Page 130 of Mr. Edwards
Her words make me smile. I hadn’t planned to. I like that there’s a piece of me here, with her.
Once I’ve stripped down to my boxer briefs, I slip on the T-shirt. When I lie down beside her, I reach over and turn off the lamp before pulling her into my arms. She scoots a little closer, hugging my waist, and resting her head on my chest. It’s nice. Neither of us speak as I stroke my fingers through her long hair.
This moment feels like old times, but the reality is the last few years apart have changed everything. I’m not sure where we’ll go from here, but I pray to God we can somehow find our way back to each other.
When I hear her yawn, I turn my face and place a soft kiss against her forehead. My hand moves upward so my fingers can massage her scalp. “Sleep.”
“Thanks for coming today, and for being here now,” she whispers into the darkness.
“There’s no place I’d rather be.” I wish we could shut ourselves away from the rest of the world and stay like this, right here, for eternity.
She lifts her leg, draping it over the top of mine. It lies mere inches away from the base of my balls. My dick is begging for some friction, and silently encouraging me to place my hand behind her knee, so I can maneuver herlimb the rest of the way. I need to come up with a plan to calm him the fuck down. He’s getting way ahead of himself here. I’m simply spending the night because I don’t want Carlee to be alone, no other reason. I can’t blame the poor guy, he misses her…we both do, but now is not the time or place.
I know firsthand what the death of a parent feels like… even if hers was a shitty one, she’s hurting. I’d never take advantage of that.
Morning comes around far too quickly for my liking. Carlee has slept soundly in my arms the entire night. I have a long drive back to Hermosa Beach today, as well as back-to-back meetings, so I should’ve closed my eyes at some point and gotten some sleep, but I couldn’t.
If the past few years have taught me anything, it’s there’s no guarantee of a tomorrow. I may never get a chance to hold her like this again, so I need to savor every second. I feel like I’m trapped inside a ticking time bomb, and I don’t like it one bit.
Nothing has changed from my end, I still crave her with every fiber of my being, but a part of me fears it’s too late. The distance between us seems insurmountable. Especially after everything that’s happened in the past week.
Pushing those negative thoughts from my head, I bury my nose in her hair, inhaling her sweet scent. Our bodies are interlocked, our limbs twisted in a chaotic knot that Ican’t bring myself to untangle. As I lie here, I’m hoping with all my might this won’t be our last time together.
My life sucks without her in it.
Closing my eyes, I silently pray that the world will stop spinning, so I can stay right here, in her arms where I belong.
Chapter 31
Grayson
It’s been almost two weeks since I’ve seen or heard from Carlee. As each day passes, my fears of losing her all over again seem to be coming to fruition.
She was sound asleep when I left the morning after her mother’s funeral. As much as I wanted to wake her, she looked far too peaceful. She needed her rest. I did leave a short note on her dresser:
Reach out if you need anything. I’ll always be here for you. G xx
I included my phone number at the bottom because I wasn’t sure if she still had it. I’m kicking myself now. I should’ve written more.
I wish I’d told her how much I loved her. How unbearable life is without her by my side. But with everything going on, it just didn’t feel like the right time.
Since I don’t have her new number, I’ve reached out to Reece, and he assures me she’s doing okay. She’s had good days and bad. This week she went back to work.That knowledge had me torn. I’m happy to hear she’s moving forward with her life, but I’m also petrified she’s doing it without me.
I look up from my desk when there’s a knock at the door. “Come in,” I say.
When it opens, I see it is Amber, my assistant. “This just came for you.” She holds up the small parcel in her hand, a smile curving on her lips as she does. “The return address is Temecula… since a certain someone lives there, I thought it might be important.”
Sitting up straighter in my chair, I hold out my hand. “Don’t just stand there, give it to me, woman.” I have no idea if it’s from Carlee, but my heart is racing at the thought.
Once it’s in my grasp, I waste no time tearing it open. Inside I find a long hard object wrapped in a piece of paper. The moment I untangle it, my stomach sinks. Is this the fork I gave her? Why is she returning it? My hand is shaking as I flip it over. When I read the engraving, pure elation courses through me.‘I forking love you too.’It’s different from the one I gave Carlee; this is her response.
My hands scramble to pick up the piece of paper that accompanied it:
I miss you! C xx
I look up to find Amber still standing there watching me. “Cancel all my appointments for tomorrow,” I say as I start packing up my things. “I have somewhere more important I need to be.”
The smile on her face grows. “I’m on it, boss.”
