Page 44 of I Never Stopped Loving You

I pull off the freeway and start heading to my house along the shore. When I get to my driveway, I press the button to unlock the iron gate. It’s too high for any human to scale, and the top is iron sharp enough to slice someone to ribbons.

The gate slowly slides open, and it’s taking every last drop of control to keep myself from flooring it and slamming the gate off the track. Just a few…more…seconds. Perfect.

*Ring* *Ring*

Jeremy’s face buzzes on my car's screen. I let it go to voicemail, but his fucking face just pops right back up.

“What, Jeremy?”

“Hey, where are you?”

“Just getting home.”

I slowly pull onto my private driveway. My entire property is surrounded by a tall fence similar to the front gate. Tall and sharp enough to keep the trespassers out and the captives in.

“What? I thought you were out with Willow?”

“I was. Now I’m not. Why are you calling this late, Remy?” He hates it when I call him Grandma’s nickname for him.

“It’s barely after midnight, Noel,” he teases back with the nickname he’s called me since we were children, just to piss me off.

“Don’t call me that,” I snap.

“Then fucking tell me what happened.”

“I kissed her, and it’s as if everything, every perfectly constructed brick I placed building a spot for her, came crumbling down. ”

I skid to a stop in front of my house and can’t say I’m shocked when I see Jeremy sitting on my front porch. He hangs up and pockets his phone before walking over to me.

“Say that again,” he says slowly as he gets to my open driver’s side door.

“Say what?” I snarl.

He grabs me by my wrist and yanks me out of the car to my feet.

“Say. That. Again.”

“Every perfectly constructed brick I placed building a spot for her, came crumbling down.”

“Is she the one?”

He knows a little bit of my obsession. He knows why I date women who all look similar but he doesn’t know the exact reason why I’m obsessed with her. He just thinks she’s a childhood crush that got away.

“Noah…Is she the girl from your childhood?”

I never told him her name. I simply told him that I’d never forget her and that one day I’d find her again.

I always knew I would.

“It’s her.”

“Fuck, dude. How? What the hell? What did she say when she saw you? What did you say?”

“I didn’t say anything…”

“What? What the fuck do you mean?”

I ignore his question and brush past him to open my front door. He follows me inside, and I can feel him right on my heels until we get to my kitchen. He flops into one of the kitchen island’s chairs and he crosses his arms to lean on the counter. I can feel him staring at me, patiently waiting for me to talk.