Misunderstandings (Woodfalls Girls 2)

I contemplated her words. Was she right? Did I feel passionately about Justin? She had to be wrong. People felt passionately for each other months into a relationship, not after one month. I knew what I had felt in the courtyard when I spotted him with the other girl wrapped around him like some serpent or something. It was jealousy and hurt that waged a battle inside me as I tried to comprehend the scene. For a moment, every insecurity I’d ever felt surfaced. He made me feel that way, whether accidental or not. He made me face the reasons why I tried to avoid relationships.

I was still on my bed studying the ceiling and contemplating the doom of my sanity when Melissa exited the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her torso. “Are you okay?” she asked, taking in my expression.

“No. I’m a weak, nimble-minded female who’s letting some guy lead me around like I’m his bitch or something,” I grumbled. “Why did you have to introduce me to him? I was fine without some guy clouding the water.”

“Yeah, but think how boring that would be. Cloudy water is good for everyone. It’s the people who have the crystal-clear water who scare the crap out of me. So stop taking everything so seriously and enjoy your swim in this crazy murky water,” she said, grabbing a change of clothes and heading back to the bathroom.

I watched the door shut behind her and felt slightly better. That was the beauty or at times the horror of living with someone who was all rainbows and unicorns. Maybe she was right. Maybe murky wasn’t bad. So what if I had dived into water that was impossible to see through? Maybe just once I would let myself go.

Maybe I could put my faith and trust in one person.

19.

Present Day

2:53 PM

“I’m hungry,” Justin complained, checking his phone for the millionth time.

“We’ve covered that,” I said, shifting my position to help ease the numbness that had set in.

“I know, but I’m now thinking about food like it’s a lover or something. Like how juicy and delicious a cheeseburger loaded with bacon and all the fixings would be at the moment.”

My stomach rumbled loudly at his words. “Not nice,” I said, placing a hand on my stomach to quiet the gurgling.

“Or a large pepperoni pizza with extra cheese,” he continued, ignoring me.

“No, a tender steak cooked to perfection with a side salad and a loaded baked potato.” I added my two cents in.

He groaned at my words. “With a hot fudge brownie sundae,” he added, looking pained but eager at the same time.

“We’re gluttons for misery,” I pointed out as my stomach growled its displeasure.

“We have to do something to pass the time.”

“I have a deck of cards,” I offered up.

“What? Why are you just now mentioning this?” he asked, scooting across the floor until he was sitting less than a foot and a half from me. >“Told you,” he said, beaming down at me.

“I don’t even want to know how you knew it would be so enjoyable,” I said, giving his shoulder a push so I could get up and get dressed.

“A gentleman never tells,” he answered, tossing a clean UW shirt my way as I pulled on my jeans from yesterday.

“Gahhh,” I said, chucking my boot at him, which he easily ducked.

“Let’s go get breakfast,” he said, handing my boot back to me. “There’s a great diner not too far from here, and after that I have a surprise.”

Unable to stay mad, I finished getting dressed, willing myself not to dwell on his past conquests. We left the house through his private entrance and headed out for the day. The diner turned out to be every bit as good as he said it was, and even though we’d both eaten our weight in food the day before, we were famished from our nighttime and morning activities. We lingered over our meal, trying to one-up each other discussing past holiday disasters. Over a second cup of coffee, I won the contest when I showed him the spiral-looking scar on the palm of my hand. It had taken thirty stitches when I stuck my hand in the sink to remove a steak knife from the garbage disposal that happened to be running at the time.

“What the hell were you thinking? Man, your poor hand,” he said, tracing the scar on the palm of my hand.

“It was a total brain-dead moment,” I joked, downing the last of my coffee. “So, where are we going?” I asked as we shrugged into our jackets.

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

His surprise turned out to be an hour-long ferryboat ride to Bremerton. It was a tranquil experience as we stood against the rail, watching the water and taking in the wildlife we passed on the way. Once we arrived, we strolled around window-shopping the quaint shops that sat along the waterway before ending up at the Navy Museum. Finally, we ate a late lunch at a café on Puget Sound before heading back to the ferryboat for the ride back to the mainland. We decided to stay the rest of the weekend at my dorm since Justin had scored tickets to a Seattle Seahawks game on Sunday. I didn’t admit it, but I was relieved I wouldn’t have to face his mom for at least a few days. Like our shower together, the weekend continued to hold many firsts for me. My first ferryboat ride, my first professional football game, and the first time I spent a solid four days in the company of a male. More astonishing than all the firsts of the weekend was the fact that each day with Justin was as enjoyable as the day before. Our nights were spent wrapped in each other’s arms. That was the weekend I began to fall for the one guy I never expected to.

17.