Page 88 of Revival

“I feel like making it a surprise. It’s not far.”

I’m not lying. She barely has time to find a song on the radio before I’m pulling into the dark driveway of a modest rambler.

“Wait here.” I hop out of the cab and round the hood to open her door. Once she steps off the running board, I take her hand. If she can feel the sweat gathering in my palms, she doesn’t mention it.

She’s silent on the way to the front door. The scrape of the key in the lock announces our presence in the stillness. It’s almost like neither of us breathes until we cross over the threshold into the vacant house.

“Is this where you’re staying?”

“Yeah,” I answer nervously.

I stand in the entry and watch her absorb the space. If I know anything about Cortney, it’s that she’s soaking in every detail.

Everything is sterile as the owners were preparing to sell. The living room has a large bay window and the kitchen was recently refreshed with new white cabinetry and paint to go with the stainless steel. I agreed to replace the floors in exchange for a same-day move in, something the owners were thrilled about. It’s nothing special, but it’s a place to call home.

“For how long?”

“I’m not sure.”

“You don’t know how long your rental is?”

“I’m not… I mean, I’m renting, but it’s not short-term.”

The rent-to-own option was perfect for both me and the previous owner. I wanted something to show Cortney I’m serious about sticking around, but I couldn’t get a mortgage on such short notice.

Confusion clouds her features. “Then what is it?”

I scrub the back of my neck. “Permanent? I don’t know what else to call it.”

“Spencer. I need you to spell out for me what exactly it is you’re doing here.” Cortney’s breath hitches halfway through her sentence, but she powers on.

A hesitant step carries me farther away from the door. “I got off that plane and left you at the airport, and I thought it was what we both wanted. I waited for things to go back to normal, but nothing felt right. It wasn’t until I got your text that I realized I couldn’t walk away from you without seeing if we had something real happening here. Because I don’t know about you, but those two weeks felt fucking real to me. Felt like the realest thing I’ve felt in the last twenty years. Your voicemail just solidified that you felt the same.”

A red blush propels color into her cheeks. “It feels real to me too.”

“I tried not to. I really did. I was going to be strong and not fall for you, but fuck, Cortney. I loved you before I even knew the true meaning of the word. I needed you like I need the air to breathe.” I pause, my shoulders rising with heavy breaths. “I wanted you… in a way a kid like me never dared to want anything before in his life. Because I knew the second I latched onto that hope, it could be taken away from me.”

“But it wasn’t taken away from you. You left.”

I bite back the words on my tongue. “I know. And I regretted it every second of every day since.”

“That’s all true for me too. I don’t know what happens now, but I want to figure it out together.”

A breath of relief rushes from my lungs. “Then I don’t know what you’re doing all the way over there. Because if you don’t come over here in the next five seconds—”

I can’t even finish my sentence because the next second, she’s burrowing into my chest and yanking my mouth down to hers.

A deep groan breaks free when we resume what we started back at the shop. I yank my mouth away and rest my forehead against hers.

“I think I'm in love with you. I think I’ve been in love with you for the past twenty years.”

Cortney nods, craning her neck in order to reach my mouth. “I might still be in love with you too.”

“Shit,” I laugh, squeezing my eyes shut as I grip her against my body. Her proximity soothes the adrenaline firing through my veins.

“What?”

“Your brothers are going to kill me.”

---