People We Meet on Vacation - Emily Henry Page 0,130
a new bowling alley in Brooklyn with an old-school feel. Alex went with me to scope the place out, and I knew as soon as I spotted Dolores in the next lane over, personalized gold ball and matching gloves and a halo of frizzy gray hair, that she was someone who could teach me things. A bucket of beer, a long conversation, and a bowling lesson later, and I had everything I needed for the article, but Alex and Dolores and I walked over to the hot dog place down the street anyway, hung out until nearly midnight.
The article’s almost done, just needs a few finishing touches, but those can wait until the morning. I’m wiped out from our long day, and all I want to do is sink onto the couch with Alex.
“It’s good to be home,” he says, looping his arms around my back and pulling me flush to him.
I slip my hands up the back of his shirt and kiss him like I’ve been waiting to all day. “Home,” I say, “is my favorite place.”
“Mine too,” he murmurs, easing me back against the wall.
Next summer, we will get away from the city. We will spend four days tromping around Norway, another four in Sweden. There will be no Icehotel. (He’s a teacher, I’m a writer, and we’re both millennials. There’s no money for that.)
I’ll leave a key for Rachel to water our plants, and after Sweden, we’ll fly straight back to Linfield for the rest of Alex’s summer break.
We’ll stay in Betty’s house while he fixes it up and I sit on the floor, eating Twizzlers and finding new ways to make him blush. We’ll tear down wallpaper and choose new paint colors. We’ll drink diet soda at dinner with his dad and brothers and the nieces and nephew. We’ll sit on the porch with my parents looking out over the wasteland of Wright Family Cars Past. We’ll try on our hometown the same way we’ve been trying on New York together. We’ll see how it fits, where we want to be.
But I already know how I’ll feel.
Wherever he is, that will be my favorite place.
“What?” he asks, the start of a smile tugging at his lips. “Why are you staring?”
“You’re just . . .” I shake my head, searching for any word that could possibly encompass what I’m feeling. “So tall.”
His smile is wide, unfettered, Naked Alex just for me. “I love you too, Poppy Wright.”
Tomorrow we will love each other a little more, and the next day, and the next day.
And even on those days when one or both of us is having a hard time, we’ll be here, where we are completely known, completely accepted, by the person whose every side we love wholeheartedly. I’m here with all the versions of him I’ve met over twelve years of vacations, and even if the point of life isn’t just being happy, right now, I am. Down to the bones.
Acknowledgments
There are so many people this book would not exist without. First and foremost, I have to thank Parker Peevyhouse. I was on the phone with you when I figured out what I needed to write next. I don’t think anything but that phone call could have created this book. Thank you, my friend.
Thank you also to my incredible editors, Amanda Bergeron and Sareer Khader. There are no words that can adequately describe what working with you both has meant. The time and care you took in helping me find not just a book but the right book is something most writers can only dream of. Sharing ownership and control of your work can be scary, but I’ve known every step of the way that I was in the very best of hands. Thank you for pushing me and my writing beyond its limits and for being such an incredible team to collaborate with.
A huge thank-you also to Jessica Mangicaro, Dache Rogers, and Danielle Keir. Without you, I’m not convinced anyone would even read this book, so thank you for using your talent and passion to advocate for my books. You make everything brighter.
Thank you also to everyone else at Berkley for creating such a warm, supportive home for me and my books, including but not limited to Claire Zion, Cindy Hwang, Lindsey Tulloch, Sheila Moody, Andrea Monagle, Jessica McDonnell, Anthony Ramondo, Sandra Chiu, Jeanne-Marie Hudson, Craig Burke, Christine Ball, and Ivan Held. I feel so lucky every day to be working with you.