Carolina Days: Yesterday's Half Truths Part 30

I press my finger to his lips, silencing him. "I've interacted with thousands of people virtually. Some of them have made advances, but you are the only person I trusted enough to talk to, then see, and meet. You have to understand how amazing it is that I'm sitting in your lap right now.

"You love me?"

I nod and he captures my lips in a powerful kiss, stealing my breath.

"Rise and s.h.i.+ne, birthday girl."

I duck my head and snuggle closer into his side.

"Come on, Mi Amor."

Mi Amor.

His Love.

Since the post went live, so much has happened. Some good, some bad, a lot in between, but all of it with Luke by my side. There were comments and private messages that made me cry happy tears as I printed them to tack to my wall. Unfortunately, there were also horrific, hateful comments and private messages that made me fear for my safety.

In more than one instance, I received a threat so vile I had to contact my local police department. I had to get a security alarm and even though the reason for him doing so sucked, Luke and Loki moved in with me. It meant him leaving a gym he loved working at, for one closer to my house.

Luckily, given his role on that reality show, he had no problem gaining new clients. For the clients he couldn't give up, he has one dedicated day for them where he drives out to his old gym.

There's a chance at some point in the future we'll move closer to Raleigh. For now, with all of the changes I'm working through, Luke has been understanding as to why I'm not ready to try living somewhere new.

The police investigation into some of the threats is still ongoing. Luckily, the majority of them I received originated from overseas and the users backed down and were apologetic once they were informed the authorities had been contacted. I don't know what it is about the internet that inspires evil in some people.

The volume of responses to my post was overwhelming. So much so, I took an extended vacation from the blog while I dealt with it all.

I had been contacted by just about every major television and print media outlet for an interview. Sadly, I wasn't the only one they contacted.

One morning, I became physically ill after watching Missy Pollard on a nationally syndicated morning news show. She talked about how close we were and how she supported me through my body image struggles.

After calming down, I finally shared with Luke the reason I dropped out of college and stopped leaving my house in the first place. I'd never seen Luke so angry. He questioned whether what Hank and Missy did to me was a.s.sault.

I tried to argue that I had never said no and I thought I was in love with Marc/Hank. He asked me if I would have given Hank my virginity if I had known who he truly was. No, I wouldn't have.

With Luke's help, I found a new therapist and see her twice a month. For so long, I had used my blog to define my self-worth. In therapy, I am working toward being my own master.

Luke's technique to get me out of bed escalates to tickling. This backfires though as his touch goes from teasing to demanding. Instead of us getting out of bed, we manage to spend the next thirty minutes delightfully off schedule.

Afterward, still kissing my neck, Luke grumbles. "People are going to start showing up at noon whether we're ready or not."

"We can save time and share a shower," I joke.

He laughs. "That never ends up saving us any time."

He makes a good point.

"I don't need to wash my hair so why don't you go first and I'll walk Loki."

"Are you sure? It's cold out."

I kiss him before easing out from under him. "Yes, now go before I change my mind."

I clean up quickly, brush my teeth and wash my face before I pull on a pair of jogging pants, a hoodie, and some thick boots. Loki and I take a slow lap around the soccer fields. Usually, Luke and I walk him together, but to save time, it's just me today.

Luke is throwing me a birthday party at our house with all of our family and some of his friends. A year ago, I would have been in full-blown panic mood. A year ago, I also wouldn't believe I could be walking my live-in boyfriend's dog after a morning of wake-up s.e.x.

The only constant in life is change. Instead of freaking out, I'll go home and get ready. Then I'll open my door to a group of people who are happy to celebrate my growing another year older.

When we get back, I leave my boots on the front step because the track was muddy. "Honey, can you grab me a towel for Loki's paws?"

"Sure. Give me a sec," Luke calls out from our bedroom.

He walks out moments later with a towel, s.h.i.+rtless, a pair of faded jeans riding low on his hips. Will the punch in my gut I feel just looking at him ever go away?

He crouches down in front of me and starts wiping off Loki's paws. "Go grab your shower. I'll take care of the dog."

I lean over to kiss his cheek as I pa.s.s. I washed my hair yesterday so using dry shampoo saves me time getting ready. Coco curls up in the sink and waits for me to make the water drip on her. Crazy cat.

We aren't doing anything fancy, so I pull on a long red tunic and some fitted jeans I can easily tuck into my dark brown riding boots. I'm wearing red just for Luke.

Luke is in the kitchen and I'm still putting on my makeup when the first guest shows. Thankfully, it's Sasha, who keeps me company while I finish up. I had been scared things would be different between us after the blog post; that she'd be angry with me for not telling her sooner.

She has been nothing but understanding and supportive. I'm grateful we've been able to form a friends.h.i.+p offline as well. I love hanging out with her and listening to the dramatic ups and downs of her love life.

She catches me up while Luke gets things ready in the kitchen. As much as Luke loves his little sister, sending her to help him in the kitchen would only result in them bickering over which way to do whatever needed to be done.

Last night, I made a giant fruit salad while Luke chopped up veggies. We have a tabletop indoor grill he is prepping chicken skewers for. Giant perk to Luke moving in is his skills in the kitchen. My man makes healthy eating look s.e.xy as h.e.l.l.

As guests start showing, Sasha mans the front door. Luke catches on to the fact I am hiding out in the kitchen with him. Knowing I feel less overwhelmed around people if he is with me, he stops what he's doing and pulls me out to the living room to be social.

Luke's mom picked up my parents on the way. It's hard for them to drive. My mom has been dealing with some health issues and the medication she's on makes her drowsy. My dad was so busy taking care of her that he didn't think to tell anyone his eyesight was failing. He has had one surgery, which seems to have helped stop any further degeneration but his night vision is bad.

With the days being shorter this time of year, he avoids driving in the late afternoon. Luke must have gotten his selflessness from his mother because when he mentioned going to pick them up for the party, she offered to do it instead.

When they all walk in, my mouth waters when I see what my mom is carrying. A homemade chocolate cake topped with chocolate icing.

I lean against Luke and whisper, "Cheat day?"

His nose tickles my ear as he replies, "Birthday girl gets whatever she wants today."

Standing here, with Luke's arms wrapped snug around me, I look around my living room. Seeing it filled with people who care about me, I know I already have everything I want.

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www.careyheywood.com.

The Carolina Days Series.

The Other Side of Someday.

Yesterday's Half Truths.

The Him & Her Series.

Him.

Her Them (coming soon).

Sawyer Says (Spin off) Being Neighborly (Spin off).

Standalones.

A Bridge of Her Own.

Uninvolved.

Stages of Grace.

Better.

First and foremost, I want to thank my readers. You guys are so amazingly supportive. Thank you so much for coming out to meet me at signings and for the messages and notes you send me online, I treasure them all. A special shout out and tackle hug to all my Keep Calm and Carey On friends.

To Peggy and Becky with Hot Tree editing, thank you so much for polis.h.i.+ng my words and giving me the confidence to know my story will s.h.i.+ne through despite my love/hate relations.h.i.+p with punctuation.

To Toski Covey for taking the beautiful picture on my cover and Sarah Hansen of Okay Creations for taking an already gorgeous image and making it even more amazing as my cover.

To Tami of Integrity Formatting, thank you for making my ebooks and paperbacks so beautiful.

To Lea from The Hype, thank you for helping me find my audience. Marketing is a struggle and you do it with style.

To Melissa Collins, Jennifer Berg and Heidi McLaughlin. You guys were the first authors to read and embrace this story. It's different from what I've previously written which is scary. Thank you for holding my hand and encouraging me to not fear the different and remain true to the story that was in my heart.

My love and grat.i.tude to my betas; Melissa, Jennifer, Nasha, Nicola, Kristy, Amy, and Judy. Thank you so much for your love and support.

Lastly, to my family, thank you for allowing me to escape into my world of words when the people start talking in my head. Particularly my husband who ensures I'm fed and hydrated during any marathon stretches at my computer.

end.