Page 74 of Romantic

“Okay,” she agrees softly. “It would be nice to see you.”

“Don’t move, I’ll be right there.”

***

Eleven minutes later and I’m on the road. I dropped Pepper off at my parents’ house. They were more than happy to watch her for the day. “All weekend if needed,” my mom said with a knowing smile. I left in such haste that I put on the hole-y Dartmouth tee. I realize this when I’m already on my way, and I feel a twinge of regret; I would like to have been presentable the first time I see Annie again. These past two weeks, our relationship has shifted significantly. So much so that I feel like I’m on my way to meet my girlfriend. I open a tin of breath mints and pop three in my mouth as I drive.

My phone says it will take me forty minutes to reach Annie; I get there in thirty.

Annie’s fast asleep in the driver seat and the Bronco is loaded with boxes. On the passenger seat is a plastic clothing hamper full of shoes. What is going on? It looks for all the world like Annie’s moving.

I tap lightly on the window, and she startles awake. She rolls down her window and breaks into a radiant smile.

“Brandon! You’re here.”

“What is happening? Are you moving?”

“Um, yeah, I wanted to surprise you, but . . . surprise!” She makes jazz hands. “I got a job in Redwood City.”

“You’re moving to Redwood City?”

“Yeah, I hope that’s okay. I’ll be living in the bungalow in your parents’ backyard.”

“The only two houses down from mine?”

“Yeah . . . if that’s okay?” She bites her lip.

“Um . . . yes . . . it is extremely okay. I just never dreamed . . . Let me get this straight. You’re really moving to Redwood City?”

“I got a job at a florist shop downtown. I’m really excited about it. But also, I thought that maybe this . . .” She waves her hands between us. “Is worth pursuing.”

“So this is what it feels like,” I say as much to myself as to Annie.

“What what feels like?”

“Having the woman I love running toward me instead of away.”

“You’d better get used to it, because I’m not going anywhere.”

I open her car door. “I need you out of this vehicle now.”

She unbuckles and climbs out laughing.

“Woah! Bossy much!” she says as I guide her to a safer spot where the shoulder is wider.

“Sorry, I just really need to kiss you right now.” She stops laughing, and the playfulness between us changes into something more potent. She wipes her hands nervously on her jean shorts. The space between us is charged with expectation. Her green eyes pin mine. “I would love that.”

Her words resonate through my whole being. I place my right hand on her hip and pull her in close, savoring the warmth of her body. Our last kiss was so wild and desperate, I intend to take my time with this one. I thread my fingers through her glorious red hair, then gently run my thumb over her cheek. After all this waiting and wanting, it feels surreal to touch her soft skin. Annie lets out a happy sigh, and I can’t wait any longer. So much for slow and deliberate.

I kiss her—urgently, insistently . . . greedy to make up for the two weeks we spent apart—two weeks that felt like an eternity of sweet torture, watching her pretty face through the glass screen of a phone. But now her hands run up and down my back stoking the fire within. Her fingers brush through my hair, as I taste her lips, and my ears catch each soft murmur of appreciation, every change in her breath as she kisses back with all her uninhibited, delightful enthusiasm. We are frantic, delirious, joyful. It’s the middle of the day; traffic whizzes past us, and we don’t care.

This shoulder of the road is the most beautiful, holy place on earth, because it’s here, between kisses, that Annie whispers, “I was a fool not to realize it sooner. I love you, Brandon—I think I may have loved you since the day you climbed Lady Whimple.”

“Oh, Annie,” I pull back just enough to take in her sweet expression. “By then, I was so far gone I’d already paid too much for a rundown resort—simply because I couldn’t bear the thought of your heart breaking.”

“Brandon . . .” She says my name with a bit of awe as she gently cups my face. “Is that true?”

“I told myself and everyone else that I bought it for Pepper, that was partially true. But to be honest, I was thinking mainly of you and your feelings.”