14. Tessa
Tessa
Despite having the time of her life, Tessa was completely worn out.
Which was not a good thing. Not at this point in the journey.
Still, she had very little room in her soul to regret a single thing that had happened along the way.
Shedding the armor she’d wrapped herself in, it almost felt like she was emerging to the surface after being underground for so long.
The sun felt warm, the air fresher, and her entire spirit had just lifted while on this trip.
She had gotten back in touch with her adventurous side. She had purpose in her life again.
And for the first time ever, she had a true partner by her side.
After finishing off their dinner on the beach, they went to the water to wash off their grease-coated fingers.
Then, Greer pulled her into his arms and held her in the moonlight.
They weren’t dancing or really moving at all.
It was like he wanted to do everything he could to hold them in the moment and just enjoy the present.
And in a world where everything was go, go, go, being still in his arms, feeling his warmth and his care as he stared down at her like she was a treasure, was too good to pass up.
They wound up getting a taxi back to the bed and breakfast, and as they walked into the darkened inn together, each step on the creaky staircase echoing in the hall around them, Tessa could feel the life practically drain out of her.
It was no wonder, given that they’d driven for thousands of miles over the past few days.
And they still had to get back to Boston.
After a quick shower, they crawled into bed together.
Greer had held her, kissed her, and made slow, easy love to her in an entirely unexpected way.
It was like they were the only two people in the world, and there was absolutely no reason to rush.
It hadn’t taken her long to fall asleep after, given that it was like snuggling with a bear.
He was warm, growly, and she knew, in his arms, she was protected.
So when she woke up the next morning, reaching out next to her to feel nothing but cold sheets beneath her palm, it was a bit of a surprise.
“Greer?” she asked in a groggy voice thick with sleep.
She cracked her eyes open to see daylight streaming in through the windows.
The inn was nice, if not a little dated, with its floral wallpaper and ruffled curtains.
It hadn’t been anything she’d really noticed, though she’d be the first to admit that the center of her attention was the man who traveled with her.
Off in the bathroom, she could hear him mumbling.
Straining her ears, she thought she could hear someone else, a mechanical-sounding voice probably coming from his phone.
Rolling over, she turned her attention to the bathroom door, which was open just a few inches.
Peering in, she could see Greer moving around, the scent of soap and humid air quickly filling the space.
When he finally emerged, wearing nothing but a pair of jeans, he smiled at her as he tilted his orange phone to his ear.
“Yeah, that sounds great,” he said, crossing their room and making his way to the door. “Alright, I’ll let them know. Thanks, man.”
Tessa tried to keep up, her brain still foggy from the deep sleep she’d just experienced.
Though when a soft knock rose up on the door, he pocketed his phone and pulled open the door to a woman on the other side.
Tessa grabbed after the comforter, suddenly aware of her nakedness beneath the covers, wondering what on earth he was doing letting someone into their room while she was in such a state.
“This looks perfect, thank you,” he said, handing the woman something as he took a large, bamboo tray from her hands.
Tessa didn’t even have to look at the woman’s expression to know what she was feeling. Delight at being on the receiving end of this handsome man. Probably some flustering going on as well, given he was naked from the waist up, still a little damp from his shower, and grinning at her.
And yet, as another woman was appreciating her man, Tessa didn’t feel threatened. She knew Greer, and even if he was friendly, she never doubted he’d ever cross any lines and betray her trust. It wasn’t who he was.
Which made him entirely different from every other man she’d ever dated.
Stilling, the realization washed over her that, somehow, without her express permission, she’d begun to trust Greer at some point along the way.
How had that happened?
“You hungry, sleepyhead?”
Lost in her own thoughts, she took in the massive six-foot-three wall of muscle and gorgeousness that stood before her.
Yes.
Fortunately, Greer knew she wasn’t a morning person, a well-known fact that hung in his smile.
He carefully set the tray down over her lap as she sat up a little more, dragging the comforter with her to make sure her top half stayed as covered as her bottom.
But one look at the tray had her shock melting into heartfeltness.
He’d gotten her all of her favorite breakfast foods. There was a beautifully made omelet with cheese, broccoli, and shredded carrots on the plate in the middle, a bowl of berries to the side, and a pot of what smelled like a sweet tea.
“It’s the rooibos you like so well,” Greer said, carefully sitting down on the side of the bed next to her. “I asked them if they had it, and thankfully, they knew more about it than I did.” He laughed, his embarrassment seeping in to flush his cheeks.
Cheeks she couldn’t help but cup in her own hands, pulling him to her for a quick kiss.
“Thank you,” she said, letting go and looking back at the bounty in front of her. “This is the sweetest thing ever.”
“Well, I figured there are two things you’d need, being as tired as you were,” he said, glancing at her pillow. “Sleep, and nourishment.”
“I do,” she said, feeling exceptionally well after a full night’s sleep, cuddled up with him. And everything on the tray in front of her looked better than anything she could have conjured in her own mind. “But do we have time for this? We’ve got so much to do today.”
“Most of it’s done,” he said. “After I got up for breakfast?—”
“Wait, you’ve already eaten?” Tessa glanced at the digital clock on the bedside table, shocked to see it was already eight-thirty.
“Yeah,” he said, chuckling at her obvious attempts to make sense of what was going on around her. “I went down when the kitchen opened. They were actually pretty receptive to making me something that was on my diet plan.”
“That’s fantastic,” she said, sneaking a strawberry that looked beyond delicious. Red, ripe, juicy, the flavor burst across her tongue, waking up her senses.
“I also managed to make a few calls to some garages in the area,” he said, reaching for a blackberry and popping it into his mouth. “You want the good news or the better news?”
“All of it,” she said.
“Well, the good news is…” He paused. “Nobody has any space to work on the car this morning.”
Tessa’s face fell, her strawberry suddenly turning bitter in her mouth. “What?”
“I know, right?” he said, his face encouraging and rather gleeful. The opposite of what she was feeling. “So that gives way to the even better news.”
“I think we need to have a talk about what ‘good news’ really means.”
He continued on, pretending he hadn’t heard her. “That means we get to take… the train.”
Tessa regarded him for a second, waiting for him to elaborate. He didn’t. “The train.”
“The train,” he confirmed, giving her an eyebrow bob.
“We’ll grab a taxi down to Brunswick in a couple of hours.
It’s about a half hour from here, and we can pick up the train back to Boston.
By the time we get to South Station, we’ll be able to hop the Green Line to Newton, which should get us there about a half hour before the gallery closes. ”
“A half hour?” Tessa cried, going to toss everything off of her, her breakfast, her tray, her covers, only to catch herself at the last, panicked moment. “Greer, we need more time than that! Anything could happen to waylay us, and we’ll be late.”
“Can’t be helped. I’ve already checked, and we’re out of options.
No rideshares are running in any towns around us today, and no taxis will take us that far that I could find.
All the flights going to Boston will get us in late tonight.
We can’t get a rental car because the only places around here are closed on the weekend.
I’m afraid we’re at the mercy of public transit, which only has one train to Boston today,” he said with casual assurance. “It is what it is.”
Tessa let the words sink in, her stomach unsettled and chest constricting tightly at the thought of the narrow window of time that everything was riding on.
“Greer, if we don’t make it in time, we aren’t getting another chance at this.
The gallery is closed on the holiday, and we need this by Sunday, or we’re going to be too late. Today is our only option.”
“I know,” he said, wrapping his palm around the back of her neck and tugging her to him. He kissed the top of her head while stroking his thumb against the column of her neck. “We’ll get it.”
“But what if we?—”
“We’ll. Get. It,” he insisted, locking eyes with her and brokering no arguments. She took a deep breath and nodded, trying to be brave in the face of the ultimate horror known as her own lack of control in a situation.
But somehow, having him next to her, giving her this silent reassurance, helped.
She closed the gap between them, closing her eyes, resting her forehead against his, and feeling his resolve strengthen her. “I really don’t know what I’d have done without you here, Greer.”
“Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about that.”
Without even looking at him, she knew what his face held. A devastatingly handsome smile, mischief in his eyes, and a kind, confident expression.
“I love you,” she said, the words feeling both foreign and oh so right on her tongue.