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The girls dug in, and Holly thought of Eric with every bite she took, calming the frustration she felt over him bulldozing his way into her life. Feeding her was one thing, but she was doing fine. She didn’t need him filling her food cabinet. Still, she appreciated his gesture. She was always cooking for others, and it was nice to know she could continue to do so if she wanted.
“Not bad,” she said, swallowing down a bite of tender steak. “Who grilled the steaks?”
“Justin.” Aimee kept her eyes on her plate while her cheeks turned beet red.
“Okay, spill it,” Diane said, gaining the attention in the room. Was she speaking to Holly? Diane glanced at Aimee, who was giggling in her seat.
“I can’t hold it in anymore.”
“What?” Holly said, dropping her fork. “What now?”
Aimee giggled some more before they finally forced her to speak. “Justin asked me out for tomorrow.”
Holly picked up her fork and groaned. Why now?
“Didn’t you hear me, girls? I’m moving on. Go back to your men. I mean, not right now. Let’s finish dinner, but afterwards, please stop catering to me.”
Holly held her fork with a shaky hand and turned to Aimee. “I need you to say this answer nice and slow for me. Are you okay if I date Eric?”
She studied Aimee’s face, trying to detect any bit of hesitancy. But Aimee only nodded. “Look, I was selfish, Holly, and I’m sorry. I threw a tantrum when he wasn’t mine in the first place. I saw the signs. I knew how you felt, and yet, I have been the solid reason you aren’t together. I hung on him, and pushed you away. I claim the blame.” She gave a nervous laugh, and Holly knew she was really trying. “Hey, that rhymed. But seriously, hurry up and go see the poor boy. He hasn’t slept since you two took a break.”
Diane clapped her hands together. “Thank goodness!”
Holly laughed as a burden was lifted from her shoulders. “And you’re sure that if you saw Eric and me kissing in the front room, you’d be okay with walking in on that?”
Aimee’s smile disappeared. “Would anyone be okay with walking in on that?”
Holly’s face broke into a smile as she caught the joking tone in her friend’s voice.
“Hurry and finish your dinner and go see him before I change my mind.”
She didn’t have to tell Holly twice. She shoved in three times the amount of food, swallowing down big chunks of meat and potato.
“Slow down, girl. He is not going anywhere. He has plans to study.” She held her hands up in air quotes.
“Are you going to see Cameron then?”
“Yep.”
Aimee bit the side of her lip and shrugged. “Well, I guess that means I need to track down Justin and speed up when we’re going out.”
The three girls laughed and finished their dinner in record time. Holly couldn’t clean off the table fast enough. The leftovers—and there were many—had to be carefully stored away in the fridge, the mess on the table cleaned up, and Holly had to change before she made it out of the apartment.
Without a jacket, the night chill flew through her thin shirt and into her bones. She shivered and ran in the direction of Eric’s apartment.
She ran downstairs and across two long hallways before she finally reached the door. She tried the handle, and when she found it unlocked, she opened it and raced inside. She stopped short. Eric was asleep on the love seat, a book propped up on his chest.
She shut the door, not wanting the cold to wake him, and tiptoed over to the couch. She carefully removed the book, bookmarked it with a napkin so he could find his spot, and knelt next to him on the floor.
“Eric,” she whispered.
No movement.
She leaned in to whisper. “Eric, wake up. It’s me.”
His eyes fluttered open, and he stared at her in a daze. “Holly?”
She nodded and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I’ve missed you so much.” She breathed in his smell and relaxed her head against his chest. Her knees ached, but who cared.
