Veer (Clayton Falls) (35 page)

He laughed. “Well if I can’t be there myself, at least you’ll have
him
. Besides, he likes you better.”

“But what about you? What will you do without him?”

“I’ll be okay. I’ll see him all the time when I visit you. And it’s only for
nine months, right?”

I nodded.
“Right.”

I kissed him, refusing to waste even a minute of the time we had left.

***

Boston was as lonely as I
’d
expected. I got back into the gro
o
ve of school, but it was so much harder
. The longer I was away from Clayton Falls
,
the more I missed it. I missed Molly, Kelly, and Jake—missed the group of friends I’d never imagined I’d have, but most of all
,
I missed Gavin. Sometimes I ached for him so much that I didn’t know how to deal.

To make things worse,
Gavin seemed kind of distant
,
as if
he was hiding something. I knew I had to trust him. I understood that sending Max with me was for more than my safety. He wanted me to know he wasn’t going anywhere.
A
ccepting
Max
meant I wasn’t either.

On the Thursday of my third week back
,
I got caught in a
torrential
downpour
after getting of
f
the T. I opened my umbrella
,
but a gust of wind turned it inside
out
. “
Dam
n it
.”

I dropped my useless umbrella into the trash can as I walked t
he
few blocks to my apartment. Pelted by rain on top of everything else
,
I was soaked. I turned the corner and noticed someone leaning against the side of my building. As I got closer
,
he glanced up
,
and I got a look at my favorite hazel eyes.

“Gavin?
What are you doing here?” I ran as fast as I could with my backpack full of books.

He met me halfway, sliding my bag off my shoulders
, tossing it under the awning of my building,
before pulling me into a hug. “
You left something behind
,
” he whispered in my ear.

“What?” I asked, hoping he was going to say what I wanted him to.

“Me.”

I pulled my head away from his chest, knowing my face was now wet from tears and the rain. “How long a
re
you here for?”

“Until you graduate.”

“
Really
?”
I clutched on to his shirt, trying to accept that the man I loved was really moving across the country for me.

He smiled. “I figured I knew someone who wouldn’t mind having me as a roommate.”

“Well
,
I kind of already have someone living with me… but I think Max will be okay with you joining us.”

“Good.
I would have come sooner, but I had to give my two weeks at work.
”

“I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be
.
I know of a job up here I can take anyway.”

“Where?”

“Let’s say we’ll be at a lot of games at Fenway.
”

“
Are you going to coach?”

“
I called my pitching coach
,
and he knew someone up here.
It won’t
pay much, but it’s a start
,
right?”

“Oh my god,
you’re really
going to help coach the
S
ox!”

“I take it you like the idea?”

“Is that a joke?”

He looked down into my eyes. “I love you, Becca.”

Before I could reply
,
his lips were on mine. His arms came around me, and I wrapped mine around his neck, pulling him as close to me as possible.
The rain continued to pour down on us, but I didn’t care. All I cared about was how good it felt to have his lips against mine again and to be back in his arms.
He eventually loosened his hold a little and pulled back. I jumped in immediately. “I love you.”

“Do you love me enough to get me out of the rain?”

“Of course. But wait
. W
here’s all your stuff?”

“In
my
car.” He pointed to where he’d parked.

“Do you need it now?”

“No. The only thing I need is right here.”

“And I’m not going anywhere.” I looked him right in the eye when I said
it
, letting him know I meant it.

“Me either, Becca. Me either.”

His lips met mine again
,
and I knew I was right where I belonged.