Page 51 of Under the Texas Sky
Go to Trent’s and profess my undying love for him.
Live happily ever after with Willow living in a she-shed in our backyard.
Sounds easy enough.
CHAPTER 44
KIAN
I make sure the hotel door shuts securely behind me, leaving my bag of belongings and my camera in the care of the room and hoping that it doesn’t get stolen. I double check the door, and then check my bag to make sure I’ve grabbed everything I might need.
I have everything. The door is securely shut and locked, and there’s nothing else for me to do. Taking a deep breath, I walk away from the door, down the hallway to the elevator. It’s fine. I can do this. I’m a grown ass adult who doesn’t need to please every single person, as long as I’m happy, that’s all that should matter.
Ha.
I step foot outside the hotel, double checking both ways before I cross the road, counting each step slowly. I’m stalling. Because I’m scared. But I didn’t want to call and alert them that I was coming. What if they were excited, and then I ended up being a chicken shit and not showing up? Or on the other end of the spectrum, what if they weren’t excited and told me they didn’t want to see me? Either option is valid, especially with how Trent and I left off yesterday.
Whatever, it’s Mitch. Mitch loves me. Not as much as Trent, but I know he cares for me in his own way, and it’s unfair for me to compare the love he gives us. Mitch was the one personwe needed most in our lives, and I’m just being selfish trying to make it about me.
It’s about a mile walk from the hotel to Mitch’s, and I know the way by heart, so I don’t need to use Maps. I can keep my focus on all that I’ve missed while I’ve been gone.
Downtown has changed a lot. There are two new boutiques, an office space for lease that used to be the office I worked in, and a new bookstore.
Hmm.. Maybe I should go into the bookstore. I might find something of interest.
Yes, I’m still stalling, but if I happen to find something mildly entertaining in here, then it’ll be worth it.
I open the door, and a light tinkle of an alarm goes off, letting the person working know that someone has entered.
“Hi! Welcome to New Beginnings! Do you need help finding anything?” a deep voice asks me from somewhere, but I don’t see them.
It feels weird to talk without eye contact, but I respond anyway. “I’m just looking, thank you.”
“If you need anything, just holler!”
I have to hold in my snort, because does this man expect me to yell in a bookstore? I’m pretty sure I would be kicked out of other places for that kind of behavior, but I guess it’s a good thing this is an independently owned bookstore. Anything goes.
It’s well organized, each section being clearly labeled with the genre, and the books are on sturdy, handmade wooden shelves. It gives it a rustic, homey feeling. I should be curled up on a couch, in front of a fireplace, with a cup of hot chocolate and a book. Maybe they do book clubs here. That could be fun.
Thriller, non-fiction, fiction, YA. There’s something for everyone. I’m sure my jaw is on the floor when I round the corner, because on one of the fancy shelves, from floor to ceiling, is an LGBTQIA+ section. I trace my fingers across the spines, taking in this moment. It feels like I’m truly being seen for the first time. I squat down and start pulling every book off the shelf one at a time, trying to find just one. Just one. I haven’t read a book in so long, and I’m not sure how I’m going to feel while I’m reading it, but I don’t care.
I need to support this small business that supports me, even in a roundabout way, by carrying a book with gay main characters.
A black cover with a model with slicked back hair on the front catches my eye. K-pop and rockstar romance? Two of my favorite things. K-pop and gay romance? Sign me the heck up. I place it off to the side and keep thumbing through books.
I’m on the second shelf from the top, my pile of books has grown from one to five, and I need to stop. But I have to look at every book. I don’t want to miss out on one good one just because I’m impatient.
The sun has set outside, and I realize I’ve spent way longer here than I originally planned. I guess that’s one way to stall.
