Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 124451 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124451 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
“Sounds good,” I tell him, beaming up at my whole freaking world.
Barely even thirty seconds later, I sit beside him in the Mustang as he flies down the road, the windows down and music up. He’s got one hand on the wheel and the other resting on my thigh. It simply doesn’t get better than this.
We pull up at home, and just as promised, he rushes inside to have a shower and get ready for the night while I skip over the hedge and push through the door of Orlando’s place. “Mom?” I question, peeking inside to find the foyer filled with boxes and suitcases. “Mom? Where are you?”
I walk deeper into the foyer, glancing over the array of boxes as Mom comes down the stairs looking as though she’s been in the gym all day. Her hair is a mess and she hasn’t bothered with makeup. Hell, she looks like the mom I had before Orlando Channing decided to fuck with our lives.
“Oh, hey honey,” she says. “How was the game?”
“We won,” I tell her, pointing out the boxes. “Are we moving out?”
Mom cringes. “Not exactly,” she says, motioning for me to follow her. She walks into the living room and drops on the couch, and I do the same, my curiosity driving me insane. Mom takes my hands and gives me a hesitant smile. “I don’t know how much you’ve been told, but from the sound of it, Orlando will be going away for quite some time, and despite how much I love this house, I simply can’t stay here.”
“Oh,” I say, panic starting to claim me. “Where are we going?”
“Not we,” she clarifies. “Me. Unless you want to come with me.”
My face scrunches with confusion. “Huh?”
Mom laughs and her smile widens. “I’ve bought a small apartment with the money I had left from selling our Hope Falls home. However, as long as Orlando and I remain married, this house will remain ours … well, ours and Jensen’s of course.”
“What’s … what are you getting at?”
“I thought you might like to stay here,” she tells me. “I know our relationship has been quite strained over the past few months, and that’s entirely on me. I want you to thrive, Brielle, and I know taking you away from the place that makes you so happy isn’t going to do me any favors. So you can stay, unless you’d prefer to come with me, which is more than okay.”
“I, ummm …”
“You don’t need to make any decisions right now,” she tells me. “Jensen will be attending Brown in the fall, so the place will be all yours. You can move all your things into the master room and keep all those fancy clothes in my closet. I don’t want any of it. I just want you to be happy. And this school, this town, and being so close to Tanner and his sister, this place is your home.”
I nod. “It is.”
She pulls me into a tight hug and I hold her like a little girl, terrified to let go. “I’m so proud of you, Bri. Look at this incredible young woman you’ve become. I’m going to hate being away from you, but it’ll only be a fifteen-minute drive at most. I’ll come visit you all the time, and you’re always welcome to come and stay with me. I’ve got two spare bedrooms, one for you and your brother.”
Tears well in my eyes, and as I pull back, I hastily wipe them. “What are you going to do?”
She shrugs her shoulders. “Who knows?” she says with a fond smile. “I guess that’s all part of the adventure. Something for me to figure out along the way.”
A strange mix of emotions rest in my chest. Sadness, joy, pride, and nervousness, but most of all, I just feel love. “I’m going to miss you,” I tell her. “I hate that things have been weird, but I’m excited to work on it and get back that old friendship we had.”
“You and me both, kid,” she says, letting out a heavy sigh before standing and dragging me up with her. “I’ve got movers coming in the morning to take all of my stuff to the new apartment, and if I don’t keep going, I’ll never have it all ready.”
“Okay,” I tell her, reading the signs she wants me to get out of here so she can get herself sorted out. “I need to get going anyway, but I’ll text you in the morning and you can show me your new place. Tanner and I can come and help you unpack.”
“That would be lovely, sweetheart,” she says before pulling me into another tight hug. “Now, if you could convince a few of those other strong boys to come along as well, I’ve got some furniture that needs to be put together.”