The Love We Missed novel · Chapter 14 of 24

Chapter 14: Asleep in the Truck

The door opened on the chain.

Patrick's face looked out through the gap, creased from the pillow.

"Aileen? What the hell?"

"Open the door."

"It's three in the morning."

"I know. I used to wait up till two for you every night. I can do three."

Behind him, a woman's voice asked who it was.

He sighed through his nose and slid the chain off.

He was in his boxers and a pair of black socks.

The apartment behind him was all white couches and ring lights and a framed print that said BLESSED in gold script.

Bria came up behind him in a silk robe, holding her phone.

Of course she was holding her phone.

"Is Nellie okay?" Patrick said.

It was the first time I'd heard him ask that in a year.

"Nellie's asleep at my sister's." I held up my own phone with the album open. "Who wrote these?"

He squinted at the screen.

Then he saw the little green bubbles, and the date, and his own old number.

His face went blank for one second.

Then he laughed.

It wasn't a nervous laugh.

He laughed.

"Oh my God," he said. "He finally told you."

"Say it."

"Say what? You know." He leaned on the doorframe. "Ciaran. Every night, on the ten o'clock break. I slept, he typed. He was better at it."

Bria laughed too.

It was a little giggle behind her hand, and she looked at Patrick to see if that was the right thing.

"Wait," she said. "His brother wrote your love letters?"

"Texts," Patrick said. "Hundreds of them. She used to read them to me." He grinned. "You'd quote that porch swing one at me every anniversary. Someday you're getting a house with a porch swing. Every single year, with the wine."

"And you let me."

"What was I supposed to say? Actually, that was my brother?" He shrugged. "You married me, Aileen. Not the phone."

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