Chapter 25
“Hey, Haley. Lay wasn’t expecting me, but I needed to talk to her, so I decided to pop in.” Blake’s rich voice echoed from the front of the studio, and I couldn’t wait to see her, but I wasn’t sure what she needed to talk to me about.
We hadn’t chatted much at all today besides the text asking me to have lunch with Ty and David tomorrow.
“Oh, she’s editing a shoot. Do you want me to go get her?”
“No. If she’s busy, I’ll call her later.”
“Don’t be silly. She can be finished for the night. I’m surprised she hasn’t come out here anyway. I’m sure she can hear us!” Haley’s voice now sounded as if she spoke through a megaphone.
“Would you calm down? I was wrapping up.” I strolled to the front of the studio and noticed Blake’s nervous energy. I walked over, wrapping my arms around her waist. “Are you okay?” I leaned in and kissed her cheek.
She nodded, but her eyes told a different story.
“Babe?” I hoped she would tell me what was going on.
“I came to see what you wanted for dinner tonight.” The words didn’t ring true at all, but if she wasn’t ready to talk, I would give her time.
I brushed a stray curl that never seemed to want to be tamed behind her ear and smiled. “Whatever you want is fine with me. Just as long as I get to spend time with you.” Being near her gave me a sense of completeness, and nothing else seemed to matter when she was around.
I was falling fast—probably too fast. But feelings didn’t have schedules. They came out of nowhere and could turn your whole world upside down in a good way, or they could slowly drain the life out of you. There was no way to predict them, but you always knew they were around because they didn’t hide from you.
I had tried to ignore them for a while now, especially not knowing where Blake stood, but as I held her in my arms and studied every detail of her face, I was a goner. There was no hope for me. I was in l-o-v-e with this woman, and it should’ve freaked me out, but instead, it excited me. I had dreamed many lifetimes with her, and each one was more perfect than the last. I believed in my heart of hearts that in this life, right here, right now, the best was yet to come.
She quirked a brow in my direction. “Now it’s my turn to ask, are you okay?” She stood on her tiptoes and gave me a peck on the lips. “It seemed as if you hadn’t heard me.”
“Sorry, my mind was wandering. What did you say?”
“I asked about pizza?”
“That sounds perfect. Let me go shut down my computer, and then we can jet.” I left Haley and Blake to carry on while I collected my things.
Blake and I still hadn’t introduced each other to our friends. She seemed very hesitant about it, but I was so happy when she asked me about tomorrow. Since she was having me meet Ty and David, I was more comfortable asking her to hang out with Shanny and Toni sometime, as well as Haley and Adam. She’d only talked to Haley here at work on brief occasions, but they seemed to get along, which made my heart happy since Haley had turned out to be more of a friend and an employee.
“So, do you have plans for the weekend?” Blake asked Haley while I continued to tie up my loose ends.
I tried not to eavesdrop, but they weren’t any too quiet, so the conversation floated around the studio, and I couldn’t help but hear.
“Oh, my boyfriend and I are going on a little getaway. He said he was tired of the city, and we needed some alone time. He has this cabin upstate. Well, it’s not technically a cabin. It’s a house made with bricks, not logs, but it’s secluded and small, so we always call it a cabin.”
I chuckled to myself at how Haley chattered away, but Blake seemed to be following along with an “Oh really” and “I get what you mean” thrown in for good measure.
“But anyway, we were planning on going there to relax and unplug. I think we could both use time away, and there isn’t anything better than cutting off from the outside world. It’s crazy how we all rely so much on technology, and frequently, it’s at the expense of nurturing personal connections.”
“I get that. I hope you two have a safe and fun time.” Blake sounded sincere, and I was pleased that she was concerned for Haley’s well-being.
She constantly surprised me with her charm, and it was one more reason I had fallen so hard for her.
As I rejoined them in the front, I saw Haley with her arms wrapped around Blake, who appeared shocked by the display of affection but still returned the gesture.
“Do I need to worry about you two?” I said, hoping to save Blake without making it obvious she was slightly uncomfortable.
Haley jumped back at the sound of my voice. “No, boss. I was telling Blake thank you.” Haley seemed worried that I was serious.
“I know. I was kidding. Why don’t you get out of here so you can pack or whatever else you need to do before your getaway?” I patted her on the back.
“Oh, that’s okay. I like to finish my work before leaving.” She was way too hard on herself, and she needed to learn to accept gifts when they came.
“Nope. You are not staying any longer. I’m kicking you out.” I picked up her purse and handed it to her. “I want you to enjoy yourself. Blake and I will close up, and whatever isn’t ready for Monday, I’ll take care of it this weekend.”
“Boss…” Haley pleaded, but this time, Blake cut in.
“Go on. You do so much. Let Leia show you her appreciation. You deserve it.”
For some reason, Blake saying it made the difference, and Haley took her bag, hugged me, and said, “Thank you both. I’ve never had friends who cared so much about me.”
My heart hurt hearing that. Blake and I would need to hang out with her outside of work. I was getting the impression Adam was her sole source of companionship.
“You’re a very special person, Haley. I’ve always got you.” I moved out of her embrace. “Why don’t we all head out now? I don’t like you walking out by yourself.”
As I punched in the code for the alarm, Haley switched off the lights, and we all walked out before I locked up.
We escorted Haley to her car and then parted ways. She drove off to Adam’s, and Blake and I left to grab food. With her warm fingers laced through mine, my pulse began racing as I thought about how much I wanted to say to her, but I wasn’t sure if I’d have the courage.
Once we got back to Blake’s place, we ate our New York-style pizza and then sat on the couch to drink a glass of wine. While discussing our days, I contemplated telling Blake how I felt, but I noticed something still seemed off with her.
I took a small sip and waited to see if she would speak. When she didn’t, I asked, “Is there something wrong?”
She appeared startled by the question. “What? No. I’m sitting and talking about work. Same as you.” Her tone was a little higher than expected, and it seemed like she was holding back.
“Okay. I wasn’t accusing you of anything. But you’re acting a little different, and I wanted to check in. You’re even doing that thing where you chew on your bottom lip, which usually means something is bothering you.” I reached over and grabbed her hand. “I’m here if you want to talk about anything. I mean, there is nothing off-limits.”
She squeezed my fingers and sighed. “I appreciate it.” She finally seemed to calm down a bit and gave me a shy smile. “Nothing is bothering me, per se. I talked to Ty today, and I guess I’ve been a little in my head.”
I wasn’t sure what that meant. In her head about us? About work? But she didn’t elaborate.
“I’m all ears.” I wondered if I gave her another chance, if she would fill me in.
“You meant to say that you’re all mine.” She set her glass down and cupped my cheeks, pulling my lips to hers.
She slid her tongue to the seam of my mouth, and I could tell she was deflecting, but I wasn’t sure why. I let her deepen the kiss for a moment, but I couldn’t let things get carried away. Even if she wasn’t ready to talk, I had some things I needed to say.
She seemed confused by me moving back, but I took her hands in mine to calm her nerves.
As I gazed into those green eyes that held so many memories, I inhaled deeply, trying to calm my racing heart.
“Blake, I…” This was the perfect moment to say my feelings, but I froze. “Am excited to meet your friends.”
Her face fell for a second, and I realized my mistake. I stopped kissing her to tell her I wanted to meet her friends. She probably thought I was blowing her off, but now wasn’t the time to drop the L bomb on her when she appeared to be struggling with something.
She had been preoccupied all night, and when I told her I loved her the first time, I didn’t want to say it—I wanted to show it.
“Do you know what they want? I can get the stuff tomorrow morning before I come over.” Maybe if I kept the conversation going, she wouldn’t worry about the abrupt change.
“It should be a lot of fun. And Ty will eat any meat, no pun intended.” She chuckled, but it was flat.
“I’m sure he will.” I laughed to lighten the mood, but it was still heavy. “How about hamburgers, brats, and veggies? I can grill out.”
“Sounds perfect.” Again, her words didn’t match her tone.
I rested my forehead on hers, hoping the gesture would allow her to open up. If not, maybe I could somehow read her thoughts, but that didn’t work.
“Are you sure something isn’t bothering you?” I tried one more time, but I had to believe when she was ready, she would talk.
“I promise. It’s been a long day, and I need to sleep.”
I wasn’t sure if that was a hint for me to leave, but I took it as such and stood up. She held my hand, and I wasn’t sure if she wanted me to help her or if she was going to ask me to stay. But then she was on her feet, leading me to the front door.
As I was getting ready to leave, I stopped and faced her, skimming my fingers down her cheek. She leaned into my touch, then brought my hand to her mouth and kissed my palm. Then I pulled her into my arms, hugging her tightly as I inhaled the scent of her mango shampoo.
My mind swirled, and my heart fluttered. I kissed the top of her head, and she buried her face in my chest. We would have to talk soon, but tonight didn’t seem like the right time. I pulled back enough to press my lips to hers. I offered her the gentlest kiss goodnight and said my goodbyes.
I wasn’t sure what had been hanging in the air, but I had no doubt in my mind that we would figure it out. I didn’t believe anything had the power to destroy our destiny.