Page 90 of Escape

“You’re right. I’m just being silly.”

“It’s not silly, honey. It’s real. Everything you’re feeling is normal, expected, and completely reasonable. I’d be more concerned if you didn’t have this lingering in the back of your mind at all. You’ll work through this, though. And the more you do it, the more confident you’ll feel. You just need to give it time.”

I nodded against his chest as his fingers continued to move slowly up and down my arm.

“I hope you know just how grateful I am to have you in my life,” I murmured.

“If it’s anything like I feel about having you in mine, then I might have a pretty good idea,” he returned.

Somehow, despite the lack of space between our bodies, I scooted closer to Huck. “You don’t mind if I spend the rest of the night in here with you, do you?”

“Can I be honest with you?”

“I’d expect nothing less, Huck.”

His hand that had been drifting over my arm slid down toward my hip. He gave me a squeeze there before he revealed, “I had wanted to ask you to spend the night in here with me when I was standing outside the guest room with you earlier.”

I knew he’d had some thoughts racing through his mind. “Why didn’t you?”

“I was worried about pushing you for too much too soon.”

“But you spent some nights in the guest room with me already,” I reasoned.

“Yeah, I did. But staying with you as a means to comfort you when you’ve had a nightmare and we’re merely good friends is different than sleeping in the same bed with you when I’ve asked you to join me because we’re more than that.”

I could kind of see his point.

There was no space for romantic tension when I was post nightmare and hadn’t ever kissed him. Now, things were different. And I had to take a step back to appreciate Huck’s willingness to forego satisfying his wants for what he thought would be best for me. It was nice of him to not put that pressure on me to begin with.

I’d been telling myself I wouldn’t be able to come out and ask him if we could spend the night in the same bed, but perhaps that was precisely what needed to happen. Huck had the foresight to evaluate the situation from a different perspective, and by not asking me, he was putting the ball in my court. It was just another way he was helping me to build my confidence and independence.

So, I thought it was important for me to be clear with him about where I stood. “So, it would be different because you’d want to spend more time kissing me, right?”

“Absolutely.”

“And would you want to hold me close all night, especially now that I don’t have that stupid sling on my arm?” I pressed.

“The idea of your body tucked tight to mine all night long drives me wild, Josie. So, yes, I would absolutely want to do that, too.”

I remained silent for a second as I took in those words. Huck had considered having my body tucked tight to his, and it drove him wild. Having that admission, I couldn’t stop the smile from forming on my face.

It hadn’t completely penetrated when I said, “It means everything to me that you’re willing to put my best interests before whatever you might want. I’ve never had that before. But all the same, I think you should know that there’s no place I’d rather be right now than wrapped up in your arms, feeling safe and being kissed.”

Now, it was Huck’s turn to remain silent. I worried that perhaps I’d said something wrong or taken it too far, but I couldn’t bring myself to retract any of what I’d said. I meant every word, and if part of this healing process was about me feeling safe to say whatever was on my mind, I needed to stand firm.

So, I waited.

And Huck gave me the best reward. “We’ll move your stuff from the guest room into my bedroom tomorrow.”

I went from smiling to donning a full-blown grin. Huck couldn’t see it, but it didn’t matter. I was happy, the happiest I’d ever been in my life, and just like I’d said to him at the arcade, he was going to make everything that happened in my life now better than I could have ever dreamed.

TWENTY-FOUR

Huck

“I’m a phone call and a few minutes away.”

Josie smiled, leaning her weight into me as my back was resting against the door of my truck. We were in the parking lot of Betty’s, and Josie was about to start her first shift back at work.