Page 112 of Beauty Beneath the Sorrow
Avery crinkles her nose. “She’s got a point.”
Lina blushes. “Fine.”
Bailey giggles in Lina’s direction before turning back to me. “I’m going to take my sister home, then I can stop by later if you need anything.”
“I will need a lot of things, trust me,” I say, licking my bottom lip.
“Oh my god.” Zoe rolls her eyes.
“That’s right,” Mason compliments, nodding his head.
“I’m friends with children. You’re all ridiculous, do you know that?”
A chuckle bubbles in my chest from Lina’s reaction. I needed that little bit of laughter.
As we all go our separate ways, I head toward the front office to take care of any loose ends before I leave. After signing a few last forms and thanking the staff for everything they did today, I’m on my way to my car.
And it’s done. My grandmother is with my grandfather, and the rest of the world will keep on going even though I’ve lost such a force in my life.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Lina
Itexted Carter earlier this evening to tell him that I left a key under the mat if he wanted to come over. I didn’t want to bother him by stopping by his place, especially after the day he’d had, but I also wanted him to know that I was here for him if he needed me.
It’s almost midnight, and I still haven’t heard from him. I peered at my phone on the nightstand about a dozen times, convincing myself to either call him or not.Give him space.I need a distraction. I think I should call the only person I know who will be up this time of the night, and she answers on the first ring.
“Hi, babe, you alright?” Piper’s voice is upbeat, sounding like she’s in the middle of tea on a Saturday afternoon. But it’s midnight.
“I knew you’d be up,” I joke, sitting against the backboard of my bed.
“Of course. You know how sleep eludes me,” she giggles. “Do you need to talk?”
“Yeah. Do you have a couple of minutes?”
“Always for you. Jack is asleep in the other room while I’m just sitting on the balcony staring at the stars.”
“My Piper Moon, you are so special,” I muse, tucking one arm underneath the other.
“Spill it, Lina. You didn’t call me to tell me how amazing I am.”
I sigh, thinking about how I want to word the emotions bouncing around inside my chest right now. But Piper doesn’t wait for me to explain.
“It’s about Carter, isn’t it?” she asks in an empathetic whisper. She knows the ache I feel all too well because this was her not too long ago.
“Yes.” I rub my eyes. “How do you know?”
“Everyone knows.” She pauses. “We probably knew before you did.”
“I think I’m developing feelings for him that are stronger than I’d like or that I’m comfortable with.”
“He’s a great guy …” she trails off.
“I should be dating someone my own age—or at least someone who was born in my decade.” I sit up straighter, pulling my knees to my chest. “And he’s my dad’s best friend.”
“I know, and those things make the situation more complicated.” She sighs. “It’s such a taboo thing for two people to date who have a large age gap between them. Why is that?”
“I guess, whatever reason, it annoyed me that both my parents are with partners who have significant age gaps between them.”
