Page 98 of Come Take Me Now

“You lost me twice?”

“Yeah, because I fumbled the first time we met. Not as hard as Robby did with Appa, though,” I add with a laugh.

“You know, she told me some crazy shit about Robby.”

I chuckle under my breath. “Yeah, you thought I was bad.” I’m not sure how much she knows, but I know all about Robby’s weird break-in and fuck Appa deal they had at first.

Big fucking yikes.

How is he not in jail? I laugh lightly to myself.

Because Appa is just as fucking nuts under that sunny personality of hers.

Tilly and I are different. We both have a whole hell of a lot of childhood trauma to work through and could use therapy. Couples therapy wouldn’t hurt either. In the first half of our relationship, I gripped too hard, but I’ll forever be in her debt for seeing through me.

“For what it’s worth, I don’t mind you knowing my location. Especially if I’m living at the opposite end of the state. Just ask,” Tilly says.

I take a step closer to her. “You changed your tune fast.”

“Because you’re the big one.” I can’t help but laugh at the sentiment. I put my hand on her hip over the robe’s fluffy material.

“You love my big one,” I joke.

“Not like that. Like you’re my big love, like Mr. Big was in Sex and the City.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose with my other hand. “Doesn’t he die on a fucking treadmill or something?”

“Yeah, but you know what I mean.”

I laugh again. “I need to flip the pork.” I drop my hand from her hip and grab the tongs from the counter. I step outside onto the brick back patio while Tilly stands in the doorway, shielding the sun from her eyes.

“I want your location, too. If you’re tracking me, I want to track you,” she says confidently.

“That’s only fair,” I reply. She steps backward as I head back inside. “I never said sorry for that.”

She loosens the towel from her hair, releasing her damp, wavy hair. Then her fingers fiddle with the tie of her robe, loosening it. “I know.”

“I’m so fucking sorry for it all.”

I grip her neck and lean down. Her face relaxes, and I see the girl I first met at the vineyard. Lost and scared, but magnetized and comfortable in my presence. I brush my lips over hers. Her robe parts, and she melts into me.

“I’m just glad you’re clean now,” Tilly whispers.

“That reminds me—you never told me the code to my safe.”

She giggles against my lips. “It’s the last four digits of your number, E.” I want to facepalm. I tried her birthday, her birth year, the day we met… Nothing cracked it. “You probably remember this, but when we first met, you asked if I knew any phone numbers off the top of my head. I didn’t, but I know yours now.”

My fingertips graze the side of her neck. “How could I forget? It was the afternoon I fell in love with you. As soon as you got out of your car, I knew you were the one I was waiting for.” I brush my lips over hers. “Phone numbers can change. I’ll make the code the day I met you.”

“You still love me? After I ended it?”

“You broke me, but you’ve healed me, too.”

She trails her hand down my arm as she steps back and runs her thumb over the blank spot on my left ring finger. “We have to stop hurting each other.”

“Deal,” I say.

Tilly drops her hand from mine and lets the robe fall to join the damp towel. She turns to leave the kitchen but twists her neck to glance at me over her shoulder. Her pouty lips curve into a knowing smile when I meet those unforgettable hazel eyes.