43. Natalie
Natalie
The next week passes in a blur of summer heatwaves and dips in the lake. We eat dinner with my family almost every night, sometimes at Jules’s house, other times at the cabin, and even at the diner a few times. I’ve never felt so whole.
Mom and Dad have already planned a road trip to Florida to see where I’ve been living, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
I want to take Mom to the beach and give Dad a tour of the country club.
He’s a simple man who enjoys simple things, but I want to spoil him in all his retirement glory.
Luke has been telling him about the golf course he frequents, so they’re making their own plans to play with Luke’s dad when they visit.
Sarah, the professional runner, called me a few days after her photo shoot.
She coached me on how to breathe properly when I run and told me when to stretch and for how long.
I’ve been running with Luke in the mornings, and I can already tell the difference in my breathing and endurance.
I’m only able to run ten minutes before I need to walk again, but it’s better than what I was doing before.
And honestly, the cute athletic wear I bought is a huge motivator.
I’ve also felt better since I’ve started running.
I no longer feel as anxious as I was, and I sleep great.
Luke said he hasn’t heard me stir at night, and I’m happy to say it’s all thanks to the physical activity I’ve worked into my days.
I haven’t been drinking either, now that the nightmares haven’t kept me awake.
Luke and I are doing really well. He says he’s still thinking of having kids, but he doesn’t know when the timing would be right. We’ve agreed to wait out the summer and work on getting ourselves back into a routine in Florida before we make such a huge decision.
And I feel really good about that. Hopeful would be the word I’d use now.
And of course things have drastically changed with Juliet too.
We talk all the time now, even texting when we’re not together.
And we’ve begun to make plans for holidays, whether that be Luke and I coming here or her family visiting us in Fort Lauderdale.
“Are you ready to go?” Luke kisses me on the cheek.
We’re tubing down the river today with Jules, Cam, Tyler, and Sandra. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t completely ecstatic.
“Almost.” I turn my back to Luke, holding the strings of my bikini top over my shoulders. “Can you just tie this for me?”
“Sure.”
My body reacts the instant he steps closer, even before I feel his hands at my neck. I pass the orange strings over to him, and he asks me to hold my hair up while he ties a bow.
Luke’s fingers brush against my neck as he works. “Is this tight enough?”
“Yup. Can you double knot it?”
“Sure.”
When he’s done, he steps closer, pressing his chest against my back. He moves his hands around me to rest on the bare skin of my stomach.
“Are you sure you want to wear this on the river?” he asks, his breath tickling my ear.
I frown. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because I won’t be able to keep my hands off you.”
“Hm,” I purr. “Then I definitely want to wear this on the river.”
I twist in his arms until my own wrap up around his neck.
His hair is longer, and freckles cover the bridge of his nose and the swells of his cheeks.
I love how the summer sun makes him look seventeen again; it’s almost like time has moved backward in Maple Lake.
We’re not the same people we were then, but we’re stronger.
Stronger for all we’ve been through and all we’ve faced.
“Don’t be surprised if I rush you back to this cabin the instant we reach the end of that blasted four miles,” he says.
“I wouldn’t be surprised. You can hardly surprise me anymore,” I say playfully.
His brows rise. “Is that a challenge?”
“I don’t know. Is it?”
He nips playfully at my lower lip, making me smile. “Keep smiling at me like that and I’ll have to cancel our plans.”
I pretend to consider this. “Will there be snacks if we stay here?”
“There will be you, so … yeah.”
I laugh lightly, and he kisses my neck, then my mouth. This is the version of us that I’ve missed—playful, carefree, flirty. I sigh wistfully, knowing if I don’t move now we might actually miss the rest of our group launching from the riverbank.
I pull away from Luke to grab my T-shirt, pulling it over my head. “Luke, we have to leave now or we’ll miss the launch. Everyone would be disappointed if we didn’t go. We’ve been talking about it for weeks, and I’m excited to do something different. I’ve never been tubing before.”
Luke watches as I tug the loose-fitting white shirt on. “How long is this trip on the river supposed to take?”
“Jules said maybe four hours, but Cam said it could be as little as two, depending on the current. So who really knows?” I shrug my shoulders and tuck my hair behind my ears.
Luke claps his hands together, his smile growing. “Alright, beautiful. I’m ready. Let’s do it.”