Page 107 of Until August

I don’t know what the universe was trying to tell us, but it felt like a sign. We were getting our second chance to live again. To move forward and find a way to be happy.

If not for fear of losing Sage, I’d say the universe had gotten it right for a change.

When I reached the service entrance, Nicola was outside, her face tipped up to the sun. No doubt she’d been waiting for me.

She smiled, and some of my sadness lifted just from her smile.

I’d just told Sage it wasn’t a beauty contest but fuck me, Nicola was beautiful.

She flattened her palms on my chest and smiled at me like I was something special.

“I have an idea.”

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer. Orange blossoms and sunshine. “What’s your idea, Honey Bun?”

She rolled her eyes at the nickname and looped her arms around my neck. “For the next six weeks, let’s have some fun. And before you know it, Sage will be back.”

But for how long?

There was no point in wallowing, though. It wouldn’t change the outcome of anything.

Maybe six weeks of fun with Nicola was exactly what I needed to keep my mind off the what-ifs.

“Fun, huh?” I could think of a few ways to have fun. But I knew at least five people were in the kitchen, so sex in her glass office was out.

My hands roamed down her back, and I palmed her ass. “What do you have in mind?”

“Since we have our Mondays free, let’s spend them together.”

“On my new mattress? I like the sound of that.”

She ignored my comment and headed for the door. As we walked down the hallway, Nicola made plans for our days off. “We can hit up different beaches. Go to the vineyards in Temecula. Check out some restaurants in the area. Or we can just chill out and relax and watch movies… we can do anything you want.” We stopped outside the locker room, and I searched her face while she talked. “We can do all the things you loved doing before. All the things you’ve missed over the past five years.”

I got the feeling she needed this just as much as I did. Maybe she was ready to start living again after putting her life on hold for two years.

But I also knew she was doing this for me, and it was so fucking thoughtful that I got choked up for a moment.

I shook it off, along with my fears of losing Sage.

“Let’s start Operation Fun right now.” I grabbed her hand, yanked her into the locker room, and slammed the door shut, nailing her to the wood with my body.

We couldn’t predict the future. Couldn’t even guarantee that there would be one.

All we ever had was this moment.

So I grabbed her face in my hands and kissed her like it was the end of the world, and we were the last two survivors, and she kissed me back like I was the air she needed to breathe.

Later that night, it occurred to me that for two people who were supposed to be sticking to the shallows, it sure as hell felt like we were diving right into the deep end.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-SEVEN

Nicola

On Monday morning,I showed up at August’s apartment with a box of sea salt.

We’d made plans to drive to Santa Ana for lunch. We were going to check out the street food at the different stalls in the market, then on to a craft brewery tour.

I was on a mission to pack in as much fun as possible, and luckily, my idea of fun was the same as his.