Until Harry(19)

Huh?

“How are you going to do that?” I murmured.

Kale untangled himself from me and slid off my bed. I was shocked at how badly I wanted him to stay, but it felt wrong because Kale was my best friend, like my brother, so I knew I shouldn’t want him to hold me . . . not in a way that made my skin tingle and my tummy hurt.

I shook my head clear of my very sudden and weird thoughts and focused on Kale, who was walking over towards my wardrobe. I gasped and gripped onto my duvet cover.

“Be careful!” I squealed.

Kale glanced over his shoulder, smiled at me and I just about died because he looked so . . . cute.

Oh, my God. I thought Kale looked cute. My Kale.

K–A–L–E.

“What are you doing?” I asked, my heart slamming against my chest.

He turned and nodded at the wardrobe. “I’m going to stand guard until you fall asleep or until the sun comes up. Whichever one comes first. You don’t have to worry. I’ll protect you.”

I licked my suddenly dry lips. “You – you would really do that? For me?”

Kale reached into the wardrobe and grabbed my baseball bat, then shut the door and leaned against it and winked at me. “Only for you.”

Butterflies exploded in my stomach, and I got giddy with excitement.

“I don’t know what to – thank you, Kale,” I breathed, completely in awe of him.

He smiled at me once more and gripped onto the baseball bat. “Don’t thank me. I can’t have monsters kidnapping you, right?”

I lay down and pulled my duvet up to my face so he wouldn’t be able to see my smile.

“I guess not,” I murmured.

“You guessed correctly,” he said, winking. “Now go to sleep, Laney Baby. I’ll protect you.”

“You promise?” I whispered.

“I promise to protect you always, silly.”

I stared at him as I remembered when I asked my Uncle Harry how he knew he loved my Aunt Teresa and he told me what he felt like. He said his stomach got butterflies, and his heart pounded really fast when he saw her. He said she made his heart happy, so it beat really fast when she was around, like it was singing for her.

He felt like I did at that moment when I looked at Kale. My heart was singing for him.

It was a daunting thought, but I positively knew in that instant, even though I didn’t know exactly what real emotion was, that I’d fallen wholeheartedly in love with Kale Hunt, and it frightened the living daylights out of me.





CHAPTER FIVE

Day one in York

What are you doing here, Lane?”

I jumped and looked over my shoulder when the voice of my father jolted me from my thoughts and brought me back to my sombre reality. I didn’t answer him straight away as I turned and looked back at the freshly dug hole.

“I needed to think, so I decided to go on a walk,” I replied.

When it had got late and my parents’ house became very quiet, my thoughts suddenly seemed to be too loud, so I’d decided to go on a walk. My feet brought me to my Aunt Teresa’s grave, and my Uncle Harry’s soon-to-be grave. I stared down at the grave plot that, starting from tomorrow, would house my uncle until the end of time, and it gutted me.

“You scared us,” my father said. “Everyone is out looking for you.”

I blinked with surprise and looked to my father when he came up beside me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think to tell anyone I was going out. I never have to do it in New York; I guess I forgot.”

My father sent out a text on his phone, pocketed it, then sighed and slid his arm around my shoulder. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

I felt bad, but since I’d already apologised, I remained quiet.

“Since we’re alone, I want to tell you something that I should have told you years ago.”

I blinked. “Okay.”

“I’m so sorry for what I said to you the day you told us you were leaving. I should have never said it, and I didn’t mean it. I’ve regretted it for years but was too stubborn to admit it.”

I wasn’t surprised at my father’s apology. I knew what he’d said was out of hurt and anger.

“It’s okay,” I assured him. “I forgave you the moment you said it.”

My father’s shoulders sagged a little. “I’ve missed you, my love.”

I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat. “I’ve missed you too, Dad. I know it doesn’t seem that way, but I have. I just . . . it’s very hard to be here.”

“I know, sweetie, I know.”

Did he really? my mind whispered.

I glanced at him. “You do?”

“Of course.” He nodded. “You think Kale got off easy for driving you out of the country?”