“Because I do, sweet girl. It makes me feel warm—like a cuddle from the sky.”
“I like that.”
“Never take the sunshine for granted. It’s a little gift from God. A kiss from heaven.”
I grin, my face to the sky, and accept my kiss from heaven. In a way, it feels like a stamp of approval of my new journey in life, and of my new friends. Mom would love that the girls are texting me. She always was a girl’s girl.
I’ve never had friends like this before, and I’m not quite sure how it works. But I don’t think I’m going to hate it.
By the looks of it, my life in Sugar Creek won’t resemble the life I’ve imagined there before. It’s a one-eighty from my expectations in nearly every sense.
Has it always been this way, and I never saw it for what it was?
Me: Thank you all for coming to the wedding and bachelorette party. It means a lot to me. I’ll send a proper thank-you when I get back and settled.
Astrid: Don’t waste your time on us. We had fun.
Gianna: Yeah. Spend your time riding that cowboy. Yeehaw!
Me: I have stories …
Gianna: You and I are going to get along just fine.
“You have three towels and one roll of toilet paper, but sixteen bottles of lotion,” Hartley says.
“Your point?”
“I … I don’t know.”
Me: I need to go help Hart. He’s trying to pack up my bathroom and is melting down over my lotion bottle count.
Astrid: He’ll get used to it. Trust me. It took Gray a minute, but he needs more counter space than I do at this point.
Audrey: Text me when you’re back, and we can grab a coffee or something.
Gianna:
Audrey:
Me: xoxoxo
I slide my phone in my pocket and practically skip into my bathroom. Hartley meets me in the doorway with a box of my things.
“That’s done,” he says. “I emptied your drawers into a few boxes, but I didn’t touch your jewelry or books.”
“Smart man.”
He grins. “Want me to do the kitchen?”
“I think I just have a couple of bowls, maybe. Most of that was Clint’s.”
Hartley carries the bathroom box and sets it on my bed. He looks around the room and then turns to me. “Can I ask you something? And I don’t mean anything by it. I’m just curious.”
“I might not answer, but sure.”
“Where’s all your stuff?” he asks. “We’ll be in and out of here in an hour.”
I glance at the empty walls and closet and feel a slight pang in my chest. I’ve never realized how truly empty it was here. Maybe it’s because we’ve already packed so much of it away, but I see what he means.
