On His Knees by Tabatha Kiss
Chapter 67
Jenna
Iset my empty weekender on the top shelf of my closet where it belongs. It didn’t take long to unpack it. Seth and I were only there for one night, but it left me with dozens upon dozens of memories that I’ll surely revisit again and again for a while.
This was a good idea.
The best idea.
“Hey, you’re back!”
I flinch at Heidi’s very sudden presence in my doorway. “I’m back,” I confirm.
She leans on the frame. “Did you have a good night?”
The best night ever, actually.
“It was fine,” I say, playing it cool. “How about you? Not too lonely?”
She scoffs. “Nah. I actually watched a really interesting medical documentary.”
“Oh, yeah?” I pique. “What was it about?”
“Uh... pig transplants or... something. Didn’t understand a word of it, but I was hoping you could dumb it down for me a bit. Really entertaining, though.”
I chuckle. “I’ll be happy to check it out.”
“Coffee?”
“Yeah. Just going to get changed first.”
Her head tilts as she looks at my ears. “New earrings?” she asks.
I touch the pearls on my lobes. “Oh, uh... no,” I answer. “I found them in the back of my jewelry box. Old gift from my dad, I think. Probably.”
“They look cute.”
“Thanks.”
Heidi hops off down the hallway. I glance at myself in the mirror, pushing my hair back behind my ears with a soft smile as another lovely wave of memories fills my mind.
Seth. Seth. Seth.
Something taps my window. I spin around and startle, shaken by a face staring at me through the glass.
Seth?
Two more taps and he smiles, the bottom half of his face just barely visible as he stretches higher than the windowsill.
Fucking hell, Seth.
I rush to close my door, peeking out to confirm Heidi’s location before latching it. Seth smiles wide, quite proud of that fact that he spooked me yet again. He’s still wearing his work clothes from last night. Did he even go home?
“Seth,”I whisper as I slide my window open. “What are you doing? Heidi’s right down the hall.”
“I had to see you,” he simply says as he looks up at me.
“Why?”
I study his slightly panicked expression a little closer now. He’s out of breath with a thin layer of sweat on his forehead. Did something happen? Oh, god...
Am I getting dumped?
“Seth, what’s going on?” I ask, my stomach tying in knots.
Seth takes a moment. He looks me in the eye and stands a little taller on the grass.
“I love you.”
My breath catches. “What?”
“I love you,” he says again.
I… what?
“Seth...”
“You don’t have to say it back,” he says. “I just had to say it to you, now.”
“Why?” The word cracks in my throat.
“Because when you know you know. And I realized I knew, even when I didn’t know that I knew... I love you, Jenna.”
I swallow hard, but my throat runs dry again. Seth Newbury... loves me? Love as in... extreme like? As in that deep, mushy emotion that makes otherwise smart people do stupid, irrational things? Do I...
“Jenna?”
Do I love him, too?
I blink. “Hm?”
Seth steps closer to the window and extends his hand. I reach for it without thinking, just needing to touch him. To feel him. To be close to him again.
Is that love? Or is there more to it than that?
Shouldn’t I know?
What does he know that I don’t?
“I, uh...” My voice tightens again. He stares back at me, awaiting my reply. “I’m not sick of you yet.”
Wait, what?
What the fuck?
Why did I say that?!
Why couldn’t I say it?
Thankfully, Seth grins. He kisses the back of my hand and then holds it against his cheek. “That’s better than I expected, actually.”
I laugh, unable to do anything else. “Seth, I’m...”
“I know,” he says, giving my hand a squeeze as he takes a step back. “I gotta go.”
I hold on to him for as long as possible. “Seth,” I say again.
His smile never falls. “I know.”
I lean over, sticking my head out the window. He pushes up on the tips of his toes, meeting me in the middle. I kiss him. He kisses my cheeks. We cling to each other, wanting so much more, but the risk is too great.
“I gotta go,” he whispers, his happy lips caressing mine.
I shift back, letting him go. But he’ll be back.
“Be seeing you,” I say.
Seth smiles. “Be seeing you.”
He takes off around the house, being careful not to expose himself to any other windows as he races down the street.
I close the window. I lower to the carpet, my knees failing me.
“Son of a bitch,”I whisper.