The Summer Girlfriend (Heart Beach, #1)(86)
“That is one bad bitch,” Tati whispered about Celeste as Noelle walked her to André’s car. Celeste stood in the doorway, waving goodbye, looking serene and elegant in her pale yellow wrap dress. “I want to be her when I grow up.”
Noelle laughed quietly. “Yeah, same.”
Jeremiah dapped André up and hugged Tati when they reached the car. “You’re welcome back anytime. For real.”
“Thanks, bro,” André said, taking Tati’s bag and putting it in the back seat.
“Yes, thank you, and we’ll certainly take you up on that offer,” Tati said, winking.
Noelle hugged her best friend goodbye.
“Remember what I said,” Tati whispered in Noelle’s ear. “Don’t miss out.”
Noelle stuffed her hands in her back pockets as she and Jeremiah watched them drive off. Don’t miss out ran on a loop in her mind.
“You okay?” Jeremiah asked. He placed a soft kiss against her temple.
She looked up at him. Heart full, she nodded. “Yeah.”
Before Harper and Ashley went to bed, Noelle helped them practice their talent routine once more. It was a small thing for her to help them. She was essentially there to supervise and give pointers on how to better execute a move or help with their transitions. But they took the routine so seriously because they wanted a trophy, and they were so grateful for Noelle’s help. It warmed her heart.
“Will we see you after summer?” Harper asked, tugging on Noelle’s arm before they went upstairs to bed.
“Yeah, will we?” Ashley asked. “Promise you’ll come to one of our recitals this school year.”
“I’ll definitely try,” Noelle said. She was once again reminded that Jeremiah wasn’t the only Smith she’d formed a bond with.
When she made her way to his bedroom, Jeremiah was lying on the bed, fresh out of the shower, wearing a T-shirt and boxers. He was squinting at his phone as he typed quickly.
“I’m emailing Aaron,” he said. “Sorry, give me one sec.”
“You’re fine.” She sat on the edge of the bed. From what Jeremiah had told her, Aaron often sent emails at odd hours, like on a Saturday night. To Noelle, it sounded like Good Boy was Aaron’s baby, and he treated Jeremiah like the babysitter who could be trusted to make sure that the baby had fun, but he couldn’t be trusted to look after the baby’s actual well-being. She hoped that Aaron would wake up and see that Jeremiah was an asset and not someone to be overlooked or undervalued.
While Jeremiah wrote his email, Noelle glanced around his room. She’d loved being here every weekend for the past few weeks. She loved being here with him. Her feelings for him grew stronger with each passing day. And it was time to face the truth. She didn’t want to lose him after summer ended.
Jeremiah tossed his phone to the side and folded his hands behind his head and grinned, giving her his full attention.
“Okay, future librarian,” he said, getting comfortable. “What are we reading tonight?”
Noelle smiled a little as the butterflies formed a chain link across her veins. There was so much that she wanted to say to him. She was unsure where to begin. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose.
“What?” He sat up, frowning in concern. “What’s wrong?”
She took a second to remind herself of a couple necessary facts. It was okay that she’d fallen for him. It was okay that she wanted them to at least try and see where things went beyond summer. It was okay. She didn’t need to freak out!
“When you move are you going to start seeing other people?” she blurted.
Jeremiah’s expression sharpened in surprise. She’d surprised herself. That wasn’t how she’d intended to begin the conversation.
“No,” he said slowly. “That’s not even something that I’ve thought about.” His brows drew together. “Why? Do you plan to see other people?”
“No.” She shook her head fiercely, frustrated with herself for blundering this. “That’s not what I meant to ask. Can I start over?”
Jeremiah nodded. She took another deep breath. He waited patiently for her to find the words.
“What I want to say is that I know that school will be my biggest priority and you’ll be busy with work,” she said, “but when you come back to visit your family, and if I have time outside of school and work, I’d really like to see you too. I know we said we’d just spend the rest of the summer together, but what if we tried to see what happened beyond that? What if you come back to visit while I’m on a break? I have a three-day fall break in mid-October, and—what? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Jeremiah was smiling huge. His shoulders shook as he laughed quietly.
“Babe, the only reason I said let’s see how things go this summer is because I thought you’d feel less pressure that way,” he said. “I didn’t want to scare you by telling you that I wanted something more.” He moved closer to her and took her hands in his. “I thought you might need more time. But I fully intended to have this conversation with you before I moved. You just beat me to it.”
She blinked. Her relief manifested itself in a delighted smile. “Wait, really?”
“Yes, really.” He squeezed her hands. “I want you to know that I’m always gonna be respectful of your school schedule. If that means flying back to see you while you’re on break, I’ll do that. Or if you decide you want to spend a break with me in California, I’ll fly you out. And maybe it will mean that some days, the most we’ll be able to do is FaceTime before you go to bed. I’m not saying it won’t be hard. I don’t think long distance is ever easy, but you’re a priority for me, and I agree that what we have is worth preserving.” His expression turned serious as he gazed at her. “When you walk into a room, I feel like the sun is shining right on me. And you don’t even have to do anything; you’re just being yourself. For two years, I dreaded coming back to Heart Beach, but with you here, I’ve looked forward to being at this house again. I’ve been able to spend more time with my family. I miss my grandfather, and I always will, but the pain of his passing eases more and more each day because being here brings me closer to him in a good way. You said I gave you a gift, but you gave me one too.”