Love Calmed the Storm

Chapter 11

***Present Day***

The sun was starting to set as we had spent longer than I realized out in the woods together. Just being with him time seemed to stand still, but the sun going down said otherwise.

"I remember that night like it was yesterday." Seth said with a dreamy kind of look in his eyes. We had finally stopped kissing, making out like we were teenagers again.

"I'll never forget it." I rubbed my shoulder as the spring breeze blew, the sun was now barely visible to the west of us. I buttoned up my cardigan as I deeply breathed in the scent of pine trees being blown all around us.

Seth sighed. "Since I've been back here with you everything feels like it has fallen right into place. Up until now it felt like it had been a lifetime ago, since I'd been here with you and this town that welcomed me with open arms. I thought you would have forgotten about me by now. I guess that's why I had waited so long."

I looked him in his hazels, streaks of colors telling a story he hadn't told me yet. I lightly kissed his lips. "I've never forgotten you or that weekend." Tears filled my eyes and my lashes were dewy with years of sadness I had been holding on to. "You may have felt like you were damaged goods because of how your dad treated you but I saw you for who you are. This town saw you for you. Now look at you." Tears starting to form. I wish he could see himself the way I see him.

  I gently wiped a tear that had slid down my face. The look on Seth's face told me he knew that I was right. But he knew I wanted more. I wanted and needed some kind of answers. More than anything I was glad he was back, no matter why he waited so long.

"Lace, I want to give you the answers you need. I really do, and I will. Is it wrong that I just want to stay in this place forever here with you?" His grin made me melt as he said those words. Forever with you.

  I stood from his lap as I looked around the old beautiful pines and oak trees. Each tree having this amazing story to tell if only they could speak, and all I wanted Seth to do was to speak his truth. He was holding back something.

  As the sun went behind the trees, the sky darkened and for a moment it looked like rain. Knowing I shouldn't push him for answers now I said, "It's getting late, I better be getting back. Claudia would kill me if I didn't work tomorrow. " Seth had a look of slight disappointment on his face.

"At least let me walk you home to make sure you make it back okay?" His smile returned as I agreed.

  We held hands on walk home as we continued to talk, mostly about my writing. He loved that I had decided to follow my dream of writing. He had remember how important that was to me even back then. I told him how frustrated I had been in the last couple of years. I found it a little strange that he never further questioned what I had gone through to make me feel that way. Maybe I wasn't ready to talk about it either. Maybe he sensed that? At some point it would have to come up about Noah, about our relationship, the accident and his death. They had been buddies while Seth was here. Honestly, I was surprised he hadn't asked about him yet.

  We even talked a little more about the boutique, he just couldn't let the cat thing go. Looking back I should have known with the whole "cat bit" at the boutique that it was him. It's no wonder I felt the connection that I had with him when he came in yesterday. We always had such fun giving each other a hard time, in a flirty way. It was one of the things that drew me to him, his witty personality. He's always found my sarcasm endearing, so he says.

"This is me." I said as I looked up from the bottom of the brick stairs to the red painted door that was decorated with a stain glass window at the top. I wanted to invite him in, believe me. Every single ounce of my body was screaming to invite him in. It had already been a big day for both of us, full of emotion. 

I continued on, " I would invite you in but.." Seth stopped me before I could finish, while running his hands through his perfect hair.

  He grabbed my hand lovingly and kissed the back of it. "I'm not going anywhere Lace, we don't need to rush. When you wake up tomorrow, I'll still be here. Promise." He held up his pinky like he wanted me to pinky promise him.

  I laughed as I realized he actually really wanted to pinky promise me. As I went in closer to interlock our pinkies he swooped in for one last kiss goodnight, a kiss that if I didn't believe that he would still be here tomorrow, it would have lasted a lifetime.

This was the second day more than nothing happened....

**Omg!!! Yay!!! Finally got this chapter done!! LOL!!! Thanks for hanging in there with me!! What are you guys thinking about this chapter? Will Lacey and Seth finally have a conversation about what happened over the past few years? What will Seth's reaction be when he finds out about Noah? Please vote and comment:)**