Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 92062 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92062 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
“Are you going to go and get your things?” my mother asks me, and I look at her confused. “Well, you have to get out of Nate’s hair.”
“I’ll get them later,” I say, hoping she isn’t going to push the issue and I’ll have to pack up my things.
“Okay, we can swing by after shopping and grab your things.” I nod, not willing to get into it with her. I look at Nate. “I’ll see you later.” I don’t know if I’m asking him or telling him, and he just nods his head at me, much like what I did to my mother.
My mother looks between us and doesn’t say anything before she turns and walks out of the house. I step out, wanting to turn back and kiss him, which would make things probably worse for us all.
I get into the car at the same time as my mother, both of us slamming the door at the same time. “So”—she starts the car—“should we do coffee first?”
I look at her and nod my head, knowing that she knows something is up. “I think that’s best.” She pulls away from the house and with each passing minute my heart gets heavier and heavier in my chest. When we get to the small coffee shop, I get out, trying to get my breathing under control, and knowing I’m one second away from a full-on breakdown.
I walk in and head straight for a table. “I’ll order for you,” my mother says to me. I don’t even answer her because of the lump in my throat and anything I say right now I’m pretty sure will come out in a sob. I sit in the back of the coffee shop, looking down at my hands. The bracelet he gave me yesterday slides out of my sweater and I see the heart. My finger goes to touch it at the same time my mother pulls out a chair and sits in front of me.
“They will bring the coffee.” She shrugs off her jacket. “I ordered you a cupcake, but I don’t think that is going to make you feel better.”
I smile and snort a little. “I don’t think a cupcake can fix this.”
“What is this?” she asks me and I look up at her.
“It’s…” I start to say and then stop when I feel my bottom lip quiver. “It’s—” I exhale. “I’m in love with Nate.” I look up and exhale again. “Oh God.”
“My beautiful girl,” she says and I’m expecting her to freak out, but she smiles at me and holds out her hand on the table, putting it on mine, “we already knew that.”
“What?” I ask, shocked. “Who is we?”
“Well, I can tell you who didn’t, your father and Joshua. I’m pretty sure Jack saw it.” She smiles. “You’ve been in love with him since you were a teenager.”
“I have not,” I shriek. “This just happened.”
“No.” She shakes her head. “This didn’t just happen, maybe you just got your head out of your ass, but it didn’t just happen.”
“We hated each other,” I remind her. “He was involved with someone else,” I point out and she rolls her eyes.
“You hated each other because you moved away, and he didn’t tell you not to go.” My mouth hangs open. “But that’s the past, you both had to do what you needed to do in order to be here right now.”
“Mom.” I stop when the girl comes to deliver our coffee. I wait for her to walk away before I look back at her.
“Elizabeth,” she says my name, looking down at her coffee cup. “Seven years ago you hightailed it out of town and went halfway around the world most likely to get away from him.”
“I didn’t just do it because of him. It was a great opportunity.”
“Agreed.” She nods her head. “You needed to do what you needed to do and so did he. Now you both ended up here.”
“Yeah and now I don’t live here,” I remind her and she rolls her eyes. “Mom, I can’t just get up and move.”
“Why not?” she scoffs at me. “You did once before, I’m pretty sure you can do it again.”
“I have a life,” I counter, and the minute I say the words, the only thing flashing through my mind is Nate. It’s not just Nate, it’s also Whiskey, Bean, and Baby Cat. The five of us settled on the couch watching a show, even though it’s not a memory I should have.
“What life?” she asks me. “You go to work, you come home. It’s wash, rinse, repeat,” she snaps at me. “You what, have two friends and barely go out.”
“Wow.”
“Don’t you wow me, young lady.” She points her finger at me. “Do you know how hard it is for me to see you not living a full life?”