Page 41 of The Last Love Story
“He seems awesome. We didn’t talk for too long this morning, but it’s clear how much he cares for you, and also how much he respects you. I’m glad he was there for you today.”
Jade beams at that.
“I’m glad he came too. I was… a little upset on Friday at the thought of him not being there.”
“I wish you would’ve told me. I would’ve called and talked to him about it?—”
She waves a hand dismissively, then fills a cup with water from the fridge and hands it to me.
“You didn’t need to. And it all worked out okay.”
“What about your mom?”
She snorts at that. “I’ll tell her. Soon. Ish. I don’t know. Let’s just say I’m glad she wasn’t there. She would’ve been saying things likeare you sure about that dress?Orreally, the book arch?Or telling me to wear different shoes or criticizing my makeup, saying my dress was too short.” Her voice drops. “Or making a comment about my weight.”
“What?” I growl. Because fuck anyone who thinks they should comment on anyone else’s weight,ever.
Jade sighs and hoists herself onto the counter. “My mom wanted the tiny, pretty, popular girl, and she got me. She’s always had some sort of critique, but honestly, who cares? She was too busy flitting around the world on her ‘wellness’ adventures with her boyfriend of the moment to actually raise me, so her thoughts don’t mean much to me. They’re mostly just annoying. She didn’t actually want a child. She wanted a human doll she could dress pretty and control. That’s not me. I’ve never been good at fitting in the boxes people say I should fit into.”
I set my glass down and walk over to her, cupping her cheeks.
“And you never should. Take up space and don’t take anyone’s shit.”
She breathes in heavily, eyes locked on mine.
The world around us seems to slow down and go blurry. There’s only the two of us and the sparks of our connection.
She licks her lips, and reality tries to push its way in.
I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t know whatwe’redoing. We kissed this morning, and it was fucking incredible, but does that mean we’re kissing now? Is it a thing? I don’t know.
So, almost painfully, I drop my hands and take a step back.
After a long moment, Jade slides off the counter. “Want a tour?”
“Yeah. Show me the digs.”
The digs?What is wrong with me?
It seems to knock some of the tension out of her shoulders, though, so I roll with it and follow her out of the kitchen.
“This is the hallway. Very exciting. And on the right, we have the bathroom. It’s massive, and it has two doors. One to the hall and one to my bedroom. So make sure you lock the applicable one when you’re using it. Come on. We’ll cut through.”
She leads me through the bathroom, opening cabinets to point out where towels and toiletries are, then pulls open the other door into her bedroom.
“This is my room and writing sanctuary.”
It’s a big room with plush beige carpeting, a king-size bed, and two windows on the far wall. A desk sits in the corner near one of them. The other has an air conditioning unit in it. Weird, because I’m pretty sure there’s central AC, but whatever. I think she told me once she’d never survive in the heat of the south, so maybe that’s why.
Either way, as I walk through the space, I can’t help but hope I’ll be lucky enough to earn an invitation to this room one day.
We end up in the hallway again. Then she opens the door across the hall, revealing a much smaller room.
“I know you said you’ll need a place to record, and this should work. We’ll have to move a couple of my bookcases—or better yet, finally get some good shelving for the closet I don’t use so I can store most of my books in there. The only thing I really need in here is my book packaging station in the corner.”
“This should definitely work. Thanks.”
She laughs a little. “It’s the least I can do.”
