Page 75 of Always Red (Chasing Red 2)

“Ah, baby. Don’t cry. Wouldn’t you do everything in your power to take care of the one you love? To give them everything you can offer?” I kissed her cheeks, her lips. “The things I want to give you don’t come with a price. I don’t expect anything in return. That’s what love is. Or haven’t you figured that out yet?”

She looked down for a moment, struggling with words. And then she glanced up. “Caleb,” she began, her voice shaky. “I’ve never had anything like this before. Never thought I would have it. It seemed like an impossible dream. A dream that was too good to be true. But with you, I know it’s real, and I’ll embrace it with open arms and protect it with everything I have.”

I was done for. This girl would be my ruin.

I scooped her in my arms and carried her across the bridge to the other hut where I had already placed blankets and pillows on the floor. I gently placed her there and sat beside her. She turned on her side to face me.

“This is the best night ever.”

“Stay still like that.” I reached for the notepad and charcoal I had placed beside her pillow when I was setting up earlier.

“What are you doing?”

“Drawing you.”

Her eyes lit up. “I had no idea you can draw.”

When I was reading up online about the perfect date, one of the tips was to sketch her face.

When I was done, I showed it to her. “What do you think?”

She burst out laughing. Her eyes were half closed, her body limp on the blanket. She pillowed the side of her face with her hands as she looked up at me, sleepily.

“Better stick with economics, Caleb.”

I grinned at her. The picture wasn’t bad. I thought I drew her cat eyes pretty well.

“Tell me a story,” she said sluggishly.

I put the notepad down and lay down beside her, pulling her into my arms so that her head rested on my chest. I stroked her hair for a moment, gathering the thick and soft strands in my fingers.

“Once upon a time,” I whispered gently, kissing her hair. “There was a boy who met a girl on a bridge…”

But when I glanced at her, she had already fallen asleep.

How beautiful she is, how perfect.

I closed my eyes and pulled her closer.

I was born to love this girl.

* * *

Veronica

Caleb was leaving today.

It had been two days since that incredibly romantic night at the tree house. It had been so sweetly unexpected. He’d put so much effort into making it perfect for me that even now the memory of it made me smile.

Sun poured cheerfully through the hallway windows as I made my way to my locker, intending to empty it for the summer. I glanced at my watch and noted that we had a few hours before Caleb left for his flight. He was supposed to pick me up in ten minutes. We’d both been busy with work, and I was really looking forward to spending time with him. I grabbed my books and was hurriedly pushing them in my bag when a piece of paper fell out.

I laughed when I saw a picture of a house. Caleb had been leaving pictures of ridiculously beautiful houses—near the lake, in the city, out of the city—and I knew they each had to cost more than a million. “Take your pick, and we’ll see them next week,” he had said.

For a girl who’d lived her life struggling to pay her way, it was hard to let him take the reins.

I knew when I was being stupid, but I wasn’t comfortable with him paying for everything. And I was still in school. I had a decent-paying job, but most of my income went to paying my debts. Caleb had offered to pay them off, but there was no way in hell I would let him do that. He wouldn’t budge about the house, though.

“If you want to make me happy, let me make you happy, Red.”

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