Colby scoffs and storms forward. “Have you seen Georgia’s curls? Do you want to ruin her hair?”
She shoves bottle after bottle into my hands, talking a mile a minute about deep conditioners and body wash. Do I need a shaver or cream…or just soap? She spends a minute spinning in place, searching for a clean, soft towel that’ll be gentle on Georgia’s curls.
Mom runs in with a bag and fills it with the loot falling from my arms, murmuring, “I added in some gluten-free food for when she feels better, tea, and other things to settle her stomach. All safe for our girl.”
Our girl.
Like she’s family already.
Just like Aurora and my friends.
Just like every animal she’s rescued and the bees she loves like they’re her kids.
My mom’s capacity for love is everything, and I missed out on it for too damn long.
Not anymore.
My eyes burn and I kiss her head. “Thank you for not giving up on me, Ma.”
Her breath catches and she wraps me in her arms. “Never have, never will.”
“Ah ha!” Colby spins, holding up a hair dryer and some weird, poky-looking thing with a manic sort of grin. “Do you use YouTube? You’re gonna need this.”
Everything in me deflates, and a laugh slips free.
These people are insane and over the top, but they’remypeople—and they’re stepping up for Georgia like they’re her people too.
Thank fuck, because my girl deserves all the community and family she’s never had. She deserves to be loved likethis.
And I’m going to show her exactly how that feels.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Wanting
I’m never leaving this bathtub.
It’s so big, and the water’s so deep and hot, it covers all of me, soothing me down to the bones. Not to mention, the lavender and honey salts Kade poured in must have some kind of magical healing powers. After just thirty minutes, I’m half asleep and my stomach is settled way faster than it should be.
When I finally felt well enough to climb in, I opened the window, letting the cold early morning air counteract the steam coating the panes. The combination between that and the hot water is a kind of Heaven I’ve never felt before.
I flick my gaze to the slightly open bathroom door, and my stomach swoops for a whole new reason.
True to his word, Kade left me everything I needed and disappeared, including a new toothbrush I happily used. I took my pills, sipped on water, but after I climbed in, I hesitated to text him, needing a few minutes to wrap my brain around everything that’s transpired.
It’s a lot, and yet, something in me feels settled in a way that surprises me. While the desire to run that always thrums through my system is still very much here, gnawing at me, whispering that this is a mistake…
So is something else.
Something warm and addicting, exciting and…new.
And maybe it’s time I grab onto it—consequences be damned.
That thought in mind, I send him a text, letting him know he can come back whenever he’s ready.
I rush through washing my body with the cedar-scented soap I find on the ledge, a hum of pleasure slipping free. It smells so good—mostly because it’s Kade in a bottle: addicting and comforting.
A grin splits my face when I find the frizz-free curl shampoo I shoved into his chest all those weeks ago at the store.
