Page 49 of Four Simple Rules
That’s the phrase running through my mind. I set myself up for heartbreak. But I don’t want to tell her that. Not here. Not now. She deserves all the happiness in the world, and if that’s not with me, then so be it.
“So, this is it,” I say, gesturing toward the main building. “My home away from home.”
“It looks nice,” she says, lighting up at the sight of the university. “How much time do you spend here? I’m always at work. Or was.” A hint of regret rests in her tone until she slumps in her seat. “Maybe too much.” She nibbles her lip.
“Same, Tulip. Sometimes it’s hard to balance work. Summer is my off time.”
“Do you live around here, then?” she asks, turning to look at me with curiosity.
“I was able to buy my first house two years ago.”
It’s nothing special—just a simple two-bedroom, maybe seven hundred square feet. But it’s mine. All mine. I no longer live in fear of my father walking through the door and berating me for missing a catch or whatever was up his ass. I no longer cower in the corner of the room, shaking like a leaf and begging for the torture to be over.
I’m free.
“That’s awesome,” she says, swallowing hard.
She’s put on a brave face all day after receiving the news about her job. She doesn’t want me to know she’s spiraling into the unknown. It’s in her body language and the way she speaks softly.
Blake always had a plan. Now her dream has gone kaput, and she doesn’t know how to move forward. Sure, she could move on to Boston without a problem. But it wasn’t a part of the plan she had constructed for herself.
“I have an apartment near campus, too,” she murmurs. “Crap on a cracker. I’m going to have to move out. I can’t afford to stay there. I…”
“Hey. One day at a time, okay?” I say, gently squeezing her should. “Look at me, Tulip.” Those hazel eyes slowly turn to mine when I cup the side of her face. “Everything will work out. You’ll find your place.”
Even if it’s in Boston, maybe I could transfer there. Contracts and job opportunities will go online soon for coaching positions. Perhaps it’s jumping the gun or moving too quickly with her, but I don’t want to waste another second when I know what I want. Her. Always her. I made mistakes in my past, letting her go so easily. Never again. I don’t care if we’ve only spent a few days together and she hasn’t fully forgiven me. Yet. I’m still working on proving to her daily that I’m sorry.
She nods. But I can tell by the look in her eyes that she’s not entirely convinced herself.
“You want to go for a stroll?” I ask, nodding out the window. “We’re close to downtown. There are shops and restaurants we can hit up. And on the way, I can take you by my domain.”
“That sounds good,” she says softly, with more emotion than before.
My heart aches at her sadness. If I could take it all away, I completely would. She’d no longer feel anything but happiness and have a smile on her face. Like the one she had last night when we finally rolled into bed after hours of making up for lost time. Even though we’ve jumped straight into the sexcapades, I know I still have a lot of work to earn her forgiveness.
I grin, jump out of my truck, and shut the door behind me. Blake stares into space until I open the passenger’s side door and offer her my hand.
“Let’s go explore.” I grin more when she doesn’t hesitate to take my hand and carefully slides from her seat. Blake doesn’t move her hand from mine as we stroll down the sidewalk in front of the university's main building, housing the offices. “That’s where I work right up there. I’d take you up, but they’re cleaning the buildings during summer.” I point toward the top right window where my office sits, overlooking the vast courtyard decorated with bright flowers and bushes.
Blake takes it all in as I point out different areas around campus. Every step we take is a step closer to normalcy for her. Her shoulders relax, and her chin rises. It reminds me of the times I watched in her class whenever she took a quiz. School was a breeze for her. I guess that’s why she could graduate early. Something I didn’t realize until it was too late.
After touring the campus for ninety minutes, we head over for lunch at an outdoor cafe with soup, sandwiches, and salads.
“This was such a nice tour, Jesse. I really enjoyed today. Thanks for taking my mind off everything,” she says with a lighter look sparkling in her eyes. No more shadows weighing her down.
“You’re welcome, Tulip. Always here to take your mind off things.” I wink. A familiar lightness takes me over, puffing out my chest at the sight of her happiness. I did that. I helped make things easier for her and brought her a sense of joy. If only for a day, at least. That’s all I can do.
“So, what did you end up majoring in while you were here?” she asks, sipping her coffee as we wait for our food to come out.
“Eh,” I grumble, rubbing the back of my neck. “I have my bachelor’s in business. Sometimes I help in that department, too. But I really enjoy being out on the field. Baseball was always my dream to play, but coaching is an even better experience. How about you, Tulip? I’ve heard some things here and there from your father.”
She blushes slightly, setting her steaming mug down. “I went to ISU in Illinois. It was pretty amazing. During the summers, I’d stay with my aunt a town over and work at a small flower shop that was an internship. So, I got some experience in a greenhouse. And then, after I graduated, I started at a place in St. Louis. Eventually, I moved back here when Western California University hired me, and I took the second lead in the greenhouse. Students came in and helped with research projects. It was a lot of fun…” she trails off, swallowing hard. “And now, it’s over. I knew they were considering cutbacks, but I never thought it would affect our department so hard.” Her eyes drop to the table as her finger traces patterns along the top.
“Sounds like we both went down the paths we had always talked about,” I murmur, reaching across the table to take her hand in mine, gently squeezing her with reassurance.
“We did, didn’t we?” she muses with a soft smile.
“Some chapters close quicker than others. You’ll figure it out.” I gently squeeze her hand. “Have you heard from Boston?”
