Page 102 of Charlie and Her Sweet Escape
“Even more reason to love you,” I said, with a teasingly regretful shake of my head.
We pulled up to the dock, where Savannah waited for us. She wore a white suit and had her arms folded impatiently, like we were taking up too much of her time. I may have gone a little extra slow in standing up, handing the blanket to the camera crew, and helping Charlie step onto the dock. I kept her handsecurely in mine, running my thumb along the inside of her new ring.
I’d get her a better one when we got home. But this one felt exactly right too.
“You two have been quite the headache,” Savannah said, her serious expression adding weight to the statement as she stared us down. “Good thing you’re the fan favorites. Now go take a shower and rest. We have two more weeks here at base camp before you can go home, and we’ve got a lot to talk about.
“I had them make your favorite meals in the kitchen,” she added over her shoulder, finally giving us a real smile. “Good job, you two. Rest. Enjoy. I’ll come find you later.”
Charlie and I looked at each other, and grinned. I had the love of my life wearing my homemade ring on her finger, and the promise of an actual forever with her.
“Race you to the shower?” I said.
“Game on.” She took off toward the showers with a wide smile, and I happily let her win.
47
CHARLIE
A lot has happened since I last wrote in this journal. Almost too much to write down, but I don’t want to lose a moment of it either. Maybe it’s enough to say this: I didn’t get what I thought I wanted, but I got something even better than I could have imagined. How did I get so lucky? How is this my life?
—from the journal of Charlie Forrester
Everyone erupted into cheers when Bennett and I walked into Icy Asps for our return party after arriving home from being at base camp for two weeks. Rosie immediately bowled into us, arms around our necks in a tight hug that made me and Bennett smile over her head.
“I knew you’d fall in love.” She pulled back with tears in her eyes.
My eyes watered too. I was so grateful for my friend. So amazed that I was here, in this moment.
“You’re welcome,” she continued. “I’ll accept your firstborn being named after me as thanks.”
Bennett pulled his sister into a full bear hug. “Love you, sis.”
Watching him with his sister made my heart feel gooey. He’d been worried about coming home and seeing his siblings after what the show had aired with his dad. They’d turned Orin Forrester into a hero, and fans were calling for him to be cast in the next season ofIn the Wild.A lot of their conversation had been edited out to look like Bennett and his dad had a really great relationship. He’d spent several restless nights stressed that his siblings would think he’d betrayed them.
Greg and Orin had still been at base camp when we’d arrived, but Bennett and I had no problem spending as much time in our tent as humanly possible. We left it to eat and watch the aired episodes, all parties mutually avoiding each other.
Soft arms wrapped around me from behind, and I inhaled my mom’s familiar scent. I turned around, and she rocked us back and forth in a tight hug. “I missed you so much,” I said to her.
“I missed you too.” She held my cheeks and stared at me like she was marveling at me. “You were amazing out there. And surviving in that cave all by yourself. I was so proud.” She hugged me again. “But I didn’t know you went on the show for me. Honey, you have to live your own life and not worry about mine. It’s the parent’s job to worry about the kid, not the other way around.”
“You’ve just done so much for me.”
As worried as Bennett had been about his siblings, I’d been worried about what my mom would say when she discovered my motivation for going on the show. Nothing had remaineda secret—not the little songs Bennett and I had made up, not the ways I’d fled from his kiss time and again, and definitely not our heated make-out session that ended with us leaving the cameras outside the tent. My cheeks flamed hot just thinking about it. Watching that episode with Greg and Bennett’s dad on the other side of the outdoor covered watching area, knowing that everyone could guess what was going on inside our tent, was both mortifying… and satisfying.
I didn’tneedGreg to know that someone else loved and accepted me for who I was. But I didn’t hate having it thrown in his face, either.
“Don’t listen to her.” Grandma edged Bennett away to stand next to me. “I need your mom to take care of me, and she’s trying to get out of it with thiskids not taking care of parentspropaganda.”
“Mom!” My mom rolled her eyes. “You do not need me to take care of you. And when you do get to that point, it’s different.”
“We’re family, and we take care of each other,” Grandma said, as if it was the final statement. “Now you can quit one of your jobs and come visit me more.”
Ben and I had been featured quite a bit, earning us exactly what I needed to pay off Mom’s bills.
“Yes.” Mom closed her eyes as if overwhelmed by it all. “You should have kept the money for yourself. Gone on an amazing trip, or … I don’t know. Bought a new car.”
“I just got home from an amazing trip. And I don’t need a new car. I need more time with my mom.”
