Page 65 of Part of Me (The Seaside Chronicles 2)

Sutton

I rolled over, slowly opened my eyes, and then slammed them shut again. “Oh God, my head…”

“Good morning.”

Turning at the sound of Brody’s voice, I opened one eye and moaned. “It’s too bright. My head feels like it’s going to explode.”

He chuckled. “Here, I have a glass of orange juice, your favorite bagel with cream cheese, and three Advil.”

Forcing myself to sit up, I fully opened my eyes. The first thing I noticed was that I was still dressed in what I’d been wearing last night. Thank God. If anything had happened between me and Brody while I was drunk, I would never be able to look at him again.

Brody placed the tray over my lap and smiled. “Feeling it this morning, I take it?”

I let out another moan. “I haven’t had that much to drink in I don’t know how long. Why did you let me get so drunk?”

His eyes widened. “I tried to get you to slow down, but you weren’t having it.”

I picked up the orange juice and took a sip, and it made me feel the tiniest bit better.

I looked up at Brody and felt butterflies move into my stomach when I remembered our conversation on the couch.

“Do you remember anything from last night?” he asked as he sat down on the side of the bed.

I took a bite of the bagel and nodded.

“How much?” he asked, his face filled with hope. He clearly wanted me to remember at least some of it.

“All of it.”

His brows lifted. “All of it, huh?”

I nodded, then reached for the orange juice and Advil. I tossed the pills into my mouth and drank half the glass. The memory of last night made my entire body feel warm.

A soft smile spread over Brody’s face, and I felt my cheeks heat.

“Where do we go from here?” I asked.

Brody reached for my hand and kissed my knuckles. “Where do you want to go?”

I dug my teeth into my lip and shrugged. “I’m not sure. I feel like I need to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming last night.”

“I meant everything I said, Sutton. I’ve never stopped loving you, and I hate that I didn’t have the courage to take a leap with you that night.”

My heart hammered in my chest, and I had to blink back tears of joy. I’d waited for so many years, dreamed so many times of hearing Brody say those words to me.

“I never stopped loving you, either,” I said. “I feel like we’ve both been reading each other so wrong the last few months.”

He laughed. “I think so. Sutton, I’ve never been happier than I have this past week. I…want to…date you.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Date me? You’re married to me, Brody.”

It was his turn to blush. “I’ve tried for so long to fight my feelings for you, and I’m tired of denying the truth. I think it’s safe for me to fall.”

“Fall?” I asked with a questioning look.

“That’s what it feels like, Sutton. Like I’m on the edge of a cliff, and the only way I can have you is to step off it and fall. That thought used to scare me, but now…I’d fall from the moon if it meant getting to love you every day for the rest of my life.”

Tears ran down my face as I felt a sob escape.

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