COMPLETE ✓| Charlotte Hastings found herself between a rock and a hard place when she aged out of the foster system. With only a car to her name, she set out on the open road, hoping to find long lost relatives. Winter hits her hard. When she meets...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
CHAPTER TEN | THE OTHER SHOE
Charlotte Hastings
As I woke up, I slowly began to feel a weight around my waist and a warmth radiating through me. My eyes fluttered open to see Eli still lying next to me, fast asleep. I snuggled further into his chest and pulled the covers up around me as the cold morning air nipped at my skin. My lips tingled as I remembered the kiss we shared, how it made butterflies dance in the pit of my stomach and all my thoughts disappear. But they weren't absent now.
Part of me expected Eli to run for the hills when I told him about never being adopted. He had to be thinking, what's so wrong with her that no one ever wanted her? It's what I thought for the majority of my life.
My stuffed bear, Herbert brought back so many memories. He was there for it, every sleepless night and every tear. He reminded me that there was someone out there who loved me and Eli brought him back to me.
I closed my eyes and sighed, waiting for the other shoe to drop and for my world to be torn out from under me. As much as I liked it here, I knew that it couldn't last forever. Eli would decide that I wasn't enough for him, that where I came from made me too different. Even if he didn't I'd still be leaving when my car was fixed and I wasn't sure I'd come back.
One of us was bound to get hurt. It was inevitable.
Eli began to stir and his arm tightened around my waist. Suddenly I felt trapped and the familiar urge to run away.
"Morning beautiful," he whispered as his eyes flickered open. My body relaxed as I heard his voice and looked into his eyes. Maybe this time is different, I told myself. Of course, I'd caught myself thinking those exact words a thousand times before. "What time is it?"
I looked across him and over at the clock that was sitting on the nightstand. "It's quarter after seven."
He groaned and kissed the top of my head before pulling himself out of bed. "We should get ready for work."
I watched as he walked to the closet and picked out clothes for the day. For a second Eli glanced back at me, his eyes locking with mine. Blush cascaded onto my cheeks and I pulled the blankets up over my smiling face, embarrassed. In the past, I'd never let a guy have such an effect on me but a few days with Eli and my walls were crashing down.
He noticed and climbed back into bed, pulling the sheets away from my face. "I love when you smile," he muttered, giving me a wink. His comment only made me blush more.
"Eli," my voice was barely audible as I spoke and my heart began to race. I reached forward and laid my hand on his chest, pushing him back slightly.
