Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 86367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Kids run after each other, laughter all over the house. I spot Gabriella, who has a frown on her face. She spots me and rushes over at the same time I give her father a kiss on the cheek.
“I just texted you,” she hisses, and I laugh, pulling the phone out of my pocket.
“I didn’t know you two were coming,” Justin says from beside me, smiling at whoever is behind me.
But I stop midway because I hear it. The voice that is usually in my dreams or in the videos I took from the hot air balloon. “Figured why not.” I turn and look over my shoulder, and there he is, standing in the middle of everyone in dark blue jeans and a white T-shirt that I know feels like silk on my skin.
“Sorry, I just found out,” Gabriella apologizes from beside me, but I don’t know if I heard her or not over the ringing in my ears. He doesn’t know I’m here either as people approach him and hug him. The smile on his face is big, but his eyes are not as bright as when he used to smile at me. “Why don’t we just get out of here?” Gabriella whispers, but I’m stuck in this spot, my arm still halfway with my phone when he turns and our eyes meet.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
stone
I walk up the steps to the house just as the door closes. Christopher stops the door with his foot in front of me. “Whoa,” he calls, and the door is swung back open with Uncle Matthew standing there. The smile on his face fades just a touch. “Are we not invited?” Christopher asks with a chuckle.
“Of course you guys are invited,” he assures us. For the first time in my life, I see him flustered, which means he’s up to something or someone just told him a secret, and he’s doing his best to keep it. Until he sees Uncle Max. “I didn’t know you two were coming?”
“It was a last-minute decision,” Christopher replies, hugging him. “Besides, if I had to sit in this one’s house”—he points over at me as I walk up the steps to the front door—“one more minute and watch him watch the fucking trees grow, I was going to take a fork and stick it in my eyeball.”
“Hey,” I defend, “we worked out too.” Christopher glares at me before he walks into the house.
“Surprise,” I say softly, going in for a hug.
“Yeah, Stone—” he says, and I hold up my hand.
“I know, I know. I didn’t call you back.” I take a deep breath and run my hands through my hair before I put them in my back pockets. “It’s just.” I shrug, not wanting to bring Ryleigh up.
Fuck, for a whole month, I’ve been fighting with myself to call her or get on a flight and go to her. I can honestly say I’ve never been more devastated in my whole life. “In other news, I got the vacation plans.” I take one hand out and slap him on his arm. “Count me in.”
I turn to walk into the house when he calls my name again. “Stone.” I look over my shoulder at him. His eyes are worried, but I don’t have a chance to answer him before my mother is in front of me.
“This is a surprise,” she says, hugging my waist as I wrap my arm around her shoulders.
“Christopher made me come,” I admit before my aunt Zoe comes over to me, giving me a hug and a kiss. I smile at her. “Hey.” She reaches up to touch my cheek, and I make the mistake of looking up.
My eyes lock with the ones that have haunted my dreams for the past month. The eyes I search for every single night before I go to bed. The eyes I look for in crowds. The eyes that are the key to my soul. She stands there in as much shock as I’m in, her arm midair with her phone in it. I take her in. Her eyes look tired, and my fingers literally tingle to touch her face. Her mouth opens in an O as she stares at me. Gabriella is beside her saying something to her, but her eyes are on me. I spot her father and mother moving to stand beside her. Romeo stands behind them. The glare on his face is directed solely at me, and I have no problem with that. I also know that before the end of the day, we’ll have words. The room bursting with noise two seconds ago is now so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
“I think the food is ready,” My uncle Matthew’s voice booms out, and even he’s a little surprised with how loud he is. “Let’s go eat.” He nods to Tyler, who does a chin up to him before turning and taking Ryleigh away from me. He puts his arm around her shoulders as they make their way with everyone else toward the kitchen. My heart contracts in my chest as she gets farther and farther away from me. The talking slowly starts up again.