“Vada!” I hear Olivia calling my name, but I roll over and ignore it, pleading for just ten more minutes of sleep. “Vada, I know you can hear me.” Her tone is accusing and harsh.

“Go away,” I mumble, covering my head with the pillow.

“You cannot just lie in bed all morning,” she tells me, but I beg to differ. I’m exhausted and her being in here isn’t helping.

“Yes, I can,” I retort. “I’ll skip breakfast and shower in a half hour. Now turn off the light.”

“Nice try.” I feel her rustling around, and soon the covers are whipped off me.

“Hey!” I shriek, quickly trying to cover myself up, but she’s too fast. “I could’ve been naked under here.”

“Considering you’re on the phone until three a.m., I’m actually surprised you aren’t.”

“Ha-ha,” I mock. “I was too tired for phone sex last night, so the joke’s on you.”

“Yeah, clearly.” She rolls her eyes. “Now c’mon. You need to stay on your schedule.” She slaps my ass, and I shriek.

“Okay, God. I’m up.” I sit up and stretch against the headboard.

“Good. Another flower bouquet was delivered this morning.” She points to the vase of red and white roses. “You two are sickening, by the way.”

I burst out laughing, smiling at the gorgeous view. Sliding out of bed, I walk to the table they’re on and pull out the card.

To my Vada,

When I think about what the future holds for us, I grin like an absolute idiot. But then again, how could I not when I know you’re the One.

Good luck today—you’re going to kill it!

Love you,

Ethan

---

I press the card to my chest and sigh.

“We get it,” Olivia’s words snap me out of my dreamy haze as she yanks the card out of my fingers and sets it back down. “Breakfast. Shower. Dress. Go.”

I pout and scowl at her for ruining my moment. Girl needs to get laid or something. Geez.

My publisher has arranged for a podcast interview this morning and then another meet-n-greet before the book signing later this afternoon. It’s another busy day, but I don’t mind. The busier, the better so I can keep my mind occupied.

Ethan’s been sending me flowers to every hotel we stay at since I left a couple weeks ago. He sends them with the sweetest of notes, too, and I find myself anxiously waiting for them. They’re the only thing connecting us right now when the phone calls and text messages aren’t enough.

Though the thought of uprooting everything I’ve ever known in Chicago still gives me anxiety, I know I’ll only be happy being with Ethan. I haven’t quite broken the news to Nora yet, which is something I need to do before it’s too late.

Once the day is over and I’m back in my hotel room, I decide it’s now or never.

Grabbing for my phone, I think about what I’m going to say before calling her.

“Your stupid cat got hair all over my favorite sweater,” she says immediately when picking up the call.

“Oliver doesn’t shed,” I protest. “Are you sure it wasn’t a different cat?”

“You think I have a parade of cats around here or something? It was yours,” she says matter-of-factly. I grin, knowing she secretly loves Oliver as much as I do.

“Well, I’m sure he’s very sorry. Plus, it’s not really his fault. I’m sure you were picking him up and loving on him, and that’s how he got hair on you.”

“I would never,” she retorts.

I laugh, but we both know the truth. “I’m sorry. I’ve been a little busier than usual. When I get back, I’ll make sure he gets brushed every day, so he doesn’t shed as much, or you could brush him?”

She huffs into the phone. “Now you want me to spend quality time with him? Oliver loves to play hard to get when I try to catch him, probably learned it from his mama.”

I chuckle, shaking my head at her though she can’t see me. “If only I had a camera in my apartment. I bet you two are the best of pals.”

She grumbles.

“So how are things going? Where are you now?” she asks, changing the subject.

“Texas,” I reply. “It’s humid as fuck, too.”

“Yeah, us northerners can’t handle that kind of heat. Aren’t you glad you’ll be home in just a week? It’s starting to get chilly here finally.”

“Well, that’s what I kind of wanted to talk to you about.”

“You’re not leaving me with this damn cat,” she immediately blurts outs.

“No.” I laugh. “Ethan asked me to stay in Charleston with him,” I say the words aloud for the first time, which surprisingly doesn’t give me as much anxiety as I thought. I told her the story of seeing Ethan and how we were talking again but hadn’t gone into detail about the status of our relationship.

“Oh,” is all she offers.

“Yeah.”

“So, you’d be moving down there,” she says the words as if she’s ripping off a Band-Aid.

“I think so,” I say softly. “I mean, that’d be the only way to know if a relationship between us could really work. The long-distance would always cause problems, so—”

“Well about damn time,” she says, bluntly.

“What?” I ask, laughing. “What do you mean?”

“You’ve been pining after that boy for a whole damn year, and now that you’ve reconnected, you’d be a fool to not see where it can go. There’s nothing up here for you, Vada,” she reminds me, though Chicago is all I’ve ever known.

“But the thought of just packing everything up and moving for him worries me because what if—”

“What if, what?” she cuts me off. “What if it doesn’t work out? But what if it does? Or what if you never take the risk and know for sure?” She fires out the questions as if she’s challenging me to really come up with a response.

“But—”

“Vada, dear. Don’t end up like me.”

“What’s that mean?” I ask, pulling my brows together.

“I missed out on the greatest love of my life, and now I’m in my sixties alone babysitting some ugly cat.”

I chuckle at her admission. “What happened?”

“Well, back before smart phones and sexting,” she begins, making me laugh even harder that she knows what sexting is. “I met a man in college who I fell in love with, and although we were madly in love with each other, once graduation rolled around, he deployed with the army. We wrote to each other as much as we could, but when he returned, he wasn’t the same man I’d fallen for. He changed; or rather, the army changed him. I was heartbroken because he turned to drinking and I couldn’t stand watching him self-destruct any longer. Fast forward to three years later, he had sobered up, got clean, and was starting his own business.”

“Wow…what an achievement.”

“Yeah, it was. I was so proud of him, but he had moved to Florida to start his business and begged me to move so we could be together again. I was hesitant because my family was all here, and I couldn’t fully trust that he wouldn’t slip up and start drinking again. I let those fears smother me to the point where I backed out from moving. Although he said he understood and would wait for me to decide, by the time I finally geared up the courage to do it, he had met someone else down there.” I hear her breathing softly on the other end, wondering how I never knew this about her. “What’s worse is, I flew down to surprise him when I saw them together. I knew she wasn’t a fling or some random girl because you could see the love they had for each other in their eyes, and that’s when I knew. I was too late.”

“Wow, Nora…” is all I can muster up to say.

“Fate handed me a second chance, and I didn’t take it, Vada. It’s something I have to live with for the rest of my life, but that doesn’t mean you do.”

I don’t know when I started crying, but I feel tears streaming down my cheeks. I don’t know why, but I just feel so sad that Nora missed out on something as wonderful as love.

“So you never met someone after him?”

“Oh, I did. I eventually tried dating other men, even married one, but I always compared them to Adam. The connection and love between us never felt as strong or authentic as the one we had. So I had failed relationships, eventually a failed marriage, and well, here I am.”

“Geez, Nora. Way to hit me right in the feels.” I wipe away another tear. “You know it’s not too late for you,” I say with a hint of seriousness.

“Oh you know I’m too set in my ways,” she tells me as if I had no idea.

“Well, if you ever found Adam again and get that third chance, you best invite me to the wedding.” I chuckle.

“You got it, dear.”

We chat for a few more minutes before hanging up. I see Olivia’s Bible organizer on the table and flip to the current month to check out the rest of the schedule. There’s only a week left before the tour’s over, but I don’t know if I can wait that long to see him again.

I’m not going to waste our second chance.

As the Uber drives through the Charleston streets, I can’t wipe the smile off my face. Olivia nearly murdered me when I told her I was leaving early. I only had one signing event left. The rest of my schedule was filled with interviews that I had her reschedule as phone interviews instead. I’d fly out for the signing this weekend, but I couldn’t wait any longer to see Ethan, so I flew from Texas right to Charleston.

I decided not to tell him I’m coming so I can surprise him; however, after arriving at the house and seeing a bunch of random supplies laying around, I’m not sure if surprising him was the right way to go.

“Ethan?” I call out, watching my step as I walk through the house.

I head out back where Henry is clucking around but luckily doesn’t come charging at me. Noticing the cottage door is wide open, I step closer and hear music coming from inside.

“Ethan?” I call again, but the music's too loud.

As soon as I round the doorway, I see him inside wearing tight jeans and a handyman’s belt. He’s shirtless, and sweat drips down his muscular back. Leaning against the doorway, I admire how fucking good he looks right now. It takes a moment for me to realize what he’s doing. All the furniture is gone, the walls have been repainted, and the carpet looks like it was steam-cleaned. That’s when I notice the little reading nook in the corner he’s currently hammering nails into.

What in the world is he doing?

The song playing through the speakers comes to an end, and that’s when I take my opportunity to let it be known I’m here.

“Knock, knock,” I say loud enough for him to hear.

He spins around, and when his eyes find mine, his lips transform into the biggest smile I’ve ever seen.

“Holy fuck,” he gasps, charging for me. Wrapping his arms around me, he pulls me up and presses a deep kiss against my lips. “What are you doing here already?”

I tighten my arms around his neck and press my mouth back on his. “I had to see you,” is all the explanation I give him.

“You came back to me.” He smiles, looking me over as if to make sure I’m really here.

I nod, tears stinging my eyes at the realization of how much I love this man.

“I couldn’t spend another day away from you,” I tell him, his arms holding me in place against his chest.

“Well, I wanted to surprise you, but…” He turns slightly, glancing around the room. “I’m building you your dream office space.”

“Wait, really?” I look around and am in awe at everything he’s doing. “I can’t believe you’d do that for me.”

“Are you kidding? This is where it all happened, baby. You touching yourself, fantasizing about me, and—”

“Oh my God, shut up!” I blush, laughing. “It is a dream though.” I look around again. “You even added shelves.”

“Of course!” He smiles. “I have it all designed. You’re going to love it.”

I kiss him—hard and without reservation.

“That’s the sweetest damn thing anyone’s ever done for me.”

“I’d do anything for you, Vada. Anything,” he whispers, pressing his forehead against mine.

“You’re too good to be true,” I tell him, meaning every word. “That’s why I had to come back.”

“What do you mean?”

“I had to tell you…” I pause briefly, getting ahold of my nerves.

“What?” He looks nervous for a split-second.

“I had to come tell you how in love with you I am, and that I’d be a fool to walk away from someone as amazing as you. I’m not running away from love this time. I want you—forever. I love you, Ethan Rochester.”

He plants his lips back on mine, taking steps until my back hits the wall and he pins me there with his hard body.

“Fuck, Vada…I don’t think those words have ever sounded so sweet till they came from your lips. I love you so goddamn much. You have no idea how happy you just made me.” He presses his mouth back down on mine before I can reply, which is totally okay with me because what came next didn’t need words.