She pushed at me and I moved back, panting just as she was. "I need time to think through this."
"I understand. I'll wait as long as I can for you to come find me. If you don't...I'll come find you. Be ready to accept me or not, but know that I want you. More than I've ever wanted anyone, Chloe."
I moved back and she clung to me, her fingers wrapped in my t-shirt bunched at my shoulders. "Tell me to stay and I will," I said. I licked at my lips and took one more look at her, which left me overwhelmed.
"Soon." She released me and backed up, hugging herself and watching me intently.
I stood there a minute longer, needing her to change her mind, but wanting to give her time to want me the way I wanted her. The sound of her father coming down the hall almost caused my heart to stop and I moved through the window and chuckled at the sound of her laughing softly out of her window.
Things weren't perfect, but maybe they were at least getting back on track.
Chapter 19
Chloe
It had been three days since I'd spoke to Finn, since the night he came through my bedroom window. I hadn't thought of too much other than him, but I wanted to make sure I was ready for a relationship before approaching him. He was as fragile as I was. There was no reason to start something that I couldn't finish.
The meeting with my dad a few days back went relatively well. He liked my designs and even allowed me access to one of his manufactures to start working on a prototype for the women's windbreaker I designed. It wasn't what I wanted to do with my life, but it was a first step in helping him see me for the professional I was becoming.
With only ten days until Christmas, I had a list of gifts I needed to get, mostly for my brother, but I was running out of time. I had a piece of toast and then headed out for the morning and made sure Parker was still planning on taking me snowboarding for the afternoon. I'd decided over the last three days that I wanted to learn how to do it. I would have asked Finn, but we had some damage repair to get through.
After talking about everything with Parker, he confessed to lying about me still being with Seth simply because it seemed to be in my best interest to steer clear of Finn. I was pissed, but I understo
od where he was coming from. He was all for me calling Finn, but I needed to make sure I was completely for it, too.
I picked up my purse and paused by the door as my brother called for me.
"Chloe. Wait. I wanna go."
"Shopping? Have you lost your mind? You're the worst shopper in the universe."
"Come on. I don't want to stay cooped up here. Let's go shop, eat lunch, and then we'll go hit the slopes and I'll teach you some tricks."
"Yeah, let's start with the one where I stay vertical on the board."
We laughed and I moved out into the garage. I got into the Cherokee and buckled up as he got into the other side.
"I invited a friend to go boarding with us. Hope that's okay." He turned toward me.
"Yeah, sure. Just show me the ropes and then you and your friend can go get lost." I winked and pulled the car out. "I'm glad the roads haven't been too bad this Christmas. I remember as a kid having to help Dad put those track thingies on the wheels."
"Chains?" he snorted.
I slapped his arm. "Hush or I'll take you into every pantie store I see."
"Please?" he growled, and I rolled my eyes.
I'd forgotten I was dealing with a sixteen-year-old boy. He wasn't a kid anymore, oddly enough. Neither was I, and I needed to stop acting like it in several areas of my life.
"I think I'm going to call Finn today." I turned on the heater and waited for my brother's reaction.
"I think that's a great idea, actually. He's the only thing that can keep you here, so I'm all for him."
I glanced over at my brother. "Keep me here?"
"Yeah. I don't want you to go back to Cali. Neither does Dad. We were talking about it last night when you conked out on the movie." He smiled and leaned back in his seat. "It's fantastic having a woman around the house. We get to eat, have clean clothes...and feel loved."
"Awe, you feel loved by me?" I teased him, reaching over to pinch at his chest and ears.