I call her immediately.
“Hello?” Her voice is soft when she answers and there is noise in the background. Is she at the beach?
“I’m sorry I couldn’t answer, Gin. I’ve been shooting all day and didn’t even know my phone was dead.”
“That's okay,” She says. “Did you read my text?”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry, Derek. I didn’t kiss him. I know the pictures look bad but I swear it wasn’t like that.”
Her voice is soothing and I feel my shoulders relax. I believe her without a shadow of a doubt. My Gin is not a liar. “It’s okay, Gin. I trust you.”
“You do?”
“Yes, why do you sound so surprised?”
“I don’t know…”
I press the phone closer to my ear. “Are you at the beach?”
“I am,” she says.
I frown worriedly. “Alone? Isn’t it late?”
“I couldn’t sleep. Don’t worry, I’ve done this a lot and haven’t been killed.” She jokes.
I sigh and lay down on the bed. I stare up at the ceiling. “I wish I was there with you.”
“Me too.” She pauses. “This trip has turned into a nightmare.”
I frown. “Why do you say that? Are you alright?”
“I’m fine. It’s just—this thing with Kevin really killed my mood.”
“It killed mine too,” I say and I grin when she laughs. “Would it be completely weird if I were to show up?” I ask her after a moment.
I wanted to call her yesterday and ask her but I ended up chickening out. I’m afraid she’ll tell me not to go.
“Here?” She asks, sounding surprised.
“Yes,” I say. “We’ll be done by tomorrow night. I can be there Saturday morning.”
She doesn’t say anything for a moment and her silence makes me nervous. I know it could be weird. It would be inevitable to meet her parents.
“Gin?” I finally ask.
“Sorry,” She says. “I’m just surprised. Are you sure you want to meet my parents?”
I grin. “I would love to meet your parents, Gin. Parents love me.”
This makes her laugh and it feels like a prize.
“I’d love for you to come,” She finally says.
Another prize. I’m on a roll.
“I’ll be there Saturday morning.”
“Okay.”
I grin. “Hey, Gin?”
“Yeah?”
“I can’t wait to see you.”
“Oh, Derek,” She says and I can almost see her smile. “I can’t wait to see you either.”
37. be cool
SAVANNAH
Twenty-four hours.
Just twenty-four hours until I see him.
I wake up Friday morning with those thoughts in my head. I need this day to be over already. I don’t care how desperate I seem. I miss him terribly. It’s not normal, but I miss him too much to care.
I spent a good portion of the night thinking about everything that happened with Kevin and my mom’s confession about the money. Did I overreact? Is my mom right? Is it all going to be alright? I know Kevin isn’t a bad person. It’s possible he let them borrow the money out of the goodness of his heart. Maybe he doesn’t want anything in return other than the money back?
I feel some remorse this morning in how I reacted, especially after remembering my mom’s face. I know she felt bad and I made her feel even worse. It’s just—why did it have to be Kevin? I hate that we owe him money now, but I’m going to work hard to help my parents pay him back as soon as possible. Natalie told me that they’ll be starting the remodel soon and they already have everything planned so they can’t just give him the money back.
I know my parents are optimistic and the inn could use a few more rooms. We run out of them quickly during the peak season. I can only hope it all works out for everyone.
I reach for my phone and smile when I see a text from Derek about thirty minutes ago.
good morning , Gin. Just a reminder that I’ll be there tomorrow
I laugh and shake my head. As if I could forget. I’ll be counting down the hours and minutes until he’s here.
good morning, thanks for the reminder. I can’t wait :)
I put my phone down and head to the bathroom.
I need this day to go by quickly and the best way to do that is by staying busy. Thankfully, my mom always needs help around the inn. So I get dressed for the day and make my way out of the room. I find her in the kitchen, cooking breakfast.
“Hey mom,” I say walking to the sink. I wash my hands. “How can I help?”
She turns to look at me from the stove. “Good morning, sweetie. Chop those potatoes for me, will you?”
Gladly.
I spend the morning helping her with breakfast and then serving it to the guests. I help her with the guests checking in and out. I do the laundry and clean the rooms in the afternoon. Thanks to the inn, I’ve mastered making beds. Cleaning the restrooms are not my favorite thing but I do it because someone has to. There are worse things than cleaning toilets.
Natalie comes by in the afternoon as I’m making lunch. I told Mom I could do it, so she could have some time to rest but she ends up cleaning the pantry anyway.
“So,” I say turning to face them as the food cooks on the stove. “Derek is coming tomorrow.”
Natalie’s eyes widen in surprise. “Really? I thought he was in LA.”
“He is.” I pause. “But he’ll be done by today and asked if it was okay if he comes.” I look at Mom while saying this.
She nods. “Of course, sweetie. We’re all eager to meet him.”
I smile. “Thank you.”
“Josh will be off tomorrow. Maybe we can do a double date in the evening?” Natalie asks excitedly.
I nod with a smile. “Sure, that’ll be fun.”
She claps her hands together. “Did you hear that, Samuel?” She asks. Samuel has his little head on her shoulder, looking ready for a nap. “We’re going to meet a famous celebrity!”
I roll my eyes at her. “Be cool.”
She laughs and me and Mom join her.
I spend the rest of the day helping around the inn and hanging out with Natalie and the baby. I realize that I’ll be leaving on Sunday and I start to feel a little sad. Then I remember the fifty thousand dollars my parents owe Kevin and the sadness goes away.
I take a long bath that night. I have music playing in the background. The bathroom is dark, except for the candle lights I have on. I missed this bathroom. It’s so much bigger and I can actually take a bath and relax. I don’t even have a bathtub in the bathroom back in New York. Derek’s bathroom is also dreamy but I haven’t taken a bath there. Just showers. Maybe I’ll ask him if I can the next time I’m there.
Of course I would bring him back into my thoughts.
I haven’t been on social media all day because I know there’s pictures of me and Kevin everywhere. Once again, I have people talking about how I’m cheating on Derek. I was so relieved that he didn’t get angry at me. He believed me and that means more than I can express.
After my bath, I change into my pajamas then get in bed and try to sleep. It’s past three in the morning before I can find it, but I fall asleep quickly and deeply.
◆◆◆
The next morning, after having breakfast with my parents, I walk to the beach. It’s early so it’s chilly outside. I let my hair down, grateful that I’m having a good hair day.
I told Derek I would wait for him here mostly because I don’t want to share him with my family until we have a proper greeting. I sit on the sand and stare at the water in front of me.
His plane landed about forty minutes ago, so I know he’ll be here soon. I asked him if he wanted me to ask my dad to pick him up, but he said he would be fine.
As I wait, I think about my feelings for him. I know they’ve intensified very quickly and it scares me to think about it. With Kevin, it took me months to feel t
he way I feel for Derek right now within weeks of meeting him. It terrifies me. I want to express my feelings and hide them at the same time. Where is this going to go? Do we have a future together? Is this just a fling to him? I’m ashamed to admit it but even if this is just a fling to Derek, I’ll take it because it’s better than not having anything with him.
My phone begins to vibrate in my hand and I slide my thumb across the screen and bring it up to my ear.
“I just took a picture of you,” Derek says before I say anything. “Hope you don’t mind.”
My heart begins to race as I turn around and scan the area. Then I see him. He’s a couple feet away, walking towards me. He’s wearing jeans with a maroon shirt and a black jacket. He has a cap on and I can’t help but think about how he’s able to pull out the look. It’s only been a few days since I last saw him, but it feels like it’s been months. A smile spreads across my lips as we both put the phone down. I stand up and begin to walk towards him and then it turns into a run.
He chuckles then he drops his duffel bag and opens his arms to hug me when I reach him. I throw myself at him and put my arms around his neck. He wraps his strong arms around me and lifts me up, making me laugh.
“I missed you, Gin,” He says in my ear.
I closed my eyes and breathe in his scent. “I missed you more.”
He pulls away and shakes his head. “Doubt it.”
He sets me back down and then he reaches out and touches my jawline with his thumb, the way he always does before a kiss. I place my hand on his chest and smile at him. “You look good.”
He grins. “I’m glad you think so because you’re the only girl I’m trying to impress.”
I’m smiling so hard, my cheeks hurt. He leans in and presses his lips against mine, his arm goes around my waist and he presses me closer to him. I close my eyes as he deepens the kiss. It becomes urgent and hard as if we’re both trying to show each other how much we missed one another.
He moans quietly. “Hmm…I really missed your lips."
He kisses me again then and I smile because I believe him. I believe what he just said. He missed me just as much as I missed him and you don’t miss people you don’t care about.
We kiss until we run out of breath this time and he bites my lower lip playfully as we pull away. It makes something inside of me turn on and for a moment, I wish we were alone in my room.
“How was your flight?” I ask him.
He reaches for his bag with his left hand and his right hand finds mine. We begin to walk to the inn. “Long.”
I smile. “Did you really miss me that much or are you messing with me?”
He turns and kisses the side of my head. “I really missed you that much.”
“How was work?”
“Exhausting but good,” He says. “Does your family know I’m coming?”
I nod. “Yes, my sister wants to go on a double date tonight. Hope that’s okay.”
He grins as he squeezes my hand. “Of course, Gin. Though I do want to take you somewhere before that.”
I frown as I turn to look at him. “Where to?”
“To meet my family,” He says. “My dad’s part of the family.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Wow, okay. I’m nervous now.”
He smiles at me. “You don’t have to be. My grandma is going to love you.”
I smile down at my feet as we walk. The thought that he wants me to meet his grandma is enough to make me feel over the moon. Grandmas are special. I grew up without them, both of them passed away when I was young, so it’s going to be nice to meet Derek’s.
Derek lets my hand go and reaches for something in his back pocket. “I almost forgot. I got this for you.”
“For me?” I repeat as he hands me a box. I open it and my eyes widen when I see a beautiful gold bracelet.
“It’s real gold,” Derek says with a proud grin. “Do you like it?”
“Are you kidding?” I smile as I grab it. “I hope you didn’t spend a lot of money on it.”
He shrugs. “Just a couple grand.”
I turn to look at him with a shocked expression and he laughs. “I hope you’re playing,” I say as I laugh with him.
He puts his arm around my shoulders. “Don’t worry about that, Gin. I saw it and I thought of you. That’s all there’s to it.”
I smile then get on my tip toes and kiss his cheek. “Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.” He winks at me playfully. “Let me help you,” He says reaching out to help me put it on my left wrist.
It’s only been a few minutes with him and he’s already given me more life than I’ve felt all week. This is terrifying.
We’re close to the inn when I see Kevin turning around the corner to go up the porch steps. He sees us and my smile fades. I sigh. What is he doing here?
He looks at Derek and he clenches his jaw.
I want to grab Derek’s hand and pull him back to the beach. There’s nothing more awkward than your ex-boyfriend and boyfriend meeting, especially after the pictures of Kevin and me that have been going around on the internet.
I’m hoping Derek won’t see him but he does and he recognizes him right away.
He chuckles drily. “Hey, baby, isn’t that the douche that tried to kiss you?” He asks loudly looking at me then back at Kevin.
“I have a name,” Kevin says, straightening his shoulders. He takes a few steps closer to us. “It’s Kevin.”
Derek shrugs. “I honestly don’t give a shit.”
I bite my lip nervously as Kevin glares at him with a threatening expression. He chuckles. “I would punch you, but it would be like hitting a girl, pretty boy.”
That makes Derek’s shoulders tense. He clenches his jaw and takes a step forward.
38. too perfect
“Derek, no,” I say stepping in front of him. I look up at him and place my hand on his chest. “Look at me.” I beg when he doesn’t move. His gaze drops to my eyes slowly. “My parents are inside, please just ignore him.”
He sighs as he looks away, frustrated. I know he was ready to punch Kevin. I turn around and face Kevin, hoping he can see my annoyance. “Please leave, Kevin. What are you even doing here?”
“I came to talk to you,” He says looking at me.
“We have nothing to talk about.”
He looks at me for a moment then nods. “We’ll do it at another time.”
Before I can tell him that we won’t, he glares at Derek one more time before turning around and walking back the way he came. My shoulders relax.
“What does he want from you, Gin?” Derek asks behind me.
Fifty thousand dollars.
Not technically, but I know he won’t go away until we pay him his money back. Thank God I’m going back to New York soon. I won’t have to deal with him once I’m gone.
“Nothing,” I say turning to look at him.
His eyes soften. “He wants you back, doesn’t he?”
I purse my lips. “I have no interest in getting back together. I’m over him.”
He puts his arm around me then presses his lips against mine. “I won’t back out next time.” He warns.
I smile up at him. “There won’t be a next time.” I grab his hand. “Come on.”
We walk inside the inn. Some people are walking out and Derek turns to the side, probably trying to hide his face. We step into the lobby and Derek takes his cap off and runs a hand through his hair. I walk into the kitchen and he follows me. Mom, Dad and Natalie are all seated around the dining room table. Natalie has her laptop open in front of her while Mom and Dad are looking over some papers. They look so funny here, waiting for the big introduction.
“Hey, “ I say with a smile and they all look up at us. “This is Derek.” I turn to look at him as he steps up next to me. “This is my mom, dad and my sister, Natalie.”
He nods as he takes a step forward and offers his hand to my mom. “A pleasure to meet all of you,” He says politely as he s
hakes my dad’s hand.
“Likewise,” Dad says and Mom nods in agreement.
Natalie looks at me and raises her eyebrows. “Wow.” She mouths at me and I smile, feeling a sense of pride. Wow is right when it comes to Derek.
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