Page 27 of Princess and Country

“It was nice. I had a lot of fun, miss. I’ll teach you some words. French is the language of love, so you’ll impress Jeff. How are you holding up since he’s gone?”

I wrinkled my face.

“It’s been only seventy-one hours, and I already miss him like crazy. I’ve been counting the hours since he left. Sorry, I’m being ridiculous. It’s super lame.”

Addison wolf-whistled. “You’re doing the long-distance thing then?”

“Yes. He kept his job at the garage—for now—so he’ll come home every few days. Who would have thought Nashville would seem so far?” I sighed. “What about Chris? Did you two make up? Is he still mad you left for the summer after he begged you not to?”

“I haven’t told him I’m back yet. I think it’s better if I just face him. You know, this way he won’t hang up on me. Or ghost me.”

I threw a pillow at my friend.

“You’re impossible. Always going for the drama.”

“Phoenix says it’s my most valuable quality,” she said with a shrug. “Anyway, I need to go unpack. I just came over to say hi. I’ll see you tomorrow at school.” Addi pulled me into a hug. “I’ve missed you.”

“Me too. Glad you’re back.”

Addison left, and I slumped on my bed. I grabbed my phone from the nightstand and toyed with it. Come on, Dah, just call him already.

Jeff answered after the first ring, the sound of his voice enough to soothe me. “Hey you. I was about to call you. How was your day? Missing me already?”

“Like crazy. Rehearsed all afternoon and showed Carter our new merch.”

“How did it go?”

I moved my jaw back and forth. “Better than expected. You should’ve seen his face at first. Anyway, I’m sure it’ll grow on him. It was the best decision for the band.”

“I’m proud of you, Princess.” A huge smile spread across my face. My heartbeat always picked up whenever he called me “Princess.”

“Are you all set up?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry I didn’t ask you to come along. My parents were making a big deal out of it, and I didn’t want them to come—”

“I know, it’s okay. Anyway, I might have never left had I tagged along.”

“I could’ve hidden you in the closet. It’s small but cozy. I should’ve thought about it.” Just from his tone, I could tell my boyfriend was smiling. “Thanks for the shirt. I keep it under my pillow and bury my face in it each time I think of you. Hey, listen, I need to go. There’s like a dorm activity tonight, and someone is knocking on my door. I love you. And I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“I love you. Have fun.”

With my body splayed on the bed and my hands cupping my chest, I fell asleep, wishing my summer vacation could’ve lasted longer. Much longer.

A knock on my window woke me up. I blinked a few times, trying to reboot my sleepy brain.

Knock. Knock.

My pulse sprinted. Only one person could climb into my room in the middle of the night. I pushed open the curtains to welcome Carter.

“What time is it?” I asked, fighting a yawn as he crawled in.

He raked his fingers through his tousled hair. My lips curled at the sight. “Around midnight. I couldn’t sleep. Can I stay here?”

It’d been months since he came over in the middle of the night. The last time was before prom. Before Jeff and I got together.

“Sure. You’re always welcome here.” Carter offered me a small smile, but his eyes told me he was hurting.

“You wanna talk about it?”