Chapter 55
Nick
Moving is never fun, but I enjoy helping others move way more than I like moving myself. And I would help Tristan with anything he asked me to.
Around five in the evening, my parents come over with Abigail, and my mother takes one look at the kitchen, declares it’s organized wrong, and says everyone needs to get out so she can make it right.
“I’d listen to her,” I tell Tristan tactfully. “She knows what she’s talking about, and she will not take no for an answer.”
“Hey, if she wants to organize that chaos, I’ll let her,” Tristan says, raising his hands in surrender. Even though it’s a chilly December day outside, he’s sweating and dusty, and he’s never looked more adorable.
I kiss him gently on the top of the head. “How does it feel?” I ask. “Having your own place?”
“I don’t think it’s fully set in, yet. It will in a few days, I think.”
“You know, I’ve never lived alone,” I muse. “I went from having roommates to briefly living with Raquel to being a dad and living with Abbie.”
“Really?” Then he tilts his head. “Technically, I guess the only time I lived alone was immediately after Warren’s death, when I still had our apartment. But I don’t remember much from that time. I’m excited for a fresh start.”
He hesitates. “And I’m excited for you to be a part of that.”
I know how significant it is when he says stuff like that. I’ll be honest—I know how I feel about Tristan, and it isn’t casual.
I don’t know when, exactly, I realized that I feel something more for him, something real and big and beautiful, but I can no longer deny it. I want to tell him—though I wouldn’t be shocked if he already knew—but I know that he isn’t ready to hear something like that.
I take him in my arms. We’re standing in the clutter of his new bedroom, where we have a little bit of privacy from everyone else in the apartment—including my daughter, who is currently building a fort out of cardboard boxes with Vinnie and Charlie.
“I’m honored to be here,” I whisper into Tristan’s hair. “You’re one of the best things that’s ever happened to me, and I’m sticking around, if you’ll let me.”
He nestles deeper into my embrace. “I fully plan on sticking around, too, so don’t you worry about that.”