“Let’s start now,” he said to me, pulling me into the spray.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, letting him pull the ponytail out.

  “I loved the beginning, honey,” he said, running his fingers through my hair. “But when we look back, I’d rather remember this. The feel of you here, happy and calm. Not the shit last night or even the last couple of months that I barely saw you even though we’ve been livin’ in the same house.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” I replied, turning to face him. “I don’t think I want to forget any of it.”

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “If we skip to now, we’d have to skip all those nights we stayed up late talking,” I whispered, kissing the center of his chest. “And the crazy good sex we had in your bed—”

  “And in yours,” he said through a grin.

  “That one, too,” I agreed. Thinking about my bed made me think about how Tabitha had been in my room, and that led to the look on her face when she’d walked in with Bishop the night before. I pushed it all away.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, leaning down to kiss me softly. “Fuck.”

  “Stop saying it,” I replied, reaching up to tug his hair. “I know you are.”

  “I wouldn’t hurt you for the world,” he said, his brows still drawn in contrition. “You know that, right?”

  “It’s over,” I acknowledged.

  “You know I wouldn’t hurt you?”

  “I know it wasn’t your intention.”

  “I won’t hurt you again.”

  “You can’t promise that,” I responded, smiling at him.

  “I sure as fuck can,” he argued.

  “Fine,” I conceded. “You will never hurt me ever.”

  “Now you’re just bein’ sarcastic,” he muttered, leaning over so the spray of the shower hit me directly in the face.

  “Hey!” I sputtered, ducking away.

  The rest of the shower was quick as we soaped up and took turns rinsing off. Our shower really wasn’t meant for two—was there such a thing? But we made it work. I don’t think either of us was willing to let the other out of our sight. We didn’t bother grabbing anything to sleep in, and without any discussion, Bishop led me into his room.

  I crawled beneath the covers as Bishop pulled the blinds closed and turned off the light. Once we were cocooned in the darkness he turned to me.

  “This is where I’ve wanted to be since I met you,” he said, pulling me into the curve of his body. “Can’t explain it.” He paused for a moment. “Just spent the day helpin’ you with your dream and now I get to fall asleep next to you.”

  “Naked,” I whispered back.

  “Naked’s a bonus,” he said, kissing my bare shoulder. “Sleep, honey. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

  Epilogue

  Charlie

  “Wake up,” a quiet voice murmured in my ear, pausing to bite it gently.

  “Beauregard Augustus Bishop,” I groaned, swatting at the air. “Leave me alone.”

  “Nope,” he said, pulling the quilt and top sheet all the way off the bed. “Up.”

  “You are the worst,” I mumbled, curling into a ball. Sleeping naked had not been my brightest idea.

  “Honey, I gotta get to work.”

  “So, go,” I muttered. “Bye.”

  “Charlie,” Bishop snapped, not unkindly. “Please get up and get dressed.”

  “Why?” I whined, sitting up in bed.

  “Because I wanna take you somewhere before I go to work.”

  “It’s the butt crack of dawn,” I bitched, climbing out of bed. “This can’t wait until after work?”

  “No, it can’t,” he replied, tapping me lightly on the ass. “Get ready. I’ll meet you downstairs.”

  I hurried through my morning routine, slapping on a little makeup and throwing my rat’s nest of hair into a high bun. Sleeping on wet hair had also been an epically bad decision. By the time I got downstairs, Bishop was waiting for me at the door.

  “Beautiful,” he said, grinning as I tiredly flipped him off.

  I followed him to the truck and climbed inside, only half curious about where we were going. I’d trained myself to wake up early after years of taking the morning shift, but that only worked if I was expecting to get up early. If I’d been planning on sleeping in—which I had—then waking up fully was a challenge.

  “Thank you for comin’ with me,” he said as we drove. “I wanted to see you this morning before I left.”

  “A little morning nookie would’ve been better,” I said, leaning back against the seat as I turned my head to look at him.

  The morning sun was coming through the window, outlining his face in a light so bright I had to squint, and I almost laughed at how angelic he looked. Not like one of those chubby baby angels, but like one of the avenging ones, all chiseled lines and strong bones.

  “I’ll be sure to wake you up for that tomorrow,” he said, reaching over to squeeze my thigh. “How’s the leg?”

  “You’ve seen it,” I replied, reaching down to run my finger along the scar beneath my jeans. “It’s pretty gnarly looking.”

  “I heard you tell Kara that it was infected,” he said quietly. “I wanted to ask you about it, but—” He shrugged. “Wasn’t my place.”

  “It’s all healed now,” I assured him.

  “Good,” he said, shooting me a smile. “I worried a bit.”

  “No,” I gasped theatrically. “You?”

  We pulled onto the freeway, and I looked around in confusion. I had absolutely no idea where he was going, and I opened my mouth to ask when he pulled off at the next exit.

  “Bishop,” I said, realization dawning.

  “This’ll only take a minute,” he replied.

  I sat like a statue as we pulled into the line at Morning, Joe.

  “Smile, honey,” he said, lacing his fingers through mine as he pulled up to the window.

  I wish I would’ve been prepared. If I’d known what was happening beforehand, I would’ve pulled out my phone and taken a picture.

  The look on Tabitha’s face was one of the best things I’d ever seen.

  Bishop was all business as he ordered our coffees, somehow remembering exactly what I preferred. He waited, glancing over at me to smile while she prepared the drinks. Then, he took them from her hands politely and handed her a twenty.

  We waited as she made change, but as she tried to hand it back, Bishop shook his head.

  “Keep the change,” he said easily, handing her the photo she’d left in my house. “Just wanted to give this back to you.”

  Tabitha gaped at us like a goldfish as she struggled to think of something to say.

  “I doubt I’ll see you around,” Bishop said, putting the truck in gear. It was somehow both a promise and a threat. He pulled away before she’d uttered a word.

  I lifted the coffee to my mouth as I savored the memory of Tabitha’s face.

  “Don’t drink that,” Bishop snapped, taking the hot coffee out of my hand. “Jesus, she probably spit in it.”

  “Oh, god, you’re right,” I said, wiping the back of my hand against my mouth, even though I hadn’t even touched my lips before he’d taken it.

  I started to laugh as he turned into a gas station and immediately threw the coffees into the trash can outside.

  I was still laughing as he opened up my door and leaned inside the cab.

  “I bet she won’t fuck with you again,” he said, grinning as I giggled.

  “And you didn’t even get arrested,” I said, wrapping my arms around his neck. “My hero.”

  “Love you, honey,” he said sweetly, leaning in to kiss the smile off my lips.

  “I love you, too,” I murmured. “This was totally worth getting up early.”

  “Tomorrow will be better,” he said against my lips.

  “Can’t wait,” I whispered back.

  Acknowledgements

  To the bloggers and readers – thank you for continuing to read about this little world I’ve created. This has been such a wild ride! Cheers to another nine years.

  Mom and Dad – Thanks for listening to me complain. Love you guys.

  My kiddos – I love you! Thank you for taking care of each other while I wrote this story. I could have never finished it without your help.

  My fella – you make me crazy and happy in equal measure. Love you.

  Ellie-dude. Thank you so much for squeezing me into your editing schedule when I texted you in a panic. I hope your poltergeist stops messing with your electronics – for both our sakes.

  Toni – Peas and Carrots, dude. Always.

  Letitia – nailed it again. Thanks for finding my perfect Charlie and putting her on a beautiful cover.

  Michelle, Pam and Beatrice – You guys are the best reader group admins, beta readers, and friends a girl could ask for. I’m so thankful for you.

  Amber, Melissa, and Ashley – you’ve always got my back, reading the minute I send you the book before anyone else has seen it. I’m not sure what I’d do without you.

  Donna – here’s another acknowledgement for the chance you took on a brand new writer and the difference you made in my career. Nine years later and I’m still as thankful as the day you agreed to read Craving Constellations.

 

 

  Nicole Jacquelyn, Craving Charlotte: The Aces' Sons

 

 

  Thank you for reading books on GrayCity.Net
Share this book with friends