“This is Danni, Titch’s wife. Kaz, Spike’s girl, and Piper, D’s ol’ lady.”
After a round of hellos and hugs, we all head over to the table they vacated when we arrived.
“Right, drinks,” Zach says, rubbing his hands together. “Pint?” he asks Corey. “Wine, cocktail…?” he says, turning to me.
“Um … just an orange juice, please.”
Everyone’s silent for a beat. As far as I know, they have no idea about the baby, but it seems that’s all about to end.
“Hell, yes. She’s pregnant.” Another round of excitement ensues, and I can’t help but sit here and laugh as they all give us their congratulations.
I love LA. It’s my home, and it’s where all the memories of my family are, but after even being here for just a few hours, I already know that I could make this place home. From the second I stepped off the plane, I was just relaxed. I’m not sure if it’s just the company and I’d feel that way wherever I am in the world, as long as Corey is by my side, or if it’s the place.
I turn to look at him as he laughs with his friends. He must feel my stare, because he turns his eyes on me.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I say with a smile. “Everything is perfect.”
I have no idea if he’d ever want to move back, but I decide there and then that if he ever brought it up, there’s no way I’d stop him. I think we could be really happy here.
Our two weeksin Corey’s home city pass in the blink of an eye. We spend time with his family every day and meet up with his Rebel Ink family more often than not. I get a tour of the studio, which looks freakishly like the one I’m used to in LA. I even spend a day with Biff and her best friend Danni while the guys hang out. It’s incredible, but it reminds me of just how much I miss my own best friend. We’ve hardly been separated since I arrived at her home all those years ago. Whenever we’ve been on vacation, we’ve been together, so being so many miles apart is weird. We’ve spoken every day, but it’s not the same.
Tonight, Corey told me that he’s taking me out. And that’s all I know. It’s our last night in London, so I hope he’s got something good planned. I’ve still got a few things on my to-see list that we’re yet to tick off.
He’s told me to wear something comfortable, so I pull on a pair of leggings and an oversized T-shirt. I might have the smallest of small bumps, but I’m already struggling with proper pants.
After slipping my feet into a pair of sneakers, I go in search of my man.
I find him sitting in the living room with his mom and sisters.
“Here she is,” Helen announces, smiling at me as I join them.
“You ready to go?” Corey asks.
“Sure am.”
“We’ll see you before you go tomorrow, right?” Sadie asks.
“Of course. Our flight isn’t until five. We’ve got almost the whole day.”
“Good. I’m not bored of you yet.”
“Nice,” Corey jokes as he takes my hand.
“Have a great night,” Helen calls as he leads me out of the house.
Unbeknownst to me, there’s an Uber waiting outside. I climb in, sit back, and wait to see where we’re headed for the night.
“Are you looking forward to going home?” Corey asks me.
“Yes and no. I’m going to really miss your family, but I can’t wait to see Brooke and tell her everything. What about you? Ready to get back to the sun, ocean and sand?”
“Yeah. I love it here, but there’s too much pain.”
“You think you could ever move back?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know. I think we both know better than anyone that you can’t predict the future. I’ll just take things one day at a time.”