“Of course.”
Grinning excitedly, I reached for the sketch and paused, feeling suddenly shy. “Um…”
“Seriously? You’re actually scared to show me? You know I’ll love everything you do.”
Taking a deep breath, I grabbed my gigantic sketch pad, which was nearly the size of my torso. I propped it on my lap, high enough for the webcam to catch it. “So…what do you think?”
“Is that really…”
I grinned sheepishly. “I redid the infamous portrait. Figured I’d fix up the gonzo nose I gave you and preserve this one a bit better this time around. Now you can replace the torn one in your restaurant.”
He shook his head. “Never.”
“Never?” I placed the pad down and narrowed my eyes in suspicion. “Why?”
“As much as I love that new painting—especially since my nose looks awesome in it—”
I burst out laughing.
“—nothing can ever replace the original. It was my promise, yeah?”
I grinned. “And Jesse Tyler never breaks his promises.”
Chapter 33
I sat on the stoop of our house, bouncing my knee anxiously in wait. My tank top stuck to my back, sticky and damp from perspiration. Of course we’d have to pick the hottest day of the year to move me down to Charleston, but then again we were always bad when it came to planning around weather.
“I can’t believe you’re leaving me!” Stephanie sat beside me drawing circles on the dusty stoop. She blew back her bangs and pouted comically. “What am I going to do without you?”
“You have Devon now, right? Three’s a crowd, remember?” I couldn’t help but tease her one last time.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Her face brightened. “At least I’ll get to visit Charleston finally. Still kinda miffed you went without me before.”
“I was basically tricked into going, remember?”
“Excuse me, girls.” My dad pushed past us, dropping a heavy box of clothes onto the brick walkway. I didn’t know if it was because of the heat or the fact that his doctor got on his case about his diet, but my dad’s pudgy stomach looked less pudgy that day. “I think this is the last of your things.”
I stood up and brushed off the back of my shorts. A mosquito buzzed beside my ear and I swatted it away in annoyance.
“You know they have more of those insects further south. You sure you want to go?” Dad asked nonchalantly.
I grinned. Though it took my dad a little while longer to warm up to the idea of my leaving, I was extremely happy he finally did. “Well, I’m all packed up. I should be heading somewhere, don’t you think?”
“You’re right about that.” He scuffled over and reached out to give me a hug. “I’m going to miss my best employee, though.”
“Best? Really?”
“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have known there was a market for those…um…favors. I would never have blocked off the gardening section for the eighteen and uppers.”
I couldn’t help but laugh picturing the gigantic purple curtains my mom had hung towards the back of Rossi’s. There were huge signs that said, ADULT ONLY, but given that the worst thing they sold were the phallic straws, I thought it was a bit much. “Oh yeah, Grandpa would be proud, right?”
“Watch it,” he shot back, but threw me a conspiratorial wink.
“Rocky!” My mom rushed out with tissues bunched up in her hands. Though she was my number one supporter, she was the most torn up about me leaving. She rushed over and threw her arms around me. “Do you have everything you need? Can’t you put off moving for another day so we can check?”
I squeezed her back. “Oh, come on, Mom. Jesse’s already on his way, and it’s not as if this is the first time I’m leaving. I did go away to college, you know.”
“But I knew you’d be coming back.” Her voice wavered a bit, causing my eyes to water.
“It’s okay, Mom. I’ll visit a lot. Besides, now that Emily’s coming back to work at the store, I’ll need to make sure she’s doing the job right.”
Mom’s face brightened as soon as I reminded her that the other Prodigal Daughter was returning. As luck would have it, her husband got reassigned to Raleigh, which was just thirty minutes away, so Emily, bless her heart, announced she’d be taking her rightful place as Assistant Manager.
“Are you sure you don’t want to call your aunts, uncles, and cousins to say goodbye?” Mom asked.
I grimaced, picturing the horrible scene. “No thanks. I can make do without the crying and guilt tripping.”
“Guilt tripping? Nah, you know everyone’s excited for you.”
I winked. “Sure. Aunt Belle is ecstatic.”
At that moment, a light beep of the car horn caught our attention. Stephanie automatically ran up beside me and careened her neck to get a better view of the street corner. “Is that him?”
My breath caught in my throat when I saw the blue Jeep turning towards our street. I winced as the reflection of the sun on its roof blinded me momentarily. “Yeah, that’s him.”
It was as if my body reacted to Jesse as soon as I sensed he was nearby. Though I could only catch a glimpse of his face, my heart automatically began working overtime. The blood automatically rushed through all my extremities and yes, that part of my body was included. Due to his busy work schedule and a boom in Rossi’s business, we haven’t gotten to visit each other in almost two months. To think that that night I’d go to sleep next to the warmth of his body as opposed to the cold screen of my phone—well, let’s just say the visceral reaction I was feeling was a bit hard to ignore.
“Oh, my God! This is it!” Stephanie’s lips trembled and her nose began to redden. “Why is it harder this time than when we went off to college?”
“It’s because you went away too. It’s always harder being left behind.” As happy as I was, I couldn’t help but feel like I was punched in the gut. “It’ll be fine. We’ll video chat every night.”
“You promise?”
I nodded, though I wasn’t sure if I was trying to convince her more than me. “Just warn me if Devon is naked anywhere nearby.”
Stephanie blinked in confusion for a moment, but remembering Daniel’s infamous dick pic, she burst into laughter. “Nah, Devon’s all mine. No private moments to be shared.”
“Right.”
Jesse’s car pulled up, slowing to a stop at the street curb. I was bursting in excitement, ready to jump in his arms, but I knew I’d need to keep my cool around my parents. Besides, my dad practically bombarded him the moment he stepped out of the vehicle. Most likely giving him the ‘You better take care of my daughter’ talk.
As soon as my dad stepped away, Jesse practically ran up the driveway and into my arms. So much for remaining cool. I burst into happy giggles as he swung me around the front yard and pressed an excited kiss on my lips.
“Hey, my parents are watching,” I hissed.
Obliging, Jesse set me down on my feet and pressed a kiss on my forehead. “You ready, roomie?”
“Roomie? Really?”
His eyes sparkled. “Just kidding.”
I elbowed him in the ribs and took a step away to begin hauling my boxes into the small trailer he had attached to the car. It took quite a few trips, and by the time the lawn was cleared, I was worried that Jesse’s jeep wouldn’t be able to drag all my stuff.
Jesse must have been thinking the same thing because he took a step back from his Jeep and scratched his head.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, following his gaze.
He lifted a hand to wipe away the sweat that was pooling around his neck. His shirt was almost soaked through. I was a bit tempted to tell him to take it off, but I knew I wouldn’t have been able to get any work done with his bare chest in my line of sight. “Did you pack your whole room?”
“Almost,” I admitted sheepishly. “A bit much, yeah?”
He shrugged, but didn’t answer.
After pausing for a bit, I walked back
towards the metal cube of a trailer and lifted the door. I scanned the piles of boxes, pushed aside a bunch of loose shoes, and rearranged some hangers until I finally found what I was looking for.
The old cardboard box was a little less dusty now, but still rather torn and stained. Grabbing each side, I pulled it out of its space and cradled it into my arms. Turning on my heel, I walked up to the porch and placed it on the bottom step. Both Jesse and Stephanie watched me in curiosity.
“You’re not taking that?” Stephanie’s voice sounded exhausted and I knew that as soon as we left she was going to pass out for a very long nap.
With a small smile on my face, I shook my head. “Nope.”
“Why?”
“Because why take a box full of old, stale memories…” I paused and gazed into Jesse’s eyes. “When I’m going to make a bunch of better memories now? No more living in the past.”
“We don’t need to,” Jesse agreed.
“You guys are so corny!” Stephanie exclaimed, but there was no mistaking the happiness in her eyes.
Two more triple-checks and a walk-through later, it was finally time to go. As expected, my parents were both on the verge of sobs while Stephanie was hysterically crying. Hugging them all tightly, I promised to visit and call often, but I knew firsthand the sting of being left behind. It sucked, but it was up to the mover to make sure communication was never lost.
The sun was already on the verge of setting by the time I buckled my seatbelt and waved goodbye one last time. As Jesse round the corner, my family’s reflection in the side mirror grew smaller and smaller. Biting back a soft cry, I rested my head firmly into my seat.
“Are you okay?” Jesse asked quietly, reaching for my hand.
“Yeah.” I swallowed back a hiccup sob.
“You sure? I almost feel guilty for taking you with me.”
“Almost?” I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Well, I can’t help but be a bit selfish. I’m pretty happy my girlfriend is moving in with me.”
I snorted and shut my eyes. No matter how long it’s been it was still pretty surreal to hear him call me his girlfriend.
Placing my hand back down, he tilted his head towards the back. “Hey, check out the box in the backseat. I picked it up on the way to get you.”
“Did you get me more art supplies? I swear I already have enough to fill the Louvre with paintings!”
He didn’t respond and just began snickering under his breath.
Curious, I reached over and lifted the flap of a familiar looking box. “Oh my God!”
I dropped my hand and immediately whipped my head around. “What the hell are you doing with those?”
“Thought we’d have some fun.”
“Don’t you know by now that I am not a dildo person?” Though I tried to act angry, I couldn’t help but burst into laughter. I couldn’t believe Jesse brought those stupid toys along. At least I knew he was just trying to mess with me…I hoped.
“Aw shucks, there goes my plans for tonight,” he teased. “Luckily, I know a small cupboard in my house where we can keep them just in case you change your mind.”
I narrowed my eyes and shook my head. “Never.”
“Fine.” He shot me a wink and settled back in his seat. “Always fun to watch Raquel Rossi squirm.”
“It’s Rocky to you,” I replied haughtily.
“Yes. Rocky to the people who love you and good God, do I love you.”
I felt my insides warm and let out a sigh of content as I watched the ‘Now Leaving Bethel Falls’ sign pass me by. I was certain that moving away wasn’t going to be easy and would take some adjusting, but knowing I was with Jesse just made the world seem right.
We were no longer two people outta the world.
Together, we were finally one.
THE END
Acknowledgments
This story would never have come alive without the curious dream I had last winter. I have no idea how Jesse even wandered into my dreams, but I’m so glad he did!
Thank you, God, for the constant inspiration and blessings. I could never have gotten this far without You. I am deeply humbled for the unconditional love you show me every day.
Thank you to my family and my friends for all your love and support. I am so excited to share this journey with you and I can’t wait to see where it takes us!
To my Limitless family: It’s hard to believe it’s been less than a year since I came on board. You all have been nothing but fantastic to me. Thank you for allowing my dreams to come true!
About the Author
Thanks to her Mom’s unwavering devotion to read a childhood bedtime story to her every single night, S. BRIONES LIM’s love for books began before she could even speak.
Raised in Southern California, Lim initially dreamt of becoming an artist. After a Psychology Degree (Summa cum Laude), a stint in Art School, and a career in Advertising/Media she is finally diving back into her first love – books. As a self-renowned bookworm, Lim’s love for reading has inspired her to pen her own novels and hopes her readers will fall in love with her stories as much as she enjoys writing them.
Her obsessions include time with family, Cherry Coke, popcorn with jalapeños, watching movies and her dogs, Tobi and Roscoe. She currently lives in Virginia with her husband.
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/SBrionesLim
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/sbrioneslim
Website:
http://sbrioneslimauthor.wordpress.com/
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7155647.S_Briones_Lim
Two Outta Three (Two Outta Three #1) Page 24
