29. Chapter 29
Kylie
The day can't pass quickly enough. From the moment I wake up, excitement bubbles in my stomach, and I can't get a stupid grin off my face.
Erik took me on a date. And not just any date, the perfect date. He remembered how excited I was about looking at the stars at the campfire on the beach, and he planned a whole damn date around it.
The first thing I did when I got home was have a good cry in my hallway. It's almost a relief, so fucking exhilarating to be seen again, to have someone notice.
And Erik notices.
As soon as I got chilly in the crisp night air, he put a blanket around me. When he noticed how much I loved the pizza rolls his aunt made, he left them for me to eat and stuck to Caleb’s pastries.
Hell, he even brought food for Abby.
I'm overwhelmed. Being this happy can’t be healthy anymore.
For once, the lingering voice of doubt is completely silent.
I'm not kidding myself. I'm sure it will return at some point.
Maybe it won't ever go away completely, but Erik's got a damn good hold on it.
He silences it without any effort, just by being himself, because apparently he's exactly what I need.
The minutes feel like hours when I'm working, setting up campaigns, creating concepts, answering emails, so when Lauren knocks on my door in the early afternoon, I'm all too happy to be done.
"Hey, Lauren." As always, Abby darts outside as soon as I open the door.
"Hi, Kylie." She grins and leans down to greet her. "I was wondering if I could hang out with your dog. And you," she quickly adds as if I'm an afterthought. I can’t even blame her.
"Give me a minute to put on my shoes." By the time I return, Lauren's kneeling on the ground, running her hands through Abby's fur and talking to her in a high-pitched voice.
"Yes, you're such a cutie," she coos. Once she notices me, she jumps back up.
"Where are the others?"
She loops her arm through mine and directs me to the lakeshore. Leaves crunch under our shoes, and Abby runs after one falling off the nearest tree. A thick layer of clouds hides the sun, and the cold breeze makes me yearn for snowy winter afternoons.
"Kieran's working, and while he did invite me to hang out, that's just weird."
"Why?" I give her a confused stare. "What does he work as?" She’s making it sound like he works in the porn industry.
Wait. Does he? Now that I think about it, we never talked about his job.
"Do you know those masked accounts on TikTok of hot guys who dance or make suggestive POV videos?"
"No." I gasp and stop, staring at her wide-eyed. Is she for real?
"Oh yes." Her lips curl up in amusement.
"And honestly, good for him. He's super successful at it.
I mean, he must be." She stares at his house. It’s definitely more of a mansion.
At least more than mine. “But I don't need to watch him do it.
" She scrunches her nose. "I mean, the guy is like a brother to me at this point. That's just weird."
"I get it." Abby brings us a stick. I lean down to pick it up and throw it for her. Not that my girl needs to be prompted to zoom around, but she does love to play catch.
"Anyway, I didn't come to annoy you because Kieran didn’t have time." She nudges me with her elbow, and from the corner of my eye, I see a wide smile on her face. “You’re one of us now, expect unexpected visits for gossip and hanging out.”
“I’ll make a mental note.”
"Okay. Now, can we talk about how fucking smitten Erik is with you?"
"Or how fucking smitten I am with him?" I point out. We burst into giggles and everything feels light and great. "Holy shit, Lauren, I'm so in love."
"Yay!" she squeals and jumps up and down in excitement, not too unsimilar to Abby when I give her a piece of apple.
She loves apples. "That's so exciting. I remember when Caleb and I first started dating.
Oof, the butterflies. Don't get me wrong, they're still there, but the honeymoon phase just hits different. "
"I know." I let out a deep sigh. "It’s actually what scares me about being with him the most."
"Why?"
"Because I let the honeymoon phase fool me once already." She throws her arm over my chest and makes me stop. With her hands on my shoulders, she turns me to face her.
"That's because you were married to a shitty dude, not because of the honeymoon phase."
"Well, the honeymoon phase made me tolerate the shitty dude," I mumble. "And for the record, he's not a shitty dude per se. He just had messed up priorities."
"Which was shitty to you," Lauren points out, and I shrug.
“Why do I have a feeling you’re about to hit me with an uncomfortable truth?”
"Because I am." She bumps my shoulder with a shit-eating grin. "That's what friends are for. He might not be a shitty dude, but he was shitty to you. Don't discount that."
"But-”
“No." She points a finger at me as if to scold me. "Don't protect him. It's okay. Every human makes mistakes. You likely made mistakes in your marriage, too. It doesn't change the fact that what he did was shitty."
"I guess you're right." I check my watch.
"Do you want to come over for a coffee? I'm done with work today and would love some company."
"Sure. I can get to know your ghost." She claps and jumps up and down, giggling.
"You are way too excited about my ghost." I shake my head at her.
"I don't know. Kieran and I are the only ones who apparently don't have haunted houses. I feel a little left out."
"Maybe, but trust me, girl, you're not missing out." I shudder and run my hand over my face. "Not Elizabeth's fault or anything, but she scares the crap out of me."
"I can imagine. Still, as someone who doesn’t experience it on the daily – fun!"
We trudge back to my house. Abby darts all around us, bringing us an assortment of sticks which I throw for her, and at one point she even finds a tennis ball. Kieran probably lost it out here.
But when we come back to my house, there's a second car parked in my driveway.
"Huh?" I stop in my tracks.
"Oh, is Erik here to pay you a visit?" Lauren hits my arm. "That is so boyfriend coded."
"Nope." I shake my head. "That is my ex’s car."