Page 81 of Don't Leave Me Behind
I hold back a groan. I can’t exactly tell her why it came up, but I feel like I’m balancing on a tight rope. One wrong move and everything is going to come crashing down.
“I’ll do my best.”
“That’s all I ask. I’ll see you in a couple of hours, yeah?”
“Yeah. See you soon.” Leni’s line disconnects, and I force myself to breathe. Everything is fine. It’s all going to be fine. Once Leni tells the family she’s here, we can tell them about us, and there won’t be a need for any more secrets.
Hopefully, she won’t hate me for telling them. Hopefully, she’ll understand.
I hit the main drag through town, writing several more parking tickets that I know are going to get thrown away and forgotten about. I don’t even file them in the system; it’s just something to make me feel like I’m working. And before anyone asks, yes, Mercer did tell me to do it. Something about police presence and all that.
When five o’clock rolls around, I’m already halfway home. I radio into dispatch that I’m done for the night and clock out on my phone. We might have our office in an ancientbuilding, but the county is surprisingly high-tech for our small town community.
Turning into the driveway of Leni’s cabin, I start to get antsy. First date jitters take over my body. Which is stupid, because I literally had sex with her this morning, taking her on a date should be the least scary thing I do today.
I transfer my date night supplies from my work truck into my personal, then take a deep breath and head inside to findmygirl.
Chapter 25
Leni, Baby
Leni
I’m standingby the kitchen sink, staring at my parents’ house, when strong arms wrap around me. Clay’s familiar scent fills me with a sense of rightness, a sense of home. He kisses my neck before looking out the window to follow my gaze.
“You miss them, don’t you?”
I lean back into him, snuggling deeper into his embrace as I sigh. “I do.”
“You could always tell them you’re here, walk over, and surprise the hell out of them.” He grins, a goofy kind of smile that’s tight around the corners. He’s joking, but only partly. The part of him that feels responsible for the rift between the family and me is dying a little on the inside. I can see it.
“I will, I mean, I’m expected back for family dinner to meet Tessa, so I have to tell them. I just…I need to do things at my own pace.”
“I know, I respect that. It doesn’t feel right hiding.” He turns me around, one hand caressing my face as his other slipsthrough my waves. “You aren’t something that should ever be hidden.”
I feel my cheeks blush, heart skipping a beat in my chest.
“I want you, however, and wherever you are. If that’s here for the summer, just the two of us, or over in Benson, I’m yours if you want me. There’s no walking away from this, you’re it for me.”
“Clay,” I breathe his name. My hands grip his neck and slide into his hair, swaying us back and forth a bit. I could certainly get used to this. Get used to Clay coming home to me every night, used to him whispering sweet nothings in my ear. It’s hard to picture him in an apartment in Benson, but I don’t hate the idea. I could take him with me. We could start a life out there, together.
The thought sits wrong because there is no separating Clay from this place, not permanently. He’s as much a part of this ranch as I was, and I’m starting to wonder if the two of us ending up back here was inevitable.
“Go get changed. We’re going out.”
“Out?” My eyes widen, excitement pulsing through me. “Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“Clay…I don’t?—”
“We’re going somewhere private. No one’s going to see you.” He smiles, pressing a tender kiss to the tip of my nose. “Go grab whatever it is girls need for a date night, and we’ll head out in ten. I’m going to take a quick shower and change my clothes.”
I squeal and race up the stairs, looking through the shelves in the closet for something cute to wear. I’ve only been dreaming of going out with Clay since I was ten years old. Now that it’s here and happening, I can barely focus on getting myself ready. My stomach is a mess of nerves, and my heartfeels like it’s fluttering, pumping all kinds of nervous hope and mushy feelings into me.
I decide to keep it casual, since we still haven’t told anyone I’m home. I assume a restaurant isn’t likely. So I select a pair of jean shorts. They're light wash stretchy denim that do all kinds of things for my ass. For the top, I pick a lavender corset tank with spaghetti straps. It’s edgy and feminine, with the right amount of see-through material to tease him. I opt for brown sandals that have a bit of a platform to them, hoping they might help even out our height difference.
Ten minutes isn’t nearly enough to do a full beat and hair, so I swipe on some mascara and glittery eye shadow before separating my thick waves into two sections. The top gets twisted up into a cute little messy bun. My curtain bangs are finally coming in clutch to work with me, instead of against me, as they frame my face and make my eyes pop.
