Page 75 of Only Fate

We spend the next ten minutes in silence.

“Do you want me to read to you?” I ask when he grows fidgety.

In college, when he couldn’t sleep, he’d ask me to read to him either in the car or over the phone. He never cared what I read. Hearing my voice relaxed him.

He squeezes my knee. “I’d love for you to read to me, Essie.”

I raise my head, take my phone from my bag, and choose one of his favorites. He wraps his arm around my shoulders, drawing me closer, and we make ourselves comfortable as I read.

This is us.

Because it doesn’t matter where we are or what we’re doing, we’ve always been the other’s comfort.

Sometime during my reading, we fell asleep.

Foster knocking and entering the room wakes us. “The surgery went well. Tucker did great, but he’s groggy from the anesthesia. I’d like to keep him here for the night to monitor him.”

Adrian stands. “Thank you, Foster.”

“Would you like to see him before you leave?” Foster gestures toward the doorway.

“I’d love that.”

Adrian offers me his hand and helps me to my feet. Our hands stay clasped as we follow Foster out of the room to the surgical recovery area.

“Hey there, buddy,” Adrian says in a whisper, as if he doesn’t want to wake Tucker. “You’re having a sleepover with Foster tonight, and then you’ll come home tomorrow, okay?”

I run my fingers through Tucker’s thick fur, careful to avoid his stitches.

Adrian lowers his head to kiss Tucker’s head before stepping away to thank Foster again.

They shake hands, and then Foster hugs me.

The sky is black when we walk outside to my car.

“I’m sorry I kept you out so late,” Adrian says.

“Don’t you dare apologize.” I snuggle into his side. “I offered because I wanted to stay.”

He helps me into my car.

“Do you want me to take you home?” I ask when he’s inside.

He rubs his tired eyes. “I’ve never gone home to an empty house without Tucker before.”

“Do you want to come to mine, then?”

25

Essie’s invite reminds me of the first time I visited her in college.

She doesn’t know how much this means to me.

I want to wrap her in my arms and never let her go.

The music plays low on the drive to her place. Two other cars are in the driveway as she parks. Her heels click against the concrete as I follow her to the cottage.

“Would you like something to drink?” she asks when we’re inside. “Water? Tea?”

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