The Road That Leads to Us (Us 1)

“Thank you again for this.”

I shrugged, smiling sheepishly as I backed out of the parking space. “It was too perfect to pass up. I had to get it for you.”

Braking at the stop sign I reached over and wiped away a bit of the face paint she’d missed with the back of my thumb. It was also an excuse to touch her.

The way she looked up at me from beneath her thick black lashes I knew she knew it too.

My feelings for Willow already far surpassed anything I’d felt for a past girlfriend. The logical part of my brain thought that it was because we’d been friends for so long, but my gut knew it was more than that.

“Do you believe in soul mates?” I asked her.

She turned her face towards me, the setting sun bathing her in a warm glow. “I believe in dragons.”

My brows furrowed in confusion. “What does that mean?”

She shrugged. “It means I believe in the possibility of things greater than we are, but it doesn’t mean they’re real.”

I mulled over her words and nodded. It made sense, even if her answer was a bit funny.

We arrived at the Laundromat a few minutes later and I carried the duffle bag inside.

Willow trailed behind me, dragging her feet.

“It won’t be that bad,” I promised her, holding open the door so she could step inside first.

She narrowed her eyes. “It’s a Laundromat.”

Inside the place was pretty empty. As far as a Laundromat went it was pretty nice. The machines were fairly new and the white linoleum floors were shiny and clean with no dust bunnies swirling around.

We chose an empty machine in the back corner and began the process of sorting our clothes in piles of color and whites.

“We don’t have detergent,” Willow groaned.

“Surely they have some.” I blinked dumbly at her.

“You’re supposed to bring your own.”

“Oh,” I sighed, pausing my sorting and sticking my hands on my hips. “That might be a bit of a problem.”

“Ya think?” She said sarcastically.

Some people might be hurt by her flippant tone, but that was Willow. I knew she was only trying to be funny.

She looked around, her blonde hair swishing around her shoulders as she spun.

She spotted an elderly man doing his laundry by the entrance.

“Excuse me, sir!” She waved her hand and scurried towards him.

He hadn’t heard her approach and jumped when she stopped beside him.

“Hi,” she said, and even though I could only see her back I knew she was smiling brightly at him. “We forgot detergent. Would it be okay if we used some of yours?”

He stared up at her from his hunched position and nodded. “Sure.” His voice was as shaky as the hands that held his laundry.

“Thank you so much.” She bent and kissed his cheek. His face flamed a brilliant red and he watched in awe as she grabbed the detergent and hurried back to me.

I knew how he felt. There was something about Willow that you couldn’t resist. She was brilliant like the sun.