Always There

Chapter Thirty-Eight

She's not wearing any makeup, and honestly, I don't remember the last time I've even seen her touch makeup. I mean, there's nothing wrong with makeup and I would never ask her to stop wearing it, but since I know that she used to hide behind makeup, I'm pretty fucking happy that she's stopped wearing it.

"Does this feel like home?" I ask her.

She doesn't even have to consider the question for very long before she nods her head at me. "Yeah. It does."

I smile down at the precious girl in front of me with twinkling hazel eyes and the most beautiful laugh I've ever heard. I reach one hand up to cup her cheek, brushing my thumb against her lips. She carefully reaches for her face as well, her small hand covering mine.

I part her lips with my thumb so that my finger slips inside of her mouth. She gently sucks, staring up at me with wide eyes.

Once I pull my thumb out, she leans her face into my hand. She blinks up at me for a few moments before walking a little bit closer to me. She's so small and she looks so innocent despite the fact that I know that that pretty mouth is capable of wicked things.

"It is okay for my friends to come over though, right? Because I think that they're already on their way," Blossom whispers.

I nod at her, watching as her hands drop to her sides. I take the opportunity to brush my knuckles against her face, stroking her cheekbone softly until her eyes flutter shut and she lets out a mewl.

"You're allowed to have friends over whenever you'd like, Blossom. Would you be mad if I invited my friends over?" I reply.

She shakes her head at me and so I press a kiss to her forehead before heading out of the room. "I'm going to grab that last box and then we're all done for now."

She gives me a reassuring nod and smile as I head out of the room to retrieve the last box.

Lexi's POV

The curtains in the bedroom are still drawn shut from when we went to sleep last night and so I make my way across the room. I yank the curtains open to reveal the breathtaking view of downtown New York City that he's been lucky enough to wake up to for the past several months.

I feel like I'm the luckiest girl alive right now. I'm currently attending my dream university in my dream city, and I've just moved in with the most perfect boyfriend in the whole entire universe. I'm so lucky to have known my soulmate my entire life and at times like this, I'm thankful that I'll never have to let Bryce go.

I take a look down at my current attire, a cherry red sweatshirt that nearly falls down to my knees and a plain pair of jeans. I don't think that the girl I was last year would feel comfortable walking around dressed so casually, but it seems as though Bryce's clothes have become my preference.

I hear Bryce's footsteps become louder and louder as he enters the room again. I hear the soft thud of the box that he's carrying against the floor before the closet door shuts. When I turn around, he's heading directly towards me.

"Is everything all right? Are you starting to regret this already?" Bryce asks. I can tell that his question is genuine and that he isn't trying to mock me whatsoever.

Rather than giving him a verbal response, I bridge the gap between Bryce and I by pulling him into a firm hug.

My arms wrap around his waist and I bury my face into his chest. He smells like cinnamon and vanilla and home and I've become fairly certain that there's no place in the world that I'd rather be other than in his arms.