Page 70 of The Run Back Home

"Anyway," I sigh. "He's coming Friday."

"That's great, Jace." She swirls a small circle over the scar on my ribs that I got rollerblading when I was seven. "I'm proud of you."

I suck in a deep breath, then rest my cheek on her head. "It's a pretty big deal. If I play well it should lock in my spot for after graduation."

"Already?"

"That's just how it works. Senior year still counts, but yeah, it'd already be all planned out, really."

Lenny goes quiet except for the faint swallow that seems to echo out around us, her finger pausing over that spot on my side.

"Do you remember me telling you about their nursing program?" I ask, my breath suddenly shallow.

I feel her nod against my neck.

"It's supposed to be one of the best in the country."

"I know," she says. "I looked it up."

I tilt my chin, excited, then pull back trying to see her expression. "Did you?"

Lenny sits up again, her face not quite mirroring mine, but still more alive than when we were talking about her mother.

Thank God.

"Of course," she says, smiling. "The campus looks awesome. Bridget saw my screen when I was on their website and said a girl from her class went there and loved the town so much she decided to stay after graduation."

"Well, you can't love it that much," I joke. "If I get drafted, the chances of it being by Washington are like…"

She glances up at me, waiting.

"What's one percent of thirty?" I ask.

She laughs. "I don't know. Like three percent."

"Then three percent," I say with confidence. "And even then, the Warriors' stadium is on the opposite side of the state."

"Oh, right, no." She grins. "It's probably not that great anyway."

"Well, you're gonna visit me my freshman year, right?"

"Of course I am."

A smile spreads across my face. "Then you can check it out for yourself before you commit."

She sticks out her bottom lip. "Good thing. Because the town is definitely why I'd pick CMU."

I arch my brows. "Oh yeah?"

"Mhmm."

"And nothing else?"

"Let me think…"

I click my tongue, sliding lower in the bed and slipping my palm past her cheek. "Yeah, you do that," I whisper, pulling her to me.

I press my lips to hers, and she kisses me back like she always does—soft at first, then deeper as she slips her hand behind my neck.