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I take him in and thank whoever is out there watching out for me, that this man is my best friend.
“I love you,” I say, smiling softly, trying to convey everything I feel into those three words, even when they aren’t received in the way he’d hoped.
He swallows, forcing his smile a little wider.
“Yeah, I love you, too, K.”
Chapter 85
I wanted to stay with Keaton all night, but I had to get my mom back home and I wanted to give the girls a chance to settle in.
I hardly slept, counting the hours until I could head back over and see my girl. Mom and I both woke up bright and early, eager to start the day.
“I talked to Rob yesterday before we left, and he suggested taking Regina grocery shopping this morning. The house was pretty empty and who knows how long they’re going to have to stay there,” my mom says, checking her hair in the mirror over the entryway table.
The mention of Rob doesn’t seem to be bothering her quite as much as it used to. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think she was actually looking forward to seeing him again.
I’m honestly not sure how that makes me feel, but I guess I can process that later.
“That’s a good idea,” I tell her, grabbing my car keys and pocketing my phone.
“Regina said she’d be ready by eight, so if we head over now we’ll be there just in time,” she smiles, and I swear she looks ten years younger.
It's amazing what not having to put up with the abuse every day will do to a person.
The drive over is only about twenty minutes, but I cut down a few random streets and circle back as Sander suggested I do, just to play it safe.
Rob’s car is already parked in the driveway when we pull in, and I see him talking with Regina around the side of the house. They’re both holding coffee cups, pointing at the number of shrubs and bushes growing around the yard.
She’s smiling and happy, and for a moment I catch a glimpse of what Keaton might look like in forty years. Hell, if I take after Rob, then that could be the both of us, waking up early in the morning, sipping our coffee over the rose bushes.
Keaton would get a kick out of that.
“Morning,” my mom calls as we step out of the car.
Regina and Rob turn, both greeting us with a cheerful wave.
I’m itching to get inside, but don’t want to be rude, so I stand and join in the conversation until Regina graciously gives me an out.
“Keaton’s awake if you’d like to go see her,” she says.
I thank her, taking her and Rob’s cup inside with me so that they can head to the store.
I hear shuffling around in the kitchen and head that way.
Keaton stands at the counter, making herself a cup of coffee. Her hair is wet and hanging down her back. I can smell her warm honey scent from here.
I step up behind her, placing the empty cups on the counter, and circle my arms around her waist.
The sigh that leaves her when she rests her weight against my chest fills me with so much happiness. If you had told me a year ago that I could ever feel like this, I would have told you that you were fucking crazy. But here I stand, head over heals in love with this girl.
Reaching up, I pull her hair around to one shoulder, and nuzzle into the crook of her neck, kissing the hollow beneath her ear.
“How was your first night?” I ask between kisses.
I know that I need to be gentle with her, but just earlier this week I thought that I might never get to hold her again, and the feeling of her warm skin beneath my lips, my arms circling her waist… it has me wanting to strip her bare right in this kitchen, just to make sure the moment is real.
“Honestly, you could have told me I spent the night in a five-star hotel, and I wouldn’t have even questioned it,” she says.
