The doctor gave me two full weeks off work so my body could recover properly, and if I had the strength to climb the walls at this point, I probably would. I’m not used to staying home this long. Sitting still has never been my strong suit.
Thankfully, when May isn’t here, I haven’t been completely alone. Nathan has stopped by nearly every day, usually bringing coffee or something else he claims I need, and, to my surprise, Finn has made it a habit to show up too.
Earlier today, Nathan drove me over to the nursery so I could pick out some flowers for the backyard. I figured if I’m stuck at home for a while, I might as well put the time to good use. Once we got back, Finn was already waiting outside the house with a six-pack of beer in his hand.
Nathan and Finn carried the plants and bags of mulch into the yard while I followed behind them with a beer in hand. Before long, the three of us were on our knees in the backyard, working on the new garden, digging and planting while talking about nothing in particular.
It’s been… unexpected.
The same could be said about everything that’s happened over the last week.
Most evenings follow a rhythm now. May comes home from work and immediately starts telling me about whatever project she’s working on, her eyes lighting up as she explains things I barely understand but enjoy hearing anyway, simply because she cares about them so much.
I could listen to her talk like that forever.
She watches me constantly too, making sure I’m not pushing myself too hard and noticing every small change before I even say anything. Somewhere along the way, we’ve fallen into a routine that feels strangely natural, like we’ve been doing this together for far longer than we actually have.
We cook dinner together most nights and watch movies after.
Some evenings we bake sourdough, and over the past few days I’ve taught her my recipe. She picked it up faster than I expected, and now I’m beginning to suspect she’ll be making better sourdough than me before long.
Once the sun starts to set, we usually take the dogs for a short walk around the neighborhood.
Neptune and Skye have already grown used to being together, and separating them at the end of the night has become its ownsmall challenge. Neptune always lingers near the door, hoping she will change her mind and stay the night.
When it’s finally time for her to go home, she leans in and kisses me goodnight before stepping outside. I linger by the door with Skye, watching the two of them walk back across the lawn toward her house.
And every night I find myself wondering how much longer we’re supposed to keep pretending that the distance between our houses means anything at all.
Because the truth is, I’m ready.
I’m ready to spend every single one of my days beside this woman.
That much, at least, I know for certain.
Chapter 47
Amonth has passed since the accident, and somewhere in the quiet days that followed, Aiden became part of my everyday life.
We spend every moment we can together, and since he went back to work, we’ve slowly become inseparable. What started as the two of us accidentally falling asleep together while watching a movie has somehow turned into a nightly sleepover. Sometimes at Aiden’s house, but more often at mine, where we get all the privacy we need because the truth is we can barely keep our hands off each other.
This morning I don’t wake up to my alarm.
Instead, I wake to a slow trail of kisses starting at my neck and drifting down along my clavicle. My eyes open to the soft light of morning and the sight of Aiden leaning over me, kissing me good morning.
“Hey,” I murmur, stretching comfortably before curling closer against him.
“Hey,” he answers, smiling down at me, his dark blue eyes bright with mischief.
He leans down and kisses me on the lips, and my stomach does that familiar flutter that I’m starting to suspect will never go away.
Waking up like this… I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it, and I love every minute of it.
“What time are you meeting Natalia?” he asks.
“Eight,” I say, glancing toward the clock on my nightstand.
“It’s almost six-thirty.”
