Chapter 29 Collie
COLLIE
“There’s no crying in baseball.”
“I don’t know why I expected you to take this goodbye seriously.” Easton shakes his head, a smirk rising at the corner of his lips.
“Was two weeks seriously not long enough for you to gather that having fun beats being sad every single time?” I cross my arms at my chest as we stand face-to-face between terminals.
This is it.
“Get over here and hug me already.” Easton pulls me to him, his strong arms holding me in the tightest embrace. I’m gonna miss his warmth. His tranquil smell of coffee and bourbon. The way one inhale settles every haphazard nerve inside of me.
I’ve been a live wire around him since the moment he offered me his phone. Walking on pins and needles to keep myself from falling for him.
Somewhere along the way, I think I might have.
In another life, I might have fought to explore it.
He has enough on his plate to worry about a fling he had in Wyoming. Yet, something inside of me argues that to be true.
But I bury it.
We spent the morning saying goodbye to Sheila and Dirty Dan. Much to our surprise, Dan took it the hardest. Although Sheila berated us for not participating in all the marriage retreat escapades the way her other campers did, she claimed Easton and I have a bond to stand the test of time.
“Got your travel pack from Dirty Dan?”
I reach into my purse and pull out the gift Dan sent us home with. “How could I ever forget?” I smile, both of us sharing a terrified look.
Dirty Dan insisted we leave Yellowstone with enough to look good, feel good, and be good. His words, not mine.
“Behold,” I proclaim. “The necessities for life via Dirty Dan.” The Ziploc bag holds everything important to Dan: a handful of green grapes, a miniature pine cone with ‘Clementine’ written in silver ink, a jar of Sheila’s favorite blackberry jam from in town, and a matching keychain he had personalized.
Easton takes his matching keychain out of his bag and holds it out between us. “Dirty nookie and communication,” Easton reads out loud, and we both bark out a laugh.
“Dirty nookie?” I ask, unsure of where that came from and why Easton seems to know exactly what it means.
He laughs to himself, rubbing his thumb across the lettering. “That crazy bastard. I’m actually gonna miss him.”
I place my palm against his chest, selfishly trying to memorize every ripple of muscle along his body. “And what about me, Ranger? You gonna miss me?”
“I’m gonna miss the hell out of you, lost girl.” He grabs my cheeks and pulls me in for a passionate kiss. This is the Easton Voss I’ve come to care about. The one who is much different than when he got here. “You better miss me just as much,” he whispers against my lips.
“I’ll miss your cock. That’s for sure.”
That earned me a bite to the earlobe, and suddenly, the sadness of our goodbye hits me like a freight train. I feel happy. Deliriously happy, actually. And now I’m supposed to just let all of this go? This feeling of care and passion.
Well, that seems incredibly unfair.
My alarm sounds on my phone, alerting me to get my ass to my gate for boarding. “I’m just a phone call away, okay? You need to talk no matter the hour? Call me and I’ll answer.”
“Vice versa, beautiful. You better chase those dreams, and don’t let that mother of yours get a single word in to tell you otherwise. You deserve the happiness you choose.”
I have to keep smiling or I’ll cry, and I don’t think I’ll be able to stop.
I’m going to miss him so much it hurts. I’ve never had this issue before. After meeting handfuls of men and women all across the world, saying goodbye has never been more than a hug and well-wishes.
But not this time. Not with Easton Voss.
Because Easton Voss will go down as the best I ever had. The best stranger. Best friend. Best lover. Best listener. Best adventure partner.
All the things.
“You’re going to make one lucky woman very happy someday. You know that?” I tell him kindly. “You’re a fucking catch.”
I mean it, too. I already feel jealous over a love that’s nonexistent.
“And you, Collie Meadows, need to promise me you’ll prioritize love. Don’t be like me and push it away. Run toward it with optimism. Remember who you are and what you have to offer. And that’s so many wonderful things, you beautiful, beautiful woman.”
I smile up at him, knowing this is it. “Kiss me again, Easton. Make it a good one, please.”
“For science, right? Gotta tell ’em how good of a kisser you are.” And he crashes his lips to mine, wrecking me for every man to come. I’m not sure how long our kiss lasts, our tongues tangled as we savor every last second with each other.
This feels like both torture and treasure. A tangible feeling I want to remember for all of my days. Because days with Easton Voss can only ever be good days.
“I’ll be seeing you, lost girl.”
Pulling back, our foreheads touch. “Where the mountains of Salt Hollow,” I whisper under muffled breath, and Easton finishes for me, “Meet the ocean of Timber Heights.”
And he’s gone. Back to Alaska, where just two weeks ago his world fell apart.
And me? Well, I don’t know where I go from here. But I’m excited to find out.