“And he was willing to wait—even if it wasted his time?” My eyes sting as the tears well up.
Nodding, she rubs my arm. “You aren’t a waste of time. To him, or to me.”
Mouthing thank you, I take a deep breath to try to regainanyof my composure. Some food might help with that.
I swing my legs off the couch so that I’m sitting properly, and reach over to the boxes. I open each pizza box as I restack them, taking a peek inside to see what the options are.
There’s a pepperoni, vegetarian, meat lovers, four cheese, and one I’m unfamiliar with, the label saying Napoletana. I keep it open, the warmth from the pizza wafting into the air and carrying its delicious smell.
It has a few toppings on it. Some sort of tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil leaves—I think—and an oil of some kind. If I had to guess, probably olive oil.
“Here, we call it Neapolitan pizza—but its original name, the one they still use in Italy, is Napoletana. Cool, right?” Orie tells me between bites.
I nod, taking a slice of it to try. “Interesting indeed.”
Arman returns from the kitchen, sliding in on the other side of me. He opens the box of four-cheese pizza, taking a slice before reclining and throwing his free arm over the back of the couch behind me.
“Well, what’re we watching tonight?” he asks before digging in.
Orie has the remote in hand, turning on the TV. She knows what movie we’re going to watch, because we watch the same movie on all of our cozy-comfort nights.
I give him a small smile. “How do you feel about rom-coms?”
He returns the smile, only bigger. “My favorite.”
As Orie hits play and the opening credits begin to roll, I rest my head on Arman’s shoulder. Having them here, but not askingwhyI’m feeling the way I do…it means a lot.
“Thank you, guys,” I whisper, taking another bite of my pizza.
Arman leans over, planting a kiss on my forehead. Orie shifts so that her head rests onmyshoulder, leaving me in the middle of a gentle cuddle puddle.
It’s exactly where I need to be right now.
Chapter Twelve
ARMAN
I sit on a blanket on the beach, which I’ve kept as free from sand as possible. My laptop is open on my legs, and I scroll the internet looking for any residential listings here in Harmony Glen.
While my hotel room has been…cozy, it’s time for me to find something permanent. Settle down, for the first time in my life.
Pinky is supposed to meet me here soon. I haven’t told her I plan on getting a place yet. It’ll be a surprise—one she hopefully takes well.
Something rubs my shoulders before quickly moving to cover my eyes, followed by the sweet sound of Raya’s voice as she jokes, “Guess who?”
“My darling Pinky, of course.” I reach up, pulling her hands down to my lips and planting kisses on the backs of both.
She moves from behind me, sitting down next to me and bringing some sand onto the blanket. It’s fine, it’s just a bit of sand. I’ll just…stay away from that part.
“So, what’s up? What’re we looking at?” she asks, leaning to see what’s on my laptop.
I feel a bit warm, my palms clammy. “Places for rent.”
“Where?Here?” Her voice gets louder and higher pitched.
She has wide eyes when I look at her, and her lips are parted. I nod, watching her reaction. Is this going to be too much too fast?
Her mouth hangs wide open, but very quickly turns into a giant grin. Instantly, my shoulders fall and I let out a sigh of relief. She doesn’t seem scared, at least.
