know how often Nora wanted to come back after being away for so long. Amazing because Oakwood Valley is slowly bringing her back to her old self, even if the scars she has from this place run deep.
Mom and Cali are two peas in a pod, just like I knew they would be. I swear Cali is a natural antidote for Mom. She didn’t have a single bad day with Cali around. But that was a week ago, and as I sip a cold glass of Sauvignon, barefoot in Donovan’s family vineyard, I just need a second to breathe.
Audrey walks with me, our pinkies linked. Major perks for my best friend inheriting a massive vineyard. I mean, she already owns a winery, but now she gets the whole Napa-girl package. Free wine and sunset walks through the vines for life.
“Tell me about your mom, T. Is it getting any better?”
Unfortunately, no. There’s no cure and I have to slowly watch her disappear with each day that passes.
But I don’t tell Audrey all of that. I’m sure she can read between the lines. Alzheimer’s is selfish, and on the days it shows mercy, I’m grateful. But the days this disease takes and takes and takes? It breaks me apart.
So, I give Audrey a vague answer. Not because I don’t love her or trust her. But because I’m exhausted and there’s only one person in my life who I feel the safest with to fall apart—and he’s still a thousand miles away from me.
“You know how it is, Auds. Good days and bad days. But today is a good day because I’m enjoying this delicious glass of wine with my best friend.”
Audrey’s smile brings me comfort. I’m grateful she knows me well enough to understand that’s all I have in me right now. She unlinks her pinky, skipping a little ways ahead of me through the vines as her dress swishes perfectly against her shins. She looks every bit the cottage fairy, her strawberry blond hair shining against the sun and freckles on display, free of makeup.
“Today is going to be a great day because it’s New Year’s Eve, and the party tonight is going to be amazing.”
Party? More like Gala. Audrey is right. It’s going to be amazing. Anytime Grace and Caleb King have a function, it’s the talk of the town. The party tonight is going to be held at their estate. I’m talking black-tie affair, gowns, the whole nine.
I adjust the gold watch Logan got me for Christmas, feeling the engraving sing against my skin as it chants in my head saying,our time.
“Our time, baby. This is it.”
Logan’s words remind me to stay patient, no matter how badly I’m missing him.
We’re about to ring in a new year that’s supposed to represent a clean slate, new beginnings. But with Mom’s condition weighing on me and the ache of being apart from Logan, it seems I’m about to enter this new year with a somber heart.
Audrey won’t let that happen, though. It’s why she immediately called me to come take a walk with her, thrusting a glass of wine into my hands before I had time to protest.
She knows my mood has been shit the past few days. On top of everything else, I haven’t talked to Logan as much as I’d liked to. He seems … distant lately. Of course, it has me overthinking every single thing.
Did I overdo it with his Christmas gift? Am I expecting too much from him? Does he feel I’m being clingy?
