Page 104 of When Sky Breaks
He kisses my forehead and disappears down the hall to his room and I take the moment to text Foster and Trek anyway to ease my mind.
Group chat: Berry Trio
Me
I’ll be home as soon as I can, gonna wait til the rain stops.
Foster
Okay, good idea, baby girl. ??
Trek
That’s just code for wanting to stay at loverboy’s house.
Me
It’s an entirely logical excuse. It’s pouring out.
Trek
Still an excuse. No worries, sis. Dad and I don’t need you anyway. I decided to stay home tonight. We got it all covered here at the Berry house. Game’s on tonight, beer (for me) in the fridge, and pizza on the way. Hell, why don’t you just move into August’s, I’m sure there’s room. ?? ??
Foster
What he said. ??
Me
You two are the worst. I’ll see you guys later. Be good. ??
Trek
If we’re not, I’ll be sure to tell you about it. ??
Foster
Have fun, sweetie. (We won’t get into too much trouble, I promise.)
I grin to myself. They’re bad influences on me, too. They’re supposed to need me and beg me to come home but no, they’re capable all on their own and didn’t hesitate to tell me that.
August returns but not empty-handed. There’s a book in one hand and what looks like an e-reader in another.
“You read my mind, sir.”
“Reading on a rainy afternoon? It’s the best way to do it.” He flops on the couch and pats the space next to him. “Come here.”
I settle down, and he hands me the book. “I managed to find a real bookmark for you instead of toilet paper. Really, Shortcake? Is dog-earing pages honestly that terrible?”
I swat him with the book. “Hey, it’s like three-ply. Definitely sturdy. But folding the pages? No way. Bad form.” I snuggle into his side. “What are you going to read?”
He bops me gently on the nose with his e-reader. “Same as you. I downloaded the e-book. I caught up to where you stopped the last time you were over.”
God, he’s so freaking sweet. This grown-up version of August is made entirely of my dreams. I expected a harder copy, a man still living in the past, but it seems my forgiveness has softened any rough edges that might have been left.
“Hope those eyeballs of yours are ready. I read fast,” I say.
“I’ll never back down from a challenge.”