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“So, tomorrow will be awkward,” Louisa says then, and I shake my head.
“I told him not to come.”
Elliot’s mouth goes slack, and the rest of my sisters gawk at me. “Are you serious?” Eliza asks, and I shrug.
“We don’t have any intentions of making tomorrow anything but perfect. As much as we both want him to be there, I know you guys need time to process and trust him again. Hopefully this will help.”
Elliot looks away, shaking her head as Austen meets my gaze. “He was okay with that?”
“Not at all. He’s torn up about it, but he knows how important this day is for Lou and Ciaran.”
Louisa swallows hard. “He does love you.”
“He does,” I say softly, and thankfully, Darcy comes back to me, going between my legs for the support I didn’t realize I needed.
“I’m sorry, sis,” Elliot says quietly. “Want me to kick Alex’s ass?”
I scoff, shaking my head. “No. He was only looking out for me.”
She nods as her eyes fill with tears. I close the distance between all of us, and, to my surprise, Darcy follows with me.Riggs is doing great with him, and that only makes me miss him more. As I wrap my arms around my sisters, they hug me just as tightly, and we all can’t help but laugh when Elliot’s belly gets in the way. In their arms, I feel like things may have changed. I’m no longer the baby who needs protecting. I’m a woman in love, like they are, and they know they raised me to take care of myself.
On a sigh, I say, “Now, I’ve got the day to myself. What are we doing?”
We decide to have a girls’ night and then head to the venue early. Since I don’t have an overnight bag, I head over to my apartment to pack one. Once I’m in the car on my way, I pick up my phone to see all the missed calls and texts from Riggs. My heart swells as I dial his number, and he answers immediately.
“Where are you?”
“On my way to my apartment to pack a bag, I’m meeting the girls for a girls’ night.”
By his sigh, I know he’s not happy. “Come home.”
“Maybe tomorrow,” I say softly, fighting back the tears. “Aren’t you wondering how it went?”
“I don’t care,” he says simply. “I don’t care what they think of me. I only want you.”
I bite my lip, my tears spilling over as my heart hammers in my chest. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Clara—”
“I love you.”
“Damn it, love, you’re hell on my heart.”
“And you wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“I wouldn’t,” he admits, his voice low. “Would you come home if I said I’m slowly dying without you by my side?”
I smile through my tears, and I swallow. “No, but I would say I feel the same.”
“Then come home.”
“I will tomorrow,” I say softly, wiping my cheeks free of tears. “I love you, Riggs.”
His voice breaks as he says, “I love you more, love.”
I don’t say goodbye because it’s not goodbye, and I refuse to put that finality on our phone call. Instead, I hang up, and I cry because I do miss him, I do love him, and I want more than anything to go home to him.
But I know I can’t.
