Page 107 of The Stolen Moments Trilogy

He opens his arms and I walk up to him. He closes his arms around me and hugs me. “It’ll be okay,” he murmurs. “Give it time, baby. Everything is going to be okay.”

I shake my head and clutch him tighter. This time it won’t be okay. This time things won’t work out. But if being with Carter is costing me my friendship with Kate, then I might as well not hold back. Nothing I do or say will make her forgive me.

“I’ll move in with you. If you meant it, then I’ll move in with you. Kate already put a request in to change roommates, so we don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Carter pulls away and looks at me excitedly. “Of course I meant it,” he says, his eyes twinkling with affection. He leans in and presses a chaste kiss on my lips. “I’d love nothing more, Minx. I’m so ready for us to do this right. I want it all with you.”

I nod happily and rise to my tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “My scholarship pays for room and board costs, so I can even pay rent.”

Carter threads his hands through my hair and shakes his head. “Let’s save that money for our future and for emergencies. I’ve got rent covered.”

I nod at Carter, my heart soaring. Our future together… I love the sound of that. “Are you sure Asher will be okay with it?”

Carter smiles at me endearingly and nods. “I wouldn’t have asked you if he didn’t agree. He owns the apartment as much as I do, and he’s fine with it. He may have suggested he’d like some home-cooked meals, though…”

I chuckle and hug him tightly. “I’ll go back with you. When you leave for summer training, I’ll go back with you. I don’t want to be here without you.”

Carter nods and presses a kiss on top of my head. “I’d love that, Minx.”

Chapter 41

Carter

I’m giddy with excitement as Emilia and I walk into my apartment. Our apartment, now. Usually I’m tired and cranky from the trip, but today I’m buzzing. Emilia seems nervous as I put her luggage down.

“We’ll have the place to ourselves for a few weeks. Asher went home to see his parents and he won’t come back until the new term starts.”

I grab her hand and pull her closer. She smiles at me, but the smile doesn’t reach her eyes. When is the last time I saw her smile? I sigh and wrap my arms around her, hugging her tightly. She’s lost weight and she’s got bags underneath her eyes that she never used to have. I’m worried about her. Worried that I did this to her. To us. That I won’t be able to make it better. I hope I’ll be enough for her. That I can make up for what she’s lost because of me. I just want Emilia to be happy.

I grab her hand and pull her along. “So this is our bedroom now,” I murmur, unable to hide my smile. Emilia looks up at me and grins. A real grin, this time. She looks around in wonder and slowly but surely, the light in her eyes returns.

“Ours, huh?” she says.

I laugh happily, unable to contain my excitement. My heart is overflowing with happiness, and I want to make her feel the same. “Is there anything you want to change?”

Emilia looks around and shakes her head. “Not really. Can we add some of my candles and maybe we could use my bedsheets? It’d add a little bit of color.”

I move to stand behind her and wrap my arms around her. “Do whatever you want, baby. This room is as much yours as it is mine from now on.” She turns to look at me with just a hint of insecurity in her eyes. “I want you to feel at home here, Minx. I’m serious when I say it’s your place too.”

She bites down on her lip and looks at me with wide eyes. “And you’re sure Asher is okay with it?”

I nod. “You’ll be sharing a room with me, so it’s not like he’s losing out on any space. Besides, you were already here often, anyway. Not that much has changed. He seems pretty excited at the idea of having some of your food, though. He may have mentioned it half a dozen times. I still eat most of my meals with our nutritionist and my team, but since Asher stopped playing he’s been on his own food-wise, and he can cook about as well as I can. All he eats these days is canteen food and cup noodles. You don’t have to if you don’t want to, but I think he’d really appreciate it if sometimes you’d cook for him too? I don’t know, it’s up to you.”

Emilia smiles and nods happily. “I have to cook for myself anyway, so it’s not even like I’d be going out of my way at all.”

I nod and press a kiss to her cheek. “Thank you, baby. He’s had a pretty rough time recently. Things haven’t been great for him since he got injured and had to stop playing. The shit with Kate hasn’t helped either, though he refuses to tell me what exactly happened. I think she cheated on him or something. I really don’t know.”

Emilia stiffens in my arms and stares at me with wide, panicked eyes. “You knew?” she whispers. I grin and kiss her forehead. “Minx, Asher and I live together. Besides, remember when I sneaked into my bedroom that night you and Kate stayed over? Kate was obviously in Asher’s room.”

She blinks and then blushes, as though she can’t believe she missed that. She groans and drops her head to my chest. “I’m so stupid… how could I not have realized that? I mean, I was pretty sure you knew, but I wasn’t a hundred percent certain.”

I laugh and shake my head as I start to unpack. “I guess I did distract you thoroughly that night, huh?”

She blushes and pushes against my arm before wheeling her suitcase into the bedroom. It’s a little silly, I guess, but I’m pretty happy to see her things next to mine.

“Here,” I murmur, pointing at my wardrobe. “You can have half. I think we have space for another wardrobe if this one isn’t big enough.”

Emilia shakes her head and bites down on her lip, her cheeks rosy. I think us moving in together is finally sinking in, because her eyes sparkle with the same excitement I’m feeling. We unpack together, and slowly but surely, my bedroom starts to look more like ours. I never cared much for this kind of stuff, but Emilia’s cute little candles and decorations definitely make the room look nicer. By the time we’re all done, we’re both exhausted. My stomach grumbles loudly and Emilia chuckles. She grabs my hand and pulls me toward the kitchen.

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