Page 17 of Wish Me Home

I laughed as I dropped the shirt I’d been holding on the bed. I looked out the window and ran a hand through my hair. With the bright sunshine and palm trees, it was hard to imagine it being Christmas in four days. It used to seem strange to me watching Christmas movies growing up how everything was covered in snow. That had never been typical for me. I wondered if Cody ever had a white Christmas.

Emmett:I’m not sure. If it is, we must both be weird.

Dropping the phone onto the bed I continued to unpack. Aunt Sadie came and leaned against the door frame, watching me. She stood there silently for a few moments before coming in and helping me put clothes into drawers.

“Are you doing okay, Emmett?” she finally asked.

I looked at her. Her brow was creased in concern and I wasn’t completely sure what prompted her to ask that.

“I’m fine. Why are you asking?”

“Because this is the first year you’ve been away. I had to practically beg you to come back to visit.” She reached out and grabbed my arm, squeezing gently. She pulled me down and we sat on the edge of the bed. I heard my phone ping with a new message, but ignored it to talk to my aunt.

“I know, but part of me is still adjusting to moving,” I explained.

She reached over and ran her fingers through my hair before brushing them down my face. I still hadn’t shaved and I could feel her fingertips catch on my stubble.

“I get that. It’s just been lonely around here without you.”

I pinched my eyes closed and took a deep breath. My mom had always been close to her sister. When Aunt Sadie had chosen not to go to college, their family hadn’t been happy. It wasn’t like a college education made you a better person. She was smart and beautiful and wasn’t any less successful. The family wasn’t any more thrilled with her decision not to marry. She was happy on her own.

“I know, and I didn’t mean to make you feel lonely.”

“Oh, I know that. It’s not like I’m trying to make you feel guilty, Emmett. It’s just not fair if I don’t tell you I miss you. A lot.”

I nodded before standing up and shoving the mostly empty suitcase under the bed. Later, I would finish unpacking. I looked longingly at the phone on the bed before looking back at my Aunt.

“So who is this man you were kissing at the airport? That seemed sudden.”

I chuckled and grabbed my phone. The desire to check his message was getting too strong. I swiped my thumb across the screen to unlock it and opened the message. Thankfully it was a picture of his smiling face. Attached was a simple message.

Hot Flight Attendant:So you don’t have to miss it so much.

I flipped the phone around and showed the photo to Aunt Sadie. She grabbed it from my hand and studied it. Handing the phone back, she grinned. “He is pretty cute, but that still doesn’t tell me who he is.”

“Cody. And he really is a flight attendant. We met yesterday at the airport.”

She stood, brushing off her hands and then placing her hands on her hips. “Well that sounds like an interesting story. You should share it with me while we get this tree decorated.”

She dragged me into the living room to decorate the tree that had waited for my arrival.

Chapter Twelve

Cody

Noreplycameaftersending the picture, but I could see that Emmett had opened it. Unlike me, he was spending time with family. I sank back against the pillows on my bed and tried not to let it bother me how lonely and empty my tiny apartment felt. It never seemed to bother me before.

Taking time off for Christmas had felt like a good idea. Though I never took time off, it also felt selfish because I prevented a co-worker from taking time off who had a family to spend with.

Shaking off my depressing thoughts, I got up and grabbed something lighter to wear. I got in the shower and washed off the last few days. As I shaved in the mirror afterward, my thoughts drifted to the dark stubble that had grown on Emmett’s face as we were stuck at the airport.

Briefly, I wondered if he’d found the stowaway in his carryon bag. Considering nothing had been said yet, chances were that he hadn’t. Throwing on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts, I shoved my feet into a pair of slip-on shoes and decided that my apartment needed some holiday cheer.

Craftstoresshouldn’tbethis confusing. Although, maybe that hadn’t been the smartest choice in my mission for Christmas decorations. I should’ve gone to a department store, but being so close to Christmas almost everything was going to be cleared out. I shifted the box that carried the small fake Christmas tree I’d selected under my arm, cursing my decision to not grab a cart earlier.

Boxes upon boxes of lights lined the wall in front of me with no one in sight to explain what anything meant. Icicle, twinkle, indoor/outdoor, green cords, and white cords all laughed in my face because I had no idea what I needed.

“Sir?”

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