Page 43 of Not Another Yesterday
“You’re welcome, Randi. Just let me know when you get to the ranch, okay?”
“I will.” She steps back, stands on her tiptoes, and kisses my cheek softly. “I’ll see you around, Rony.”
“Yeah. See you.”
She hikes her new backpack onto her shoulder and walks toward the TSA line.
I turn to leave, already itching to be home, even if the thirteen-hour drive is going to suck.
“Hey, Rony,” she calls. I pause and look back. Her expression is serious now, open in a way I’m not used to seeing.
“I’m sorry,” she says quickly. “For leaving you like that. And for what I did before I left Montana. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” I say, because I don’t know what else to say.
She nods, gives me a soft smile, then disappears into the line.
I pull my phone out of my pocket and send a quick text message to Cat.
Me:
Getting on the road. I love you.
God, I can’t wait to pull her into my arms.
Cat
“It honestly never occurred to me that you don’t have a key,” Tori says unlocking the front door to Ronan and Shane’s apartment. She pushes the door open, and I step into the narrow hallway behind her.
I nod with some dismay. “Yeah, I guess I’ve never needed it before tonight because I’m usually either here with Ran or you.”
It’s just past six. Twenty minutes ago, Ronan sent me the shortest of texts—just his ETA: six-thirty. I made my way to his apartment, intent on meeting him there, only to realize I couldn’t get in. With Shane working Ronan’s shift tonight, my only hope to get in was Tori, who luckily, had only just left and was kind enough to swing back.
Tori cocks her head to the side, her long dark hair following the motion. “You should ask Ran for a key. Shane gave me one the day he moved in. I don’t see why Ran wouldn’t give you one.”
I’ve thought about that, too. About the fact that Shane made sure Tori had a key right away, and about how Ronan moved into the apartment months ago and hasn’t even hinted at wanting me to have a key. And yes, I’ve thought about asking him, but a very real, very stubborn, and probably irrational part of me doesn’t want to have to ask him.
“I kind of want it to be Ran’s idea,” I say, kicking off my shoes. “I don’t want to bring it up if he hasn’t thought to.”
Tori raises an eyebrow. “This sounds oddly familiar.”
“How so?”
“Oh, you know, like how you didn’t want to tell Ran you were in love with him until he told you first. And then you almost didn’t get to tell him at all,” she says with a sassy twist.
I expel a weird snorty huff at her.
“Cat, if you haven’t noticed, guys aren’t super perceptive. You’re not doing either of you any favors by staying quiet.”
My brow furrows. If anyone’s staying quiet, it’s Ronan.
“Just ask him for a freaking key when he’s home.”
“You don’t think he wants to talk to Shane about this first?” I ask. “I mean, it’s not just Ran’s place. And what if Ran doesn’t want me to have free roam of the apartment? If I asked him for a key and he gave it to me, I’d just feel like I’m pressuring him into something he doesn’t actually want.”
“You’re making excuses,” Tori says, waving me off. “Shane won’t care. As far as he’s concerned, four of us live in this apartment. And do you really think Ronan is worried about you having the run of the apartment when he’s not here?” She giggles as if the mere thought is absurd.
But I’m not so sure. Lately I’ve been riddled with questions, with doubts that have only compounded. Ronan’s still holding back. Even after everything, even after a year and a half together, there are parts of him I’ve never touched. Parts he won’t let me near.
