“Wait, you guys are already dating?” he asks, and I roll my eyes.
“Don’t change the subject but … yeah, I guess we are.” I can’t fight the tipping up of my lips, my cheeks heating up, just thinking about it.
“I’m so happy for you guys, honestly. As for me, I’m still on the hunt for Mrs. Bradford.”
“Are you looking for a permanent Mrs. Bradford or a one-night-only Mrs. Bradford? Because maybe you’re looking in the wrong places.”
“Shut up,” he snaps sarcastically. “You’re annoying when you’re right.”
This earns a genuine laugh from me. “I can’t help it that I’m smarter than you.”
“Okay, actually, I take back what I said. I don’t thinkyoucan dateJensen. You’re too much of a know-it-all.”
My laughter deepens, and it’s like I can feel the serotonin hitting my system. “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
Noise that I can’t make out sounds in his background.
“I gotta get going, Lainey. Talk soon, okay?”
“Of course. I love you.”
“I love you too.” He ends the call, and I suddenly feel so overwhelmed with love and family.
Having his blessing for Jensen and me means a lot. I would hate it if Luca didn’t approve. I don’t need his approval to do what I want, but I care about him and his opinion, and I’m just glad that he’s okay with it.
My phone chimes, and I see a text from Jensen.
Jensen: Heading home soon?
Leaving the garage now.
Jensen: Okay. Sounds good. Drive safe.
I tuck my phone into the holder and head to his place, knowing the path by memory now.
Is it weird how natural this feels with Jensen? Should it feel this easy and safe?
I know we have a lot of history, which plays a big factor since we already know pretty much everything about each other. But I still can’t get over how right this feels.
There’s still more that we need to talk about, but it can wait and come out when it’s time. He’s being patient, and he hasn’t pestered me about the scar on my neck, but I know that he’s curious and he wants to know what caused it.
I’ll tell him. I will. Sometimes, when I open my lips to finally say those words, they get caught in my throat. Even the times when I’ve wanted to open up to him before, I just couldn’t. It’s like my body stops it.
Will he feel the same way about it that Cole did? No, I’m aware how different the two of them are, and Jensen would never make me feel less than for what happened to me, but that doesn’t take away the irrational fear that there’s a chance he might.
Doing my best, I force that thought away, knowing that it’s my anxiety talking and not what I really think—something I haven’t been able to see clearly until I got away from Cole. It’s wild that my mind was somehow unaware for so long.
How was it possible that I lost myself in that relationship? I became someone so different, pieces of myself chipping away over time. The signs were there, but I was blinded to see them.
It makes me feel so … dumb and weak that I stayed for as long as I did. I knew he was cheating, maybe not fully acknowledging it, but deep down, in my gut, I felt it.
Never again will I let myself drift so far away. Thankfully, with Jensen, that’s not a concern I have, but there are still walls up that he hasn’t gotten behind. Not because he hasn’t tried, but because my mind won’t let him. It’s going to take some time for that to happen.
As I pull into the parking garage and scan the key fob, giddiness shimmies across my shoulders. After this morning and afternoon, I’m still so excited to see him again.
When I round the corner toward his spot, my heart grows in size as I see Jensen standing in the walkway in front of the parking sign. He should be resting and definitely not going out of his way to meet me down here.
But I appreciate the gesture nonetheless. My skin hums with anticipation of his embrace. I immediately kill the engine once parked, grab my purse, and throw the door open.
