Chapter 13
CHAPTER 13
LAUREL
M y last few days in Austin before I headed back to Franklin were a lot less eventful than the first few had been. Leif was gone. I felt his absence every minute of every day but I knew I was going to have to get used to it.
At least my grandma was finally back in town from a seniors-only cruise she’d gone on for Thanksgiving. I looped my arm around hers, sticking close to her side as we walked through a mall near Mom’s house.
“So, wait,” I said slowly, trying to get my head wrapped around the story she’d just told. “You had to be at least sixty to get on this ship and you ended up in a prank war ?”
“Of course, we did. Old doesn’t mean boring, my dear. Having fun keeps a person young.” She leaned over and winked at me. “Plus, goofing around with a guy is good foreplay. One minute, you’re laughing, and the next, he’s stuffing you like a Thanksgiving turkey behind one of the lifeboats.”
Mom groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. “It only took you two hours to mention sex this time. Do we really always have to talk about it?”
Grammy stared at her like she was spouting a second head. “Why not? Is it only acceptable to write about but not to discuss in a civilized manner?”
“Civilized?” Mom snorted. “You just ruined all my leftovers, talking about turkey like that. And you’re lucky you didn’t get arrested. Or whatever happens on boats at sea.”
The old woman waved my mother’s comment away dismissively. “Who’s going to stop me? The captain? Who do you think I was canoodling with?”
“Ugh,” my mom said. “Don’t say canoodle . It’s somehow grosser than your turkey talk.”
Grammy shrugged. “I’ll just say, it was a cruise ship, but for me, it was more like a tug boat, if you catch my drift.”
I laughed but shook my head. The old woman had no filter. I loved it.
Mom’s eyes went wide, though, less amused. “Mother, no. I love you, but I do not need those details in my life.”
“Truth,” I said firmly. “But I’m glad you had fun.”
My grandmother was one of the most fantastic people on the planet. I loved her fiercely and I adored her flamboyance, but I too did not want to hear these particular details.
I squeezed her arm. “I missed you at Thanksgiving. The Black Friday shopping trip wasn’t quite the same without you.”
She pursed her lips at me. Her eyes, a shade darker than even my own dark-chocolate brown, sparkled with mirth. “That’s why we’re shopping now, my dear. Mom tells me you and the McIntosh boy are finally back together. Is that true?”
Heat snuck onto my cheeks, but I nodded. “It’s true. We reconnected at the reunion, then spent some time together this weekend, and then we decided to give things another shot.”
“How is he in bed?”
“Grammy!” I playfully smacked her hand—very lightly—and tried once more to fight the rising blush.
She laughed. “What? If he’s not great in bed, it’s better to cut him loose now. That’s my best pearl of wisdom.”
She kept staring at me expectantly, like she was really waiting for an answer. Heat exploded across my cheeks and she burst into a fit of giggles. Reaching out to pat my arm, she gave me an approving nod.
“Well, I think that says enough.” She glanced at my mother, who was walking on her other side. “Deb?”
“Yes?” my mother asked.
“This calls for some new lingerie, don’t you think? Our girl finally has a real boyfriend again.”
“I’ve had real boyfriends since Leif,” I protested, but she waved me off.
Giving me a knowing look, she pulled me a little closer. “You and I both know you were only killing time with those boys. Your mama and I didn’t even meet one of them. If he’s not serious enough to bring him home, he’s a waste of time. It’s always been Leif for you, and don’t you try to deny it.”
She started pulling me toward a store just down the corridor. I mulled over what she’d said and realized there might’ve been some truth to it. I wasn’t entirely confident in the fact that I’d ever really tried with another man.
My heart got all fluttery again when I thought about Leif coming to see me in Franklin soon, and before I even knew it, I had a couple shopping bags filled with new lingerie for the occasion—courtesy of my grandmother .
Uncertain that I’d ever stop blushing about this, I kept my head down for the rest of the shopping trip and only managed to look her in the eyes again when we were having a cup of tea at Mom’s house after.
“What are our plans for Christmas?” she asked, her long thin fingers wrapped around her mug. “You are coming home again, right?”
“Definitely,” I said. “Whatever we end up doing, do you guys mind if we include Leif? He’s coming to see me in Tennessee soon for a few days, but after that, I won’t see him again until Christmas. I’d like to spend as much time with him as I can while we’re here.”
“Of course.” Mom smiled. “I love him. I always did have a feeling he’d be back in your life someday. Besides, it’s nice to be able to have his family over again while you’re home. Andrea and I have been avoiding that for years.”
“Thanks,” I said, leaving it at that.
Later that evening, Grammy hugged me goodbye. “I’m excited for you, my darling,” she murmured against my hair. “Leif always was good for you. He made you happy before. I hope he manages to do it again. It’s been much too long since I’ve seen you smile as much as you did today.”
Tears stung my eyes, but I didn’t let them fall. “Thanks, Gram. I know. I hope so too. It just got too difficult for both of us before.”
She took my hands and squeezed them, her own eyes watery as she nodded. “The world lost some of its best men that day and you were only children. It was heartbreaking for us all when we had to watch both your hearts get broken for a second time in just one year, but that’s the beauty of time. The grief will never fade completely, but you do learn to live with it. It simply becomes a part of you in such a way that it makes space for you to live again.”
I sniffed softly, hugging her again. After she left, I watched a movie with my mom and eventually went up to bed, grabbing my phone to text Leif as I climbed in between the sheets.
Me: Good night. Hope you had a productive day. I can’t believe I’ve only got 2 nights left here before I head out too. I miss you. Sleep tight! X
I settled down and switched off the lamp on my nightstand, but before I could even close my eyes, my phone chimed with a text and I smiled into the darkness of my bedroom. A warm, familiar tingle shot through me when I lifted the device to see his name on the screen.
Leif: Miss you too! Are you ready for your big girl sleepover with M+G tomorrow? Should be fun. More so if I had been there. Has it really only been a couple days?
Me: Yep and yep. I’m ready, but I wish you were here too. Soon, though. Can’t wait to see you.
Leif: The wait might kill me. Are you in bed?
Me: Yep, but let’s not go there. Thought we were waiting until you came to visit?
Leif: Refer to above. The wait might kill me, but I guess we can save this for later ;-) Miss you. Sleep tight, bug. Sweet dreams (but only if they’re of me)
I sent him a row of heart-eyed emojis and thumbs-ups. Then I finally set my phone down on the nightstand and spent the next hour wondering about phone—or text—sex. I’d never done it before, but the idea of it sent a thrill through me.
Naughty girls definitely do that, right? Absolutely. No doubt .
I suddenly couldn’t wait to try it, but then my thoughts turned to the old nickname he’d just unearthed out of the storage of his brain. Bug .
We’d been fifteen when he called me that the first time and I’d always loved it. Why he called me that was a long story, but it was with thoughts of the day I’d earned it in mind that I finally drifted off to sleep.
On my final afternoon in Texas, Mariam and Gemma arrived armed with sleeping bags, pillows, and overnight bags full of random, girly stuff to do on our sleepover. Mom had made us a ton of snacks that I’d set out in the living room, and Gemma immediately let out a soft moan when she saw them.
“This is why we always do these sleepovers at your place. I love your mom so much for the amount of food she feeds us.”
I laughed. “I used to curse her for trying to make me fat.”
Mariam giggled, nodding enthusiastically as she unrolled her sleeping bag. “Isn’t it funny that Deb used to do all these things for us when we were kids and she’s still doing them for us now as adults? Maybe we should offer to pitch in next year.”
“Absolutely not!” Mom called from the kitchen before she appeared in the living room door a few moments later, looking ravishing in a floor-length red gown that made her dark hair and eyes pop like a Disney princess’s. “Unlike when you were little, however, I’m headed out tonight. Doug invited me to an event they’re having at the fire station, so don’t wait up and don’t burn the house down.”
“You be good, you hear?” I pointed at her chest, desperately trying to contain my laughter. “Don’t do anything we wouldn’t do.”
She nodded dutifully, laughter shining in her eyes. “That means I can’t do anything except TP a house, right? Although I suppose we do have a naughty list to hide behind these days, don’t we, ladies?”
With an exaggerated wink, she waggled her fingers at us and left. Gemma let out a dreamy sigh once she was gone. “Your mom is my parenthood goals, girl. I love that lady.”
“Same,” Mariam said, climbing into her sleeping bag before she turned to face us. “Right, wine me. Let’s get this party started.”
I handed over a glass of the red wine I’d had waiting for them. Then I sat on the couch and pulled a blanket onto my lap. “When are you headed back to Idaho? It’s also tomorrow, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Tomorrow night. I think I’m still in a bit of shock that I’m leaving again so soon. I don’t think I’ve ever spent only a week in Austin before I flew out again. It’s mind-bending, for sure.”
“You’re going to be fine.” I brought my wine to my lips. “Just remember to be on the lookout for that viable candidate once you get back to Sun Valley.”
“Oh, I will. I’m itching to get started with my part of the list now.” She winked and took a small sip of her wine. “How are things going with Leif?”
“Really well, actually,” I said, pausing before I finally admitted the rest. “So well that I’m a little bit scared of it. It’s not natural to just fall back into the way we used to be, is it?”
“It’s natural because it’s probably right,” Gemma said. “You guys are written in the stars, Laurel. Lighten up and start enjoying it.”
“I am enjoying it.” I laughed. “The Naughty List has definitely been fun for me so far. I might just go forward as a bad girl from here.”
Gemma rolled her eyes. “Mariam and I are out here looking like hoe-bag troublemakers because of it, and you’re building a solid relationship off our jacked-up list. I’m really not sure you got the ‘being bad’ memo, babe.”
“Or maybe it’s just because I’m so good at being bad that I still look good,” I joked. Soon, we were all in stitches, giving each other grief back and forth about the list before we finally moved on to other topics. As always, we laughed until our sides hurt, drank a little too much wine, and ate until our food babies combined with the wine knocked us out.
It’d been an amazing last day home for this trip, but I was ready to head back to Franklin. Mostly because it meant that I would be one step closer to seeing Leif.