LikeI’mworth keeping.
We belong here.
All of us.
Gabriel too.
I’m done with straight roads. Done withstraight, period.
I’m even done with my pretty dancer who appeared out of nowhere and ran rampant through my mind. I’m locking that door. Zipping that pocket up tight.
I’m taking a chance. And this time?—
I’m going on an adventure of a lifetime.
From the corner of my eye, I spot the napkin lying next to a spill on the bar top. Instinctively, I know—there’s only one thing left to do before I walk out of here.
I let go of Elijah’s hand. Then reach for the napkin and crush it in my fist—like I’m trying to strangle something still breathing inside me.
Something beautiful and wrong.
Something that should have never touched my heart… but did.
With heaviness in my heart, I begin wiping up the mess on the bar… along with the one I’ve made of my life. Each pass of the napkin feels like letting go.
Lighter.
Freer.
I count to eleven under my breath. Then exhale—slow, measured. Releasing my guilt, my temptation,him…
My pretty dancer.
I turn toward Elijah. “Ready,” I say, meeting his eyes with a smile.
He nods, bending over to pick something up from the floor as I toss the napkin aside.
“What’s that?” I ask, watching him glance down at the paper before folding it in half.
“A poem… I think? I’ll just leave it up front in case someone comes back for it.”
He’s always so thoughtful—where I’d have crumpled it up and tossed it without thinking… he pauses, considers. That’s just who he is.
And somehow, that makes me fall for him even more.
I retake his hand, letting my fingers slide between his. “Okay,” I say, unable to hide my grin. “Let’s go home… and make this a night to remember.”
Behind us, on the floor where the paper had been, a second piece of parchment flutters loose—unnoticed.
My name is written on it.
The poem:
Rain and Tears
I’m lost
Somewhere between Rain and Tears.
