I missed her. I missed her laugh, her sweet smile, the warmth of her touch, and everything in between. My chest ached whenever I thought about her, and my throat threatened to close whenever I happened to look at my phone.
One of the last things we did was take a picture together, a picture I’d set to the login on my phone, that way I got to see her every single day, even when things got rough. She was always there, in my mind, my heart, and just a short phone call away.
But I didn’t call, deciding it was best if I waited to hear from her instead.
Bridget kept tabs on where she was and all of her performances as I honestly couldn’t bring myself to watch them on my own. I knew she was well and that she was still out there doing shows as they made their way across the country. I could’ve flown out to surprise her if I wanted, but a part of me knew I’d end up in the same place I’d already been.
Here. In my shop. Thousands of miles away from her and feeling terribly alone.
“Get a grip,” I chided myself, opening and closing the register as I stared at a blank computer screen. “You’re acting like a lovesick teenager. You’re an adult. Act like it.”
Taking a breath, I calmed my nerves enough to walk into the back to get a new shipment of books I could stock. The box wasn’t anything like the one Cassidy dropped off so many weeks ago, but it made me think of her anyway.
Man, I’d heard of instant love before, but this was ridiculous. I was surrounded by her memory, of where she’d been and things she’d touched, making it all the more difficult to concentrate on my work. I was used to the memories I
carried had because of my dad, but seeing Cassidy around every corner was surreal.
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I could imagine her in the lounge with a book in her lap, walking through the front door with a coffee from up the street, and even hear her soft voice as it made its way down from the tower. She was gone but still around all at the same time, my memories of her playing out in vivid detail.
I couldn’t not think about her, and as I stocked the shelves, I smiled when my fingertips brushed the spine of one of the books she’d been reading before she left.
I’d actually restocked it on the shelf the day before, but for whatever reason, I decided to pull it out and open up to where she’d left off. I’m not sure why I didn’t see it before, but there, stuffed in between the pages of the book, was a folded up note meant just for me.
Smiling, I set the box of books off to the side and sat down, happily losing myself between the fantasy and sci-fi sections of the store.
Reading is your escape, just as music is mine. Promise me you won’t escape for too long, though, because we’re about to go on an epic journey together.
That’s it. That’s all she wrote, and yet I had the biggest grin on my face.
Hugging the piece of paper to my chest, I fought back the tears that burned my eyes, then tucked the piece of paper in my pocket for safekeeping.
It was then I knew with absolute certainty that we’d get through this.
Together.
Chapter Eighteen
“Any word from Cassidy?”
My sister called as soon as I walked in the door, her voice sounding just as hopeful as I’d been earlier.
Leaving my bag at the door, I made my way into the living room and collapsed on the sofa. “Briefly. She called around noon, but not two minutes later, she had to go. I think her manager kicked her off or something.”
“At least you know she got in safe. They probably have a lot of work to do before tonight.”
My heart seized at that. Tonight was her first show, and again I wished I’d gone with her to see it. “I guess. It still sucks, though. If her calls are going to be like that—”
“Evie, it’s only been a few days. You need to chill and let her do her job. You’re starting to sound like you’re the young sister instead of me.” Her playful jab hurt more than it usually would.
“Sorry. You’re right. I’m just not used to this whole long distance thing.”
“You mean the whole dating thing,” Bridget corrected me.
“It’s been ages since you’ve been with someone more than a millisecond, but trust me when I say that newness and need to be with her all the time will pass.”
I wasn’t so sure about that.