dance while he types his reply.
Chance: Yes, I’m sure. There’s no point in dragging this out.
Laken: Okay, if that’s what you want. A sob slips past my lips.
Chance’s reply kills me.
Chance: Sure is. Have a good life.
I call Nicole, asking her to come help me grab my stuff. I need to be gone before he comes back. It would destroy me if I saw him right now.
There’s a knock on the door, and I rush toward it. I pull it open, and Nicole pulls me into a hug as I cry. “Sweetie, what happened?”
Through tears I tell her. “He got the Nike internship. I knew he would, but when he asked me to go I said no. We fought, he left, and then he texted me to get my st-stuff out.”
Nicole leads me to the sofa. “Why did you say no?”
“Because I was s-scared. What if we move to Oregon and he realizes that he d-doesn’t love us. We’d be stuck living in a city with no one, and then what? What happens to me and Ava?” I bury my face in her neck and cry.
“It’s okay to be scared, and you’re right—it’s not just you it’s Ava too, but, honey, if you let fear keep you from what you want, you’ll be miserable.” Nicole grabs my face and tilts it up so I look her in the eye. “Do you love him?”
“More than anything,” I tell her immediately.
She smiles at me. “Do you want to go to Oregon with him?”
I nod. “As much as it scares me, I do.”
“Then, honey, go find him and tell him.”
“I don’t even know where to look.” My mind flashes back to our first date. He took me to a bluff where he likes to be alone. “I know where he is.” I hug her. “Thank you for talking some sense into me.”
“That’s what friends are for. Are you okay to drive?” I nod. She stands and walks toward the door. “Call me later if you need to.”
I follow Nicole out and climb into my car. My hands tremble and my heart races as I drive toward the bluff. It takes me three tries to take the right turn. I spot his car up ahead and pull in behind him. I turn off the ignition and take a deep breath.
Is he going to talk to me, to hear me out? He’s sitting on the ground with his legs bent and his forearms resting on his knees.
I slowly walk up behind him, not sure what I’m supposed to do. His body is held stiff; he knows I’m behind him. “Is all your shit gone?” Chance sounds defeated, and I hate that it’s my fault.
I get down behind him and wrap my arms around his waist, resting my forehead against his back. “Why are you here?” He grabs my hands and pulls them off his chest. Instead of backing away, I grab onto him again.
“I was scared,” I whisper. “All I kept thinking was what if Ava and I went with you and then you decided you didn’t want me anymore. Then where would we be?”
“What if we went and you decided that you didn’t want to be with me anymore?”
I cry. “I love you, Chance. All I want is to be with you. You and Ava are my life. I’d follow you anywhere.”
My cries turn to sobs because he doesn’t say anything. I’ve ruined everything. I let my fear destroy us. I jump up and run to my car, but I don’t make it very far before Chance is in front of me, pulling me into his arms.
I grab onto him, like I’m afraid he’s going to float away. “I-I’m s-so sorry.” I’m a hot mess right now, but I don’t care. I look up at him with tears running down my face. “If you’ll still have us, I’d love for Ava and me to move to Oregon with you. Chance, I can’t imagine my life without you.”
He brushes the tears from my cheeks. Chance kisses me fully and deeply. “We’re moving to Oregon.”
I give him a watery smile. “We’re moving to Oregon.”
***
Chance grabs me behind my thigh and lifts me up and over his hips so he can sink further inside of me. “You feel like heaven,” he whispers against my lips. “Baby, you’ve got the sweetest cunt.”
Why does it turn me on when he talks like that? “Shut up and kiss me.” I lift up to touch my lips to him. My tongue