Page 77 of Summer Escape
"I'll talk to her."
"I probably shouldn't have discussed it with her."
"She comes to you sometimes instead of me. There's nothing wrong with that. She feels comfortable with you."
I had a connection with his daughter. Was that a reason to stay? I needed something from Marshall. A sign that he wanted me here too.
"Kids are more perceptive than we give them credit for."
I wanted him to ask me to stay. Why was it coming from his daughter and not him? Did he not feel the same way?
"My parents are having us over for a going-away party."
"Is that a family thing?" I didn't want to intrude if it was just immediate family. I was his roommate and soon to be ex-fling.
"Mom invited you. You're leaving too." His face was slightly pinched.
"I am."
"So you'll come?" he asked, his voice vulnerable.
"Of course." I wouldn't miss a Kingston party. I would have preferred to spend time with him alone, but if this was all I could get, then I'd take it.
"In the morning, I have to take Hayden to her mother's. They have plans to go school shopping."
"I was going to leave in the morning too. I have a long drive and need to be in the office the next day."
He blew out a breath. "Our summer's over."
"It is."
It felt like there was more to say, but the silence threatened to swallow us whole.
Later that day, we drove to the Kingstons' home in silence. Hayden was listening to music and seemed to be introspective. She'd mentioned missing her friends here, and I was sure she felt melancholy about the prospect.
At the house, the party was already in full swing when we got there. There was a sign on the porch that read We'll Miss You.
My throat tightened. I didn't want to think about the fact that tomorrow I'd be leaving the island and all the people I'd become close to the last few months.
Inside, Elena pulled me over to the pool chairs where the women were hanging out. "What are your plans?"
"I leave tomorrow for Jacksonville," I said, feeling a bit like a broken record.
"What about Marshall?"
"It's time to get back to real life," I said stiffly, not quite believing our time was coming to an end. Last time, I held out hope we'd see each other again. We were still young with plenty of opportunities ahead of us. Now I didn't feel so confident. This felt like a permanent goodbye. We didn't fit into each other's lives, and I didn't see how that was fixable.
Elena's expression fell. "I thought for sure something was going on between you two."
I sighed. "What we had was a summer fling. I live in Jacksonville. He lives here. How would that work?"
Ivy rolled her eyes. "You act like it's the other side of the country, not northern Florida."
"It's a big state," I said, stating the obvious.
"What about dating long distance?" Daria asked.
"Don't you think we're too old for that? We lived together all summer. How do we take that across the state and make it work?" Especially with my trust issues. It wouldn't be fair to him.
