Page 6 of Make Me Swoon

“I’ll give you a ride,” I say even though it’s in the opposite direction from my place, and she smiles, grabbing her purse as we all stand.

“See you guys later!” I call as we watch Madelyn and Iris head across the parking lot to their cars.

They wave and I unlock my Jeep, climbing behind the wheel.

“Do you want to just crash at the Mystery Cabin too? We can share my bed,” Sutton offers as I yawn but I shake my head.

“No, I’d have to stop and grab clothes from my place for work tomorrow, so I’ll just head home. Thanks for offering though.”

“Plus, you’d miss out on your note if your car wasn’t parked outside of Prim + Proper,” she points out with a smirk and I roll my eyes as we start to head down Main Street.

I know that she’s right though. I live for these notes.

We pass by the Destiny Falls fire station and I see her look over, checking to make sure that Teller’s truck is there. I know that she still gets anxious for him to be a firefighter after his accident a few months ago when he hurt his arm fighting a house fire and I don’t blame her. It has to be nerve-racking waiting to see if he’s going to come home in one piece or not.

“Thanks for the ride,” Sutton says as I pull up in front of the Mystery Cabin.

“No problem. I’ll see you tomorrow,” I tell her as she hops out.

She waves as she heads up to the front door and I wait until she’s inside before I pull back out onto Main Street.

It’s late and the streets are deserted as I drive back downtown and pull into my usual parking spot outside of Prim + Proper. Hudson’s Range Rover is parked next to my Jeep in its usual spot and I can’t help but look into the front windows of the fancy restaurant to see if I can spot him as I hop out of my Jeep.

It’s just after ten-thirty, so the restaurant must have just closed and there are only a few lights on in the kitchen. I slow as I head past the window and look into the empty dining room, only to lock eyes with Hudson.

He’s standing over by the maître d stand, some papers clenched in his hands and he grins at me, a dimple popping out in his right cheek. His eyes do that sexy smolder thing and I can feel my inner thighs start to quiver.

I give him a little wave with my fingers and grin before I turn the corner of the building and head upstairs to my apartment. As I go, I can’t help but wonder what the note on my windshield will say tomorrow morning.

I head into my bedroom, digging in my jean pocket and pulling out the note that he left me this morning. I don’t know why, but I’ve never been able to force myself to throw them away. Instead, I’ve been keeping them in a box under my bed with the money that I’ve been saving up to pay him back.

I grab the shoebox now, opening the lid and dropping the latest piece of paper inside. The box is getting pretty full and I bite my lip, wondering what I’ll do with the notes when I leave town.

THREE

Hudson is just slipping the note under the windshield wiper of my Jeep the next day as I come downstairs to head to work.

“Listen, I’ve almost got your money, man,” I joke, and he freezes, looking up at me sharply.

If I didn’t know any better, I would swear that he almost looks sad to hear that, but that can’t be right.

“I’m not in any hurry. You don’t need to stress about it,” he says and I nod.

“Thanks, but Stan pays me well, actually. Besides, my landlord is really lenient on rent,” I tease him.

Hudson looks away from me and I study him. He’s wearing his usual attire. White button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled halfway up his forearms, a pair of dark blue jeans, and navy blue tennis shoes. Today there’s something different though. He looks tired. There are dark circles under his blue eyes, his mouth pulled down at the corners. Even his hair seems flatter, like he didn’t have time to style it.

I still look like a slacker compared to him in my old, ripped jeans, beat-up Converse, and Mystery Cabin employee shirt that is a size too big. I threw my hair up into a bun, but I can already tell that it’s starting to fall apart. Loose pale purple strands keep blowing in my face and brushing against the back of my neck.

“Late start today?” I ask him as I dig my keys out of my purse.

“Yeah, my alarm clock broke.”

“You still have an alarm clock? Like an actual alarm clock? You know your phone does that, right? It has one built in and everything.”

“Ha ha. I like my alarm clock more. I’m headed to grab another one this morning. Do you need anything from the store?”

“No, I’m going to go grocery shopping tonight after I get off work.”

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