Page 28 of Forever Yours on Christmas Eve
“Mistakes aren’t about failure,” he reminded her, stepping right inside her head without permission and speaking out loud the thing she was afraid of most. “It’s what you do after that makes all the difference.”
She sighed, putting her head in her hand as she stared back at him. “Have I told you how good you are for my soul?”
He laughed, and she continued to smile. “You may have mentioned it.”
“If I could bottle and sell your enthusiasm, I wouldn’t need a master’s degree,” she lamented, knowing it wouldn’t make any difference in the long run. Sometimes you just needed to gripe.
Fortunately, Sev seemed to understand that.
“Plus, I’ve got to get as much done this weekend as I can. My dad wants me to come home next Saturday, and I know I won’t have much time for studying while I’m there. Plus, it wouldn’t hurt to take a break from it all.”
“I think that’s wise, keeping it all in balance like that,” he agreed.
A beat of silence passed, and Kelsey just studied him, this gorgeous man giving her all his time. And she was gobbling it up like Thanksgiving dinner. She wondered why he bothered with someone like her. Goodness knew she’d been a right mess the first time they’d met, fresh off a breakup and running away in her wedding dress. Still, they became friends. Established traditions. And had become important to one another in spite of their distance and life demands.
And of course, speaking of…
Sev turned his head away from the camera, casting a glance behind him. He mumbled something and nodded, breaking into a grin and a laugh before clearly saying, “I’ll be right there, get out of here.”
“Who was that?” she wondered.
“Em,” he said of his sister, settling back in front of his phone. “She says dinner’s nearly done and to get downstairs.”
“Yum,” she said. “What’s on the menu?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Typical stuff. Roast chicken, potatoes. Probably peas or green beans. Maybe carrots if Em had anything to say about it.”
Why did that sound so heavenly right now?“Gosh, save me a seat. I’ll be right there.”
“You’re more than welcome,” Sev said, even though it was a seven-hour trip if she left right now. “You’re always welcome here, Kels.”
“Well, thank you,” she said, refusing to touch down on why thatsentiment made her want to break into tears. “But I have a frozen pizza and some chapter reading calling my name tonight.”
“Don’t study too hard,” he said.
“Don’t envy me,” she said, giving him a broad grin.
“Alright,” he agreed, his arm reaching around and getting closer to the phone. “I’ll see you soon.”
She wasn’t sure if he meant in person or online. But either way, at that moment, she didn’t care. She just wantedSev.“Good night.”
“Night,” he said, just before hitting the button to end the call. As she stared into the blackness, she couldn’t help but let her mind drift to the idea of what it might be like if they were truly together. If they lived by one another and were actually in a place to give a relationship a real shot, where they could see one another regularly, and really get to know one another.
Setting her phone aside, she let her eyes wander back to her bookcases, where a black spine caught her eye. Crossing the room, she reached out for the sketchbook that Sev had bought her for Christmas. It was one of her most valuable possessions because he’d given it to her. He hadn’t asked her if she wanted it, or even tiptoed into the idea of suggesting they get crafty together. He’d simply watched her as she looked through the art supplies, and surmised, quite correctly, that it might be something she’d enjoy.
Nobody had ever gone to those lengths for her before.
And even though they pledged to get to know one another better in the next year, there were still some things she felt in her heart that she just couldn’t tell him. Not yet, anyway.
Things that, rationally, she shouldn’t be feeling after two dates.
Sitting back down with her book in hand, she reached for a pen and cracked the cover open. Turning past a pencil drawing she’d started outlining, she gave herself a good couple of pages before lifting a ballpoint pen to the top of a clean page.
Things I’ve always wanted to say to StewartSeverance
And with that, she began to write.
Getting ready for dinner, Kelsey took a look at herself in her sweater and khaki pants, trying desperately to rid herself of the disgust she felt laid on her this afternoon.
