Page 87 of You Met Me There

Nat splashes water at her sister. “If your outfit gets ruined, I’ll buy you a new one. Now get in here!” she shouts.

“Fine.” Jules rolls her eyes and lowers Archie—now smiling and squealing—into the water where Cam takes hold of him.

“That’s it, Jules!” I sing.

“Just jump right in,” says Cam. “Don’t give it a second thought.” He looks at Jules with pure admiration, the lines around his eyes softening as he watches her.

Juliet seems to be encouraged by his look alone, because she’s instantly plunging into the lake, laughing as her feet leave the solid wood. Her splash is small, but the boys are laughing and shouting “yay, Mommy!”

Nat’s body shakes as she laughs at the spectacle. I nuzzle my nose into her neck, and she presses her cheek against mine.

“Are you happy?” I whisper against the shell of her ear.

“Very happy.”

“You look beautiful.”

“What?” Her nose scrunches up and it’s adorable. “I look like a wet rat.”

“A very cute rat.”

“Rats aren’t cute. Their tails look like snakes, and they carry diseases,” she deadpans.

I bring my smile close to hers, water droplets visible as they drip from her nose. “You really know how to ruin a moment.”

“Oh, sorry,” she says, fluttering her lashes. “Is that what this was right in front of my nephews? A moment?”

A laugh escapes me. “I thought it was, but I’ve been wrong before. You’re right, though. We’ll save the moment for later.”

I bounce my eyebrows at her, and she laughs. It’s the beautiful twinkling laughter that I love. My stomach swoops at the sound as it joins in the chorus of the birds overhead and the lapping of the water against the dock, and I hope that life can be this wonderful forever.

Chapter 43

Natalie

The next week passes in a blur of summer heatwaves and dips in the lake. We eat dinner with my family almost every night, sometimes at Jules’s house, other times at the cabin, and even at the diner a few times. I’ve never felt so whole.

Mom and Dad have already planned a road trip to Florida to see where I’ve been living, and I couldn’t be happier about it. I want to take Mom to the beach and give Dad a tour of the country club. He’s a simple man who enjoys simple things, but I want to spoil him in all his retirement glory. Luke has been telling him about the golf course he frequents, so they’re making their own plans to play with Luke’s dad when they visit.

Sarah, the professional runner, called me a few days after her photo shoot. She coached me on how to breathe properly when I run and told me when to stretch and for how long. I’ve been running with Luke in the mornings, and I can already tell the difference in my breathing and endurance. I’m only able to run ten minutes before I need to walk again, but it’s better than what I was doing before. And honestly, the cute athletic wear I bought is a huge motivator.

I’ve also felt better since I’ve started running. I no longer feel as anxious as I was, and I sleep great. Luke said he hasn’t heard me stir at night, and I’m happy to say it’s all thanks to the physical activity I’ve worked into my days. I haven’t been drinking either, now that the nightmares haven’t kept me awake.

Luke and I are doing really well. He says he’s still thinking of having kids, but he doesn’t know when the timing would be right. We’ve agreed to wait out the summer and work on getting ourselves back into a routine in Florida before we make such a huge decision.

And I feel really good about that. Hopeful would be the word I’d use now. And of course things have drastically changed with Juliet too. We talk all the time now, even texting when we’re not together. And we’ve begun to make plans for holidays, whether that be Luke and I coming here or her family visiting us in Fort Lauderdale.

“Are you ready to go?” Luke kisses me on the cheek.

We’re tubing down the river today with Jules, Cam, Tyler, and Sandra. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t completely ecstatic.

“Almost.” I turn my back to Luke, holding the strings of my bikini top over my shoulders. “Can you just tie this for me?”

“Sure.”

My body reacts the instant he steps closer, even before I feel his hands at my neck. I pass the orange strings over to him, and he asks me to hold my hair up while he ties a bow.

Luke’s fingers brush against my neck as he works. “Is this tight enough?”