Every year, the city puts on a huge fireworks show at the beach, and I have one of the best views around. Plus, from my place, we don’t have to freeze or fight the crowds of people trying to get a good spot. We get to eat, drink, and just enjoy the night before ringing in the New Year and watching the show. I’m sure Gaston will be working, since New Year’s is a huge night for every bar and club around, but I’ll still invite him to join us. I’ll also ask Leah if she and Tyler want to come over.
I like the idea of my best friend and my brother meeting Gaston, even if the idea also makes me a little nervous. I’ve had a few boyfriends over the years, but I never cared if my family and friends liked them.
Probably because you never saw those relationships going anywhere, a voice in the back of my mind whispers.
“Crap,” I hiss, realizing exactly how deep I am with Gaston, even after knowing him only about a week.
“What?” Rachelle asks from where she’s restocking a tray of sprinkle cookies in the display case.
“Nothing.” I shake my head. “I just remembered something I have to get done today.” I give her a reassuring smile.
“I hate when that happens,” she says sympathetically. “Is it anything I can help you with?”
“Unfortunately no, honey, but thank you for asking.”
“You know I’m happy to help if you need it.”
God, she’s such a great kid, and I’m really going to miss her and Aubrey when they leave for college.
Aubrey comes out of the kitchen at that moment, carrying a tray of cupcakes, and I look between them, feeling choked up all of a sudden. I still have seven months left with them, but that time is going to fly by. “You know I’m really going to miss you both when you leave me, right?” I say.
“We know,” Rachelle whispers, tears forming in her eyes.
“Totally,” Aubrey chokes out, and then both of them are rushing toward me with their arms outstretched. We all hug each other, rocking back and forth, and tears start to fill my eyes.
“College is overrated,” Rachelle says, making me smile.
“It’s also really expensive,” Aubrey adds, and I start to laugh as tears track down my cheeks.
“You’re going to college, and I promise you’ll love every minute of it.”
“Yeah, but we’ll miss you, and I don’t think we’ll be able to find a bakery willing to give us free cookies and cupcakes,” Aubrey says, stepping back to wipe her cheeks while Rachelle continues to hug me.
“That just means I’ll see you both whenever you come home.”
“Totally.” She nods.
“For sure,” Rachelle agrees, giving me one last squeeze before releasing me to swipe her hands down her face.
“We still have a few months, so we should save our tears until then and just enjoy the time we have left,” I say, and thankfully they both smile while nodding in agreement. “Good.” I smile back. “Now let’s finish closing down and go home.”
“Are you actually going home when we do, or are you going to stay here baking the rest of the night?” Rachelle asks, planting a hand on her hip while narrowing her eyes at me, and I glance at Aubrey, seeing the same narrowed eyes coming from her. They know my habit of staying late into the night, even if it’s just to test a new recipe.
“I’m leaving with you.” I hold up the three-finger Girl Scout salute. “I have a couple things to do tonight before I go home.”
Aubrey looks at Rachelle, and they share a silent conversation. Rachelle asks, “The guy who came in the other day . . . are you seeing him?”
“Yes.” I can’t help but smile, and they both let out girly shrieks that make me laugh.
When they’re both done squealing in excitement about my new relationship and bombarding me with questions I don’t answer, we spend the next hour shutting things down. When we’re done, another first happens. I flip the sign to CLOSED and walk to my car, not thinking about the Sweet Spot.
It’s crazy how much things have seemed to change since I met Gaston. Is this feeling in my chest what my mom was talking about when she said she wanted me to be soul-deep happy? I’m a little scared yet also excited, which is an odd combination. Not wanting to freak myself out, I focus on getting a Christmas tree, then getting home to spend some time with Gaston.
Suggestion 7
APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE
CHRISSIE
I stand just inside my open front door in nothing but my robe, with Gaston’s arms wrapped around my lower back and his mouth on mine. He trails his lips down my neck, stopping to nip my collarbone, and my body responds instantly. My eyes slide closed, and a shiver of desire tickles down my spine. I should be topped off after the night and morning we had, but apparently, like a drug addict, I still need more of him.
Last night, he came down to my place after I got home. When he arrived with LeFou in tow, I was in the middle of trying to get the tree I bought into its complicated stand. So, I distractedly let both of them in, giving LeFou a quick pet before going back to my task. After taking in the situation, Gaston set down his pup and stepped in, taking the stand from me and doing the job himself while asking me questions I answered without thinking. Then he proceeded to make it clear with words and looks that he was annoyed I didn’t call to tell him I was stopping to get a tree, and even more annoyed I hauled the somewhat large tree wrapped in twine from my car, into the building, and then up to my condo by myself, when he was just a phone call away.
He got over being annoyed after I apologized and promised to call him next time, but then he got annoyed once more when he asked me where I kept my decorations. I told him they were in my storage unit in the basement of the building. I also told him I’d get them later, because it was getting late and neither of us had eaten. He didn’t say anything when I said this; he just gave me another look that stated he wouldn’t be happy if I carted the totes upstairs without him.
We ended up bickering about this for a good ten minutes—or I should say, I bickered while holding his pup, and he mostly shook his head like I was adorable and frustrating. I finally gave in when I saw he wasn’t going to, and then I grabbed my key for my padlock and took him down to my unit. In the end, he carried my two large red-and-green totes up to my place, only allowing me to carry one small cardboard box that was filled with strings of lights.
I’ve never had a guy want to take care of me before, even with small things like carrying totes, so his caveman act was sweeter than it was annoying. If I’m honest, I was thankful for his help. It would have taken me forever to get the tree set up, and I would’ve had to take at least three trips downstairs to the creepy basement without him.
When we got back upstairs, he ordered us dinner from one of the nearby Chinese restaurants while I started to untangle the lights I’d shoved into the cardboard box last year, not knowing my carelessness would come back to haunt me. When he got off the phone, I was sitting on the floor with a knotted ball of lights in my hands, ready to toss the mess into the garbage and buy new ones. Seeing my frustration, he took them from me and had them untangled within minutes. Then he cut the twine from the tree and started to place the lights with ease, even at the top of the tree—something I would’ve needed a chair to do.