My stomach swirled with excitement just thinking about him.
I hadn’t been with him long, but I already knew him better than I’d ever known Shaun. And it felt as if he’d already become a part of me, like... I don’t even know. I had no idea how to explain it. I just…my entire way of thinking had changed since meeting him. He made me view life and myself in an entirely new way.
Heck, I’d caught myself earlier deliberating what I was going to do when I graduated, and it no longer involved immediately leaving Ellamore to find a job, make a success of myself and show the world I was worth something. Now I kind of wanted to hang around and see if I could find something nearby because this was where Colton was. I was happy and content with him and didn’t care so much if I showed the world anything spectacular. I liked being happy and content better.
It kind of scared me how quickly all this had come about, and yet it also settled something in me. It felt as if I’d finally found my home.
Missing him, I grabbed my phone and scrolled up through our text message history, grinning fondly over his wit and playfulness. When I came to the line that said, “I love you too,” I paused, my chest full and heavy with joy.
I hadn’t seen him yet since we’d exchanged those words, and suddenly that seemed wrong.
Before I even realized what I was doing, I typed:
And then I pressed send before rethinking my decision, though I immediately bit my lip afterward, feeling awful for bothering him at nearly three in the morning. Maybe it wouldn’t wake him, and he wouldn’t see it until sometime midmorning tomorrow. That would be fine.
But then my phone buzzed back and his reply lit up my screen.
And my heart leaped with a little thrill of excitement. He was coming over! I flew out of bed and hurried around the apartment, turning off most of the lights so it wouldn’t look as if I’d been scared out of my mind only minutes earlier.
When the knock came at my door, I yanked it open without even checking the peephole. I had a split-second pause, hoping it wasn’t Shaun before I opened it further and saw Colton yawning and scratching the side of his hair. The bruise around his eye from the night before looked bright purple and only added to his exhausted appearance.
“Colton,” I scolded. “You look beat, dammit. You didn’t have to get out of bed and come all the way over here. Why didn’t you just tell me no?”
“Because you’ve never asked me to come over in the middle of the night before.” He stepped inside, pulling me into a hug, before tugging me back and examining my face. “What’s going on?”
“I…” I opened my mouth to tell him everything, but then I paused. I didn’t want to worry him over Shaun, so I said, “I just wanted to be with you.” Which was also the truth.
His face relaxed with pleasure. “Then that’s what I’m here for.”
I took his hand and led him toward the hall. “So what did you do tonight? Work on more Vines?”
“Nah.” He rested his head on my shoulder as we approached my room. “Aspen had a good night, so I babysat while she and Noel went out for the evening. You smell really good. Like my Julianna.”
I smiled and ruffled his hair. He didn’t smell so bad himself. He smelled like my Colton. I tugged him into my room. “Thank goodness it was a good night for her. Do you think it’ll stick?”
“I do. When she got back, she spent time with both Beau and Lucy Olivia. Noel wouldn’t stop grinning. It was nice. And she and Caroline are going shopping in the morning with the kids.” He let go of my hand and went straight to my bed, flopping down face-first before he groaned in ecstasy. “Oh my God, has your bed always been this soft and comfortable?”
I grinned and sat next to his hip so I could smooth my hand up his leg. “Nope. I softened the mattress earlier today, just for you.”
Colton rolled onto his side to send me a haughty glance. “You’re being a smart-ass...at three in the morning.” He took my hand as his lips tipped into a grin. “That settles it; you’re definitely my soul mate.”
I glowed—freaking glowed—with giddiness. “You said it first,” I taunted.
He lifted a finger. “Uh…no. I believe that was you. You’re the one who gushed on and on over the phone about how much you loved me.”
I arched an eyebrow, ready to argue that one careless little declaration wasn’t even close to a gush. But then I came up with a totally different track that would catch him completely off guard. I tapped my chin thoughtfully. “Hmm, that’s true. I did say it first. That must mean I’m the smarter of us then for figuring it out before you did.”
His mouth opened and eyes flared, but he couldn’t seem to come up with a good argument for that. Finally, he sat up and retorted, “Well, I love you more.”