Page 109 of Chasing After You
Mirabelle
I WAKE UP with a loud pounding in my head. I move slowly to pull the blankets tighter around myself.What the hell happened last night?
The pieces quickly come back to me: Quinn, the club, calling Henry, Henry carrying me in front of paparazzi, Henry telling me we’d talk tomorrow when I’m sober—which I guess would be today now—after I begged him to sleep in my bed.Awesome. Talk about a night of bad choices. I wouldn’t blame Henry if he wanted nothing to do with me after last night. I’m embarrassed because I think I proved everyone who had concerns about my age right, because I now look like the sad, drunk girl who didn’t get what she wanted and threw a fit.
I drag my hands over my face, tempted to smother myself with the pillow.
A creak in the floor catches my attention, and I sit up far too quickly for my head to handle the spinning. I fumble for the lamp next to me, the burst of light momentarily blinding me.
“Henry?” I ask, my head pounding.He stayed?“What are you doing?”
He sits on the edge of the bed next to me, a kind smile on his face. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. I have to go to the stadium, but I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye.” His hand unfolds to show me the piece of paper in his hand.
What?
My mouth feels like I’ve stuck a piece of cotton in it. “You stayed last night?” I ask, torturing myself because I shouldn’t be trying to convince myself Henry has feelings for me.
“Yeah. You asked,” he says as if it’s as simple as that.
Fuck, that makes me want to kiss him silly, but apparently I have a penchant for breaking my own heart. I laugh, closing my eyes as I flop back onto the pillows. “No, you can’t say things like that when it’s just us. It fucks with my head, and it’s not good for me.”
“Mira—”
“I’m sorry for throwing myself at you, and drunk calling you last night, but I’d like to be left alone right now.”
“I was happy it didn’t go well with Quinn last night. I know that makes me an asshole, but I’ve been trying to talk to you for two weeks now. So no, I’m not going to leave you alone, even if that’s selfish, because you’re clearly hungover. I’m going to take advantage of you not being able to run and hide,” Henry says, and I hold my breath, refusing to look at him. “I needed a minute to process everything, and you misunderstood what I meant when I said it wasn’t like that between us. I know you don’t want anything from me. I have never felt like you were with me because you would gain something from it. If anything, I’m the one gaining something, and I hate that because I don’t want you to ever feel like I’m using you.”
“Why didn’t you just say that?” I ask, slowly moving to sit against the headboard.
“Because I was still figuring everything out in my head that I already knew in my heart, as fucking cliché as it sounds. Mirabelle, I can’t give you an answer as to when my feelings for you changed, but I haven’t pretended anything with you for a while. I might have thought I was, but I wasn’t,” Henry says, and I think I’m having a stroke.
“But you told me you were helping me for the next man by using you to practice.”
He exhales, nodding. “I did say that, but I think I was lying to both of us. At the risk of being called a caveman again, I hate the idea of you being with anyone else. I was an ass yesterday, but I didn’t tell you about my feelings so you wouldn’t think I was only saying it because of Quinn. I was trying—and failing—to do the right thing.”
Oh.
Actually . . . that kind of makes sense. As irritating as it is, it does make sense.
“So what does this mean?” I ask, needing to hear Henry spell this out for me.
Henry’s lips curve upward at the corners. “I’d like to be your real boyfriend,mon cœur.I don’t want anything to be fake. Is that what you want?” he asks, nervousness slipping into his voice.
Oh my god. This is all I’ve ever wanted.
Not even the elephant stomping in my head could keep me from smiling. “I would love to be your real girlfriend, Henry.”
He stands up, leaning over to press a kiss to my forehead, and I almost pinch myself.Is this real, or am I still drunk?“I’m sorry, I wish I could stay, but I do have to go. Let me know if you need anything today, okay?”
“Thanks, Henry,” I say, mustering a smile, and he smooths my hair out of my face. Henry smiles at me again, and despite the fact my hangover is going to make today a day from hell, knowing I get to be one of the few people to see that smile makes me feel like I’m floating on cloud nine.
It’s only when I’m leaving for work that I realize Henry still managed to leave the note on my nightstand without my noticing.
Didn’t want to leave. Had to go to the stadium. Dinner tonight? —H
~
The only thing that got me through the shitshow that was today was knowing Henry wanted to have dinner tonight.
