Page 89 of Love in Tandem
Charlotte looked out to the ocean for several minutes before she closed her eyes with a sigh. Maybe it was time for Charlotte to get back to herself too. The Charlotte who long ago used to dream of possibilities outside her own little world. Who didn’t let her own vision of what her life had to look like tie her down.
“Hey Will,” she hollered over her shoulder.
He paused to look back.
“I do need you, you know.”
He dipped his head in acknowledgment. “Like I said, you don’t need to worry about Mom and Dad. I’ve got this.”
“I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about the plumbing at my house. If I’m ever going to put my house on the market, I’m going to need you to fix it. Soon. At family discount price.”
His dimpled grin reminded her of the brother she knew so well growing up. “I think that can be arranged.”
Charlotte tilted her face back toward the sky and held her arms out wide. Without any ropes holding her down, who knows? Maybe Charlotte Carter could finally scuttle off.
Sophia’s fingers shook as she braided her hair over her shoulder. What if he didn’t come? She paced back and forth at the train station. What if he shouldn’t come? What if she was rushing things? What if this was too much?
It was one thing to text back and forth. But meeting her parents? Her brother and sister? Her brother’s new fiancée as of last night? Yeah, this might be too much.
The train screeched to an ear-piercing halt. She undid the braid. And why had she asked him to come in a text message? It was too hard to decipher his tone in a text message. Had he been happy about it? Resigned? All he’d messaged back was I’ll be there.
Was it an I’ll be there with a long-suffering sigh? Or was it an I’ll be there to the tune of the Jackson 5 classic? Was this a step forward in their relationship, or was this the weekend she’d forever mark on her mental calendar as the time everything had turned awkward and fallen apart?
She rapidly braided her hair again, sending a quick prayer skyward. Please let this not be one of my stupid decisions. Please let this be a blessing for my mom. My family. My heart. Oh Lord please—
Joshua stepped down from the train, a duffel bag over his shoulder. His eyes landed on her and he smiled. A Jackson Five kind of smile.
Thank you, Lord.
Sophia stepped forward with a wave. “Hi.”
He walked until he was right in front of her, his gaze never leaving her face. “Hi.”
They both stood there, grinning like idiots. “You look taller,” Sophia finally said.
“Really? Must be all the weight that’s off my shoulders from finally telling my dad what I want to do with my life.” He’d texted Sophia about his decision to go back to school and start working toward his master of divinity degree.
“I’m proud of you. And thank you so much for coming. I know you’re super busy, so trust me, I would have understood if you didn’t have time to come down here.”
“I didn’t really have a choice.”
“You didn’t?” Oh no. She’d bullied him into coming, hadn’t she? Pushed too hard. And since he was such a nice guy, he’d of course responded with a long-suffering I’ll be there.
“I missed you too much to stay away.”
“Oh.” She reached for her braid. “Is that so?”
He nodded, intercepting her hand with the perfect level of gentleness and firmness. “I was trying to come up with a reasonable excuse to show up uninvited when you thankfully saved me the trouble.” He pressed a kiss to her palm, his eyes never leaving hers. “I missed you.”
“I think you already said that.” She stepped closer, erasing the small distance between them. “But it’s okay if you want to say it again.”
He let his duffel bag slide from his shoulder and drop to the ground. “I really, really missed you.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh yeah.” He leaned closer, his warm breath tickling her lips. “But you know who’s missed you even more?”
She fisted his T-shirt. “D’Artagnan?”
