“And Luan? I am so proud of you for not doing it,” he says. He’s talking about me trying to manipulate his friends, I’m sure.
I fall right into his arms to hug him, wrap my arms tightly around him to feel him that tiny bit closer. Also because I know this is going to be one of our last hugs for a while.
Hearing Grey say he’s proud of me tops every single other “I’m proud of you” fromanyoneelse, even the ones from my parents. And it’s not even the first time he’s said it.
Am I going to ruin the moment by asking about why he shut me out just a few minutes ago? I really want to know, but I also don’t want to start an argument the day before I have to leave.
But I mean, if he’s still in love with his ex, I should know, right? I don’t want to be with someone who’s still hung up on their ex-partner. But Grey also doesn’t strike me as the man who’d be hung up onanyone.
“Just ask,” Grey speaks softly, apparently being able to read my mind. “You barely know how to keep your mouth shut, Luan. Don’t start now.”
It makes me smile but I don’t know why. “Why does the topic of your ex upset you so much?”
If we started talking about my ex-boyfriend, I’d laugh about it because I know I deserved way better than a wannabe poet who rhymes chaos with Laos in a poem about music, and then cheats on me.
“It’s not my ex who upsets me, but the reason we broke up, because I don’t wantusto end the same way.”
“Why’d you break up?” I pull away from the hug to look him in the eyes.
He hesitates to answer, which then tells me this can’t be any good. And it’s not. “Because he wanted to meet my parents and as you know, that’s pretty much impossible. Then he made me choose between him and my family.”
“You chose family like anybody else would.”
Grey nods. “I couldn’t give him the relationship he wanted. We always kept it on the downlow because of me and he hated that. I couldn’t love him openly, so yeah, the only times I was affectionate inpublicwas whenever I was drunk. I told my friends he didn’t want the whole PDA stuff, which was bullshit. And I just don’t want that to happen to us, you know?”
My smile widens, mostly because Grey basically told me he doesn’t want to keep me a secret, that he doesn’t want us to breakup even in the future. I mean, I guess you don’t start a relationship thinking about how and when you’ll breakup, but still, it makes me happy to hear he doesn’t want us to go separate ways.
“I told you, Grey Davis, I like secrets. And I don’t mind being one.”
He groans, like he did the first time I said this. “I don’t want you to be a secret, Luan. You’re my boyfriend, and I’m going to treat you like one. If I could, I’d introduce you to my parents but since that’s impossible, I’ll introduce you to my sister instead, once we find a day for all three of us to meet. And yes, I know you’ve met her before, but that was without me. I also don’t want to hide you from the public just because I’m afraid of what they’ll say, or hide you only because I know my father will see the pictures of us together.”
He pauses, and I can see on his face that he’s just realizing something, so I don’t speak.
“You know what? The next time I’m in Malibu, Iwilltake you to meet my mother. She’d be happy for me but she can’t say it because of my dad. And if my dad’s there, hell, I’ll introduce you. He won’t like you, but I don’t give a shit.”
My features soften so much, I can feel it happening. “You’d do that for me, Grey Davis?”
“I’d do just about anything for you.”
Chapter 10
“I know that you’re the feeling I’m missing”—If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes
October 2025
I enter the locker roomin time to hear my best friends talk about Miles, what exactly they’re saying, I have no idea, but I did hear Miles’s name leave Aaron’s mouth.
We’ve been stuck in Michigan for a few days now thanks to a snowstorm. No planes are landing or taking off, so we have been forced to stay. And the team decided it would be a great idea to organize a charity skate for kids. As in we’re supposed to teach kids up to the age of thirteen how to skate and play ice hockey. I am not a good coach, I don’t think, how am I supposed to teach a kid anything?
But I do have to say, this whole thing is great publicity, and it does make the team look better.
“Miles?” I say when I finally decide to walk inside the locker room. I set my bag down on one of the benches and turn my attention to Aaron and Colin. “I don’t think anyone could get close to Miles.”
Aaron snorts but agrees. I still don’t know what exactly we’re talking about. At least until Aaron tells me. “Our princess asked my sister to marry him.”
My eyes widen drastically, my jaw now on the floor.Definitely not coming close to Miles. “You did not!”
I know Aaron and Sofia got married sometime before March this year, they just refuse to tell anyone yet, God knows why. They’re not exactly hiding it, both of them wear a ring, but neither of them have said a word about it.
