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My lips whisper up her neck, damp with sweat that’s salty on my probing tongue. “You’re the only person who makes me feel safe. Did you know that? The only person who understands me, puts me in my place, and challenges me to be better.”
Her heart thunders against mine when she kisses beneath my ear. “You’re reading my thoughts.”
I hold her tighter, burying my face in the crook of her neck.
“I love you, too,” she says after a while. Wiggling her fingers in front of our faces, she beams. “I promise to take good care of this, and even better care of you.”
“Good. Because once we leave for the States to start the semester, I’m going to put in a request to transfer.”
Her palm flattens over my heart, a look of sheer relief on her sun-kissed face. “You are?”
“Yup. And when we graduate, I’m gonna get you your own ring, and give you all those babies you’re wanting.” I kiss her tempting lips. “With lots of practice, of course.”
She squirms happily. “There’s a wedding in there somewhere, I hope.”
Our future unfolds one layer at a time in my mind, and it’s so beautiful, it chokes the breath from my lungs. “Only if you promise not to wear white.”
Her laugh bounces off every corner of the barn. “Deal. Now come shower with me.”
Hard-pressed to deny her, I release her long enough for us to dress, grabbing her hand the second we make it down the ladder.
She bounces on the balls of her bare feet, stretching to place a kiss on my cheek. “Dad’s going to kill us for blowing off our chores.”
“If we shower quick enough, we can at least make it look like we tried.”
I help her roll the barn doors open while she carries on about what we should make for dinner tonight, and as we cross the lawn to her family’s home, I follow behind her like a lovesick pup.
The sun is high in the sky, the wind is cool against my skin, and I fall right back into what a future with her could look like. Her in a wild, Penelope-esque dress, and me, crying at the altar. Her, with her belly full every night with the meals we’d cook together, then full with our child once we take that leap. I’d build her dream house, and every night, I’d come home and worship her, cherish her, be completely consumed by her. And best of all, we’d be happy.
“Oh,” she says, stopping to pat her dress. She shoves her hands inside her pockets, only to come up empty. “Dang it. I think I left my phone up in the loft.”
Glancing back at the barn, I say, “I’ll grab it and then meet you upstairs.”
“Thank you.” She gives my ass a firm squeeze. Then, like the seductress she is, she says, “Don’t be long.”
Unable to help myself, I watch her in her flowing pink sundress as she takes the steps up the porch to the front door. She slips inside, hurriedly, and when I double back to the barn, I’m on cloud fucking nine.
Nothing, and no one, can ruin this day.
I’m so lost in my mind that I don’t hear the footsteps rushing up behind me. There’s no time to react before a heavy hand clamps around my neck and jerks my head down.
I see his shoes first—the expensive ones he’s been wearing into town lately—followed by his perfectly pressed, borrowed suit.
“I’m only going to ask you once.” My father’s voice is ice-cold and dripping with disdain. “What were you just doing with Patrick’s daughter?”
“Her name’s Penelope,” I grunt, struggling to free myself. “And I wasn’t doing anything.”
He shoves me away from him, hard enough that my feet slide through the gravel. Panicked, I look to the front drive where I spot Patrick’s vehicle, fearful that he’s coming for me, too.
Noticing my shifty stare he says,“Your mother’s keeping them preoccupied while I deal with you.”
“There’s nothing going on. I-I was just finishing some chores.”
With one hand pinching his brows, he says, “I knew that girl was trouble. Now I can’t trust you to be alone while I take care of business.”
The disgust in his tone makes me defensive. Like he doesn’t think Penelope is good enough. Like she’s a problem, when really, she’s everything.
“What are you talking about?” My heart thunders, desperate for him to believe me. Desperate for him to not take me away from her.
