Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23100 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 116(@200wpm)___ 92(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23100 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 116(@200wpm)___ 92(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
“Who is it you want to like you?” I barely get the words out because they’re surrounded by so much hope.
I rub her ring finger back and forth, and when her lips part a little I can’t stop myself. I lean down and brush my mouth against hers, kissing her for the first time.
Her small gasp of surprise excites me, but when she leans in I know I’ve sealed the deal. I steal the moment to kiss her deeper, and when my tongue touches hers I taste the cherry blossom lip gloss she’s always wearing. When I hear someone clear their throat I break the kiss and glance over to see Coach standing there. He’s giving me a look that lets me know I’ll be paying for this.
I don’t care. It was so worth it. I turn my head to look back at Cami and her eyes are wide and her lips are redder than before.
“Me kissing you in front of everyone will have to do until I can finally get that ring on your finger. I want everyone to know you’re mine,” I tell her.
She puts her hand up to cover her smile, but I can see those dimples. I feel like I could run the field a hundred times over and not get winded.
“It was you,” she tells me. “I wanted you to notice me.”
“I promise you this, Dimples,” I say as I walk backwards towards the team. “There’s never been a day of my life since I met you that I haven't noticed you.”
I wink at her and dash to the gym with the biggest smile I’ve ever had on my face. Even after the coach makes me run seven miles I’m still grinning ear to ear.
I’m full of excitement and I’ve never been happier because now the whole school knows she’s mine.
Chapter 5
Cami
Senior year of high school…
“Come with me. I want to show you something,” Kathy says as she motions for me to follow her out of the kitchen. I take a peek over at Reed and his dad Mike, who are manning the grill, and I know we’ll only have a few minutes before it’s time to eat.
I love my girl time with Kathy. She’s been a mom to me from the moment I got here. Before we came to live on their property my dad and I drifted from one place to another. I don’t know what I would have done if I’d never met them. I don’t even want to imagine it.
It’s Friday night and our only plans are dinner together. Tomorrow is prom and I know Kathy and I are going to be on the go from the moment I wake up until Reed and I leave for the night. She has a whole day planned for us and I’m so excited I’m not sure how I’m going to be able to sleep.
“I got you these.” She holds up a shoe box and I already know what’s inside.
I hold up my hands in protest because I know they’re the ones she made me try on when we went dress shopping. She’d tried to buy them for me, but they cost more than my dress and I couldn’t let her do it. They matched perfectly and I felt like a princess when I’d had them on, but it was too much.
“Before you try and say no,” she says, already going into mom-battle mode. I might as well admit defeat now because when she gets that look on her face she isn’t stopping until she gets what she wants. “You’re like a daughter to me, and I only get this one prom. I want this to be perfect and that includes you getting these shoes.”
Wow, Kathy is going right for my heart. She’s talked to me a lot privately, and when we had the sex talk she told me that Reed was the only baby she was able to carry to term. She would have had a house full if she could have but getting me was like having the daughter she always wanted. Last week she asked me if Reed and I were having sex and then she gave me the safe sex speech. I told her that we weren’t and that was the truth. But that won’t be the case after tomorrow night.
“Thank you,” I tell her, because I know it would hurt her feelings to turn them down, and honestly I really love them and don’t want to. I move to give her a hug and she holds me tight. “I love you.”
She leans back and cups my cheek. “I love you, too, sweetheart. Like you’re my own.” She kisses me on each cheek and I feel like I could cry. “One day Reed is going to marry you and give you our last name, but you’re already a part of us where it matters most.” She touches the place over my heart. “And then, much later, you'll give me lots of grandbabies.”