Page 115 of Panther's Magpie
I smile at her.
“Always.”
CHAPTER
TWENTY-EIGHT
MAGGIE
It has been rough having Aspen so close and not being able to talk to her. She has been hiding out in her room since she got back last night. I thought she would come out today, but so far nothing.
I hate that I was willing to go to the ends of the earth for her. With her, really. I would take all the trouble coming at me, and it led to this.
I love Aspen, but she isn’t the girl she was when we started this trip. The truth is, neither am I.
I have changed since coming here. I found a family who is willing to help me grow into the woman I want to be. I’m no longer living in Aspen’s shadow.
That scares me as much as it exhilarates me. I don’t think I ever realized how much of who I thought I was had been tied up in who Aspen was.
Now I’m free to be me. I only wish I could have her by my side through this.
“Give her time,” Calloway says, kissing me as I stare at the hall.
“I want to, but it is killing me,” I admit to him.
He nods. “I know. We have to give her space, though. She lashed out at us both, but it wasn’t really about us. You know that, right?”
I shrug. “I know most of it wasn’t, but I think she meant some of what she said.”
He sighs. “Maybe, but we can’t change it now, and I wouldn’t want to. You don’t regret this, do you?”
I shake my head. “I can’t regret you. This is where I belong.”
He kisses me once more. “I have to do some club business. Do you want me to call Rain and have her come take you somewhere?”
“I want to be here in case she changes her mind.”
He nods. “Okay. I’ll be a phone call away.”
He leaves me with one last kiss before he leaves.
I stay in my seat at the high top, staring as if I could make Aspen magically appear with my mind. I have no idea how long I sit there when Meek slides into the seat next to me.
“Are you going to sit here all day?” he asks.
I sigh. “Probably.”
“I have the brothers, but I don’t quite understand the concept of best friends,” he admits.
I smile sadly. “It’s the best feeling in the world. You have that one person who understands you better than anyone else and who will always be there for you. No judgment whatsoever. Knowing that person will always be in your corner.”
“All of my brothers fulfill that. What makes one the best?”
I smile, looking up. “Best insinuates that there can only be one. I don’t believe that. I think best indicates a closeness that you wouldn’t have with a friend that you see only so often. Someone you don’t talk to daily. Does that make sense?”
He shakes his head.
“Think of it like this. A friend is someone you see and talk to every once in a while, but you can go months without speaking, and your heart wouldn’t hurt. It’s not that you love them any less, it’s just that closeness isn’t there. You don’t need to talk to them every day, and that’s okay. A best friend is someone who you think about the moment something happens. They are the person you want to tell all of your secrets and troubles to. The person who will listen to you rant about something stupid for an hour and then move on as if you didn’t sound psychotic. It’s a special bond that cannot be broken…or so I thought,” I tell him, my eyes drifting back to the hall.
