That's My Girl by Lani Belle

Author:Lani Belle [Belle, Lani]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lani Belle
Published: 2022-09-08T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

Liv

‘Wake up, Liv. We’re here.’

Bri was in the backseat with me, trying to wake me.

‘Oh, sorry,’ I said. I must have fallen asleep shortly after my phone call with Brendan.

I got up and unclipped my seat belt. I fixed my hair and wiped under my eyes in case I had panda eyes.

‘You look gorgeous. Don’t stress,’ Bri said.

I got out of the car just in time to see Mum running towards us.

‘Liv!’ she yelled.

‘Mum!’ I cried as we crashed into each other. We stood hugging on the front lawn for ages.

‘Finally, my baby is home,’ she said.

I laughed. ‘And it’s great to be home.’

‘Come inside. Jake’s dying to see you, but he is trying to play it cool,’ she whispered.

‘How am I going to survive Christmas?’ I asked.

‘You made your bed, sweetheart,’ she said. ‘You have to lie in it. This is on you.’

I opened the door and saw David. ‘Hi,’ I said as I gave him a hug.

‘I’m so glad you’re home. We all missed you,’ he said.

‘I missed you all as well.’

I pulled away, and Jake was standing close by. His arms were crossed, and he was leaning against the wall. I looked at Bri, and she nodded as if to encourage me. She had never seen us together. I walked up to him with my head high. Before I got too close, he uncrossed his arms and stepped forward and grabbed me. He hugged me so tightly it was hard to breathe.

I closed my eyes. ‘Bear.’

‘I fucking missed you, Babe,’ he said.

And with that, I started crying. I missed him too, every damn day.

By the time we pulled away, the room was deserted. ‘Well, we cleared the room,’ I said, wiping away my tears.

Jake nodded and then looked me up and down. I swear he made me wet from a glance.

‘You look good,’ he said.

‘You look great. How are you? How’s Emily?’ I asked. I didn’t want to ever mention her, but I needed to remind myself that this man was not mine.

‘She’s good,’ he said.

I nodded, not trusting my voice to speak.

‘How’s Dr Dick? Tyler hates your boyfriend,’ he said.

‘Yeah, they hate each other. He’s good. He’s in Paris, keeping busy at a conference.’

Jake nodded. ‘M-Maybe we can hang out while you are h-here. Catch up properly.’

And just like that, I was even more in love. His nervous stutter was back – because of me.

‘I’d love that,’ I said, hugging him again. I never wanted to let go.

‘Liv! Come help me in the kitchen,’ Mum yelled.

I pulled away. ‘I better go. Will you be around or at Emily’s place?’

‘I’ll be a-around. I can see her anytime, but I n-never get to see you,’ he said.

He meant to be sweet, but it was a harsh reminder of what she had that I didn’t. I faked a smile and walked off.

Mum was waiting for me in the kitchen with Bri.

‘Holy shit,’ Bri said.

‘I know,’ I said.

‘You two need to be together,’ she said.

‘I’ve started working on my issues,’ I said.

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