I put the card back inside the enve

I put the card back inside the envelope and watch as Lake rubs her hands across the glass, spinning it around to view it from all angles. “I saw her making these once. When I walked into her room, she was folding strips of paper up and she stopped and put it aside as we talked. I forgot about it. I forgot all about it. This must have taken her forever.”
 
She stares at the stars and I stare at her. She wipes more tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. She’s holding it together well, all things considered.
 
“I want to read them all, but at the same time I hope we never need to read them at all,” she says.
 
I lean forward and give her a quick kiss. “You are as amazing as your mother.” I take the vase out of her hands and walk it to the dresser and set it down. Lake takes the box and shoves the wrapping paper inside and sets it on the floor. She puts the card on the table, and then lies back on the bed. I lie down beside her, turn toward her and rest my arm over her waist. “You okay?” I ask her. I can’t tell if she’s sad.
 
She looks at me and smiles. “I thought it would hurt to hear her words again, but it didn’t. It actually made me happy,” she says.
 
“Me too,” I say. “I was really worried it was a puppy.”
 
She laughs and lays her head on my arm. We lay there in silence watching each other. I run my hand up her arm and trace her face and neck with my fingertips. I love watching her think.
 
She eventually lifts her head off my arm and slides on top of me, placing her hands on the back of my neck. She leans in and slowly parts my lips with hers. I become quickly consumed by the taste of her lips and the feel of her warm hands. I wrap my arms around her and run my fingers through her hair as I return her kiss. It’s been so long since we’ve been alone together without the possibility of being interrupted. I hate being in this predicament-but then again I love being in this predicament. Her skin is so soft, her lips are perfect. It gets harder and harder to retreat every time.
 
She runs her hands underneath my shirt and lightly teases my neck with her mouth. She knows this drives me crazy, yet she’s been doing it more and more lately. I think she likes pushing her boundaries. One of us needs to retreat…and I don't know if I can bring myself to do it. Apparently, neither can she.
 
“How much time do we have?” she whispers. She lifts up my shirt and her lips make their way down to my chest.
 
“Time?” I say weakly.
 
“Until the boys get home.” She slowly kisses her way back up to my neck again. “How long do we have until they get home?” She brings her face back to mine and looks at me. I can see by the look in her eyes that she’s telling me she’s not retreating.
 
I bring my arm over my face and cover my eyes. I try to talk myself down. This isn’t how I want it to be for her. Think about something else, Will. Think about college, homework, puppies in cardboard boxes…anything.
 
She pulls my arm away from my face so she can look me in the eyes. “Will…it’s been a year. I want to.”
 
I roll her onto her back and prop my head up on my elbow and lean in toward her, stroking her face with my other hand. “Lake, believe me…I’m ready, too. But not here. Not right now. You’ll just have to go home in an hour when the boys get back and I don’t think I could take it.” I kiss her on the forehead. “In two weeks we get a three day weekend…we’ll go away together. Just the two of us. I’ll see if my grandparents will watch the boys and we can spend the whole weekend together.”
 
She kicks her legs up and down on the bed, frustrated. “I can’t wait two more weeks! We’ve been waiting fifty-seven weeks already!”
 
I laugh at her childishness and lean in, planting a kiss on her cheek. “If I can wait, you can definitely wait,” I assure her.
 
She rolls her eyes. “God, you’re such a bore,” she teases.
 
“Oh, I’m a bore?” I say. “You want me to throw you in the shower again? Cool you off? I will if that’s what you need.”
 
“Only if you get in with me,” she says. Her eyes grow wide and she sits up and pushes me flat on my back, leaning over me. “Will!” she says excitedly as a new realization dawns on her. “Does that mean we can take showers together? On our getaway?”
 
Her eagerness surprises me. Everything she does surprises me. “You aren’t nervous?” I ask her.
 
“No, not at all.” She smiles and leans in closer. “I know I’ll be in good hands.”
 
“You will definitely be in good hands,” I say, pulling her to me. Just when I’m about to kiss her again, my phone vibrates. She reaches into my pocket and pulls it out.
 
“Gavin,” she says. She hands the phone to me and rolls off.
 
I read the text. “Great, Kel threw up. They think he has a stomach bug so they’re bringing them home.”
 
She groans and gets off the bed. “Ugh! I hate vomit! Caulder’s probably gonna get it too-the way they pass crap back and forth.”
 
“I’ll text him back and tell him to take Kel to your house.