:


    <b>86 </b>


    55 vouchers


    As soon as we walked in, Nathan stood up. “Mariah, do you want me to help your husband get to his room?”


    Mariah smiled. “It’s fine, let him sleep here for a while. Nathan, do you want to get some rest? I’ve already made up the bed for you.”


    Nathan nodded. “Thank you, Mariah. I appreciate it.”


    I led Nathan upstairs to my room, which had its own bathroom. When he walked in, he noticed it was stocked with all kinds of women’s toiletries.


    Nathan shot me a teasing look. “So, this is your room?”


    I nodded. “Yep. My brother’s room doesn’t have a private bathroom, so Yvonne and I will crash there tonight. You get my room.”


    “Alright!” Nathan’s smile grew even wider, and he stepped out, taking a good look around and soaking in all the details of my room.


    Finally, he sat downzily in front of my vanity, fiddling with an old bottle of nail polish I’d left there. “Victoria, did you used to live here?”


    I shook my head. “No, this is the vi Jared bought for my parents before we got married. Before that, we lived in a pretty old house.”


    Nathan let out a soft “oh” and didn’t say anything else, just watching me steadily through the mirror.


    I was making up the bed for him, and when I looked up, our eyes met in the reflection.


    My cheeks flushed, and I couldn’t quite put my finger on the feeling. This was once the ce Jared and I called home. He used to sit right there, messing with that same bottle of nail polish I could never bring myself


    to toss.


    Now, seeing Nathan in that spot was a total shock to my system–it sent my heart into a tailspin.


    Sometimes, I’d catch myself thinking selfishly, ‘What if Nathan really is my future?‘


    He was young, sessful, and ridiculously good–looking. But more than that, he was the perfect gentleman, always so polite and considerate. And he loved me… Just one breakup from me, and he went gray overnight.


    Thinking about all this, my hands slowed down, and I just kind of spaced out, lost in my own head.


    Nathan’s voice came from behind me, “Spacing out again?” Suddenly, I realized a tall figure was right behind <ol><li>me. </li></ol>


    I startled, snapped out of it, and instinctively stepped back.


    But I ended up leaning right into Nathan’s arms, and he pulled me into a gentle embrace.


    <b>86 </b>


    55 vouchers.


    “Victoria, meeting your parents and sleeping in your room… Sounds like we’re doing all the things married couples do,” Nathan murmured.


    His deep, teasing voice and warm breath brushed against the back of my neck.


    His breath sent tingles all over me, leaving me flustered and my mind inplete chaos.


    But I knew better than to mess around with feelings like this again.


    Even if he was stirring up all sorts of wild fantasies in my head, I had to keep my cool and stay rational.


    “Nathan, if you think this is a bit much, I can take you to a hotel instead…” I said with a smile, trying to lighten the mood and break the tension.


    “No way!” Nathan refused without hesitation. The next moment, he lounged back, making himselffortable on my bed, propping his head up on his left arm as he looked at me. “I’m sleeping right here.”


    I couldn’t help but notice how tall and lean he looked, just lying there on my bed–there was something effortlessly maic about him.


    I couldn’t trust myself to look at him for even another second. “So, after you shower, just get some sleep, okay? I’m heading downstairs to sleep with Yvonne.”


    Seeing me make my escape, I heard Nathan’s low chuckle follow me out the door.


    That night, I slept like a rock. Maybe it was just having Yvonne in my arms–holding her close gave me a sense of peace I hadn’t felt in a long time.


    The next morning, I drove my dad’s car and took Yvonne and Nathan out for breakfast.


    I purposely swung by my old high school, and just as I expected, the hill behind the old building had been leveled and new buildings were going up–cranes were everywhere, busy with construction.


    Noticing me staring in that direction, Nathan smiled and asked, “Feeling nostalgic about your old school?”


    I gave him an embarrassed smile. “<i>Sort </i>of. My mom taught here for years, and honestly, I’ve been at this school since elementary.”


    Nathan let out a soft “oh.” “Must be full of memories for you.”


    I took them to the breakfast ce I used to go to by the school, but it looked like the owner had changed. It wasn’t the warm, friendly, chubby middle–aged woman I remembered.


    Some folks at the next table were talking about the new buildings going up at the school. One of them said, “I heard the two new buildings already have names. One’s called Admira Hall, and the other’s Reminiscence Hall. Kinda weird names, but apparently, that’s what the charity wanted.”


    “If you ask me, they should’ve gone with something more traditional, like Integrity Hall or Aspiration Hall,” another person chimed in.


    I was just taking a spoonful of nut milk when I overheard the conversation behind me. I suddenly froze,


    :


    staring hard in the direction of the new buildings.


    <b>86 </b>


    55 vouchers


    AD