Page 59 of Bring Me To My Knees

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I wake up at five the next morning and decide to head over to the house. I might as well get started loading their stuff as early as possible, so we can hit the road on time.

I walk inside and see a light on in the kitchen. I assume it’s Mitch, so I walk into the room, only to come face to face with Marley. Marley wearing a fucking T-shirt and nothing else.

“Shit. You scared me,” she says, putting her hand on her chest.

“Sorry. I figured you were Mitch.”

“Where have you been?” she asks, frowning.

“Working,” I tell her, moving around her to get myself a cup of coffee.

“It almost seemed like you were avoiding me,” she says, laying it all out.

“Why would I be avoiding you?” I ask.

She flinches, like my words hurt her. I hope they did, because she needs to fucking forget about me.

“No clue, Clark,” she says, stomping out of the room.

“Jesus Christ,” I groan, running my hand over my face.

“Not quite,” Delaney says, stepping into the room with a smile on her face.

“Sorry,” I mumble.

“You’re fine.” She waves me off, grabbing herself a cup of coffee.

“Are you excited?” I ask.

She leans her hip against the counter, looking at me intently.

“Yes. I’m ready to get out of this fucking place, and I hope the distance does Marley some good. All the ghosts of her past can’t seem to leave her alone when she’s here,” she says, frowning.

I hope that for Marley, too.

Mitch comes into the room before I have a chance to respond.

“Hey, man. When did you get here?” he asks.

“Just a few minutes ago.”

“Thanks again for the help. I’ve already loaded Delaney’s stuff into my truck. I was hoping we could throw Marley’s into yours. The girls said they don’t need a car down there right now, so we’ll be taking them. I figured we could drive down there together in a month or two and bring Marley her car,” he suggests.

Now I’ve got to fucking drive her to college. I thought we’d load some of their shit and drive seperately, but of course that’s not how it’s going to go.

“Sure. Sounds good,” I tell him, rinsing my cup off in the sink.

After both trucks are loaded, Mitch and Delaney head out. Marley came down a few minutes ago and said she needed a minute. I’ve been standing outside, leaning against the truck, waiting since then. I told Mitch I’d call when we made it.

“Sorry about that,” Marley says, breathless, coming out of the house with a backpack.

She looks like a fucking breath of fresh air. She’s wearing some brightly colored sundress with tiny flowers. It’s short, hitting above her knees, and it’s held up by some straps that are tied on the tops of her shoulders.

I’m pretty sure she’s trying to fucking kill me in that thing.

“You okay?” she asks, pausing to look at me.

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