“I remember that summer, and I also rememberwaitingfor you to say something. Why didn’t you?”
“I wanted to, and I had planned on it, but I was watching you laugh with Ham on the dock about the first time you drove in DC traffic, and you turned toward me. The way the sunset reflected the water in your eyes, it lit up your whole face. You never looked happier, and I just froze. I wanted to tell you how badly I was crushing on you right there, but I was scared it would ruin your excitement for DC. I had these visions of you moving there and becoming important like your mom. I couldn’t fathom you wanting to hold on to anything from your old life. It was best to accept we’d be friends, and I was glad for that at least. I didn’t say it, but yeah, I wanted to.” His voice catches a little before he adds, “I sealed everything away, hoping one day I’d get the chance to at least say something.” His eyes glimmer when he adds, “I need you to know this isn’t casual for me. Even though it feels fast and maybe like I skipped a step to express my feelings so soon, I can’t risk you not knowing you’re everything I’ve ever waited for.”
Understanding exactly how he feels, I smile, surprised by how easy it is to get used to being this close to him. “It’s funny how we were both living that experience. Like, on some level I knew we’d end up together. There was never aniffor me, but there was a hugewhenquestion I could never solve. Just when I thought,this will be the summer, Murphy’s Law would come into play, and one of us would be pulled in another direction for work.”
A weight has been lifted off my chest and breathing is suddenly easier. It’s like all the years I’ve kept this in—every smile I held back and every accidental touch that haunted me—are finally cut loose. When he dips his head again, I’m relaxed and brush my lips against his. We’ve certainly gotten used to kissing each other faster than I’d have expected. There’s nothing awkward, and at the same time, nothing casual about it. Every tug of my lips sparks something electric under my skin. When we break the kiss, he tosses a quick look over his shoulder and whispers, “We’re going to get caught out here.”
I laugh, but it’s strained. “Maybe we need to get caught, so we can move on with our lives.”
“Nah.” He eases back, putting just enough space between us to make it look innocent to anyone passing by. “I don’t want you to have that stress. We can wait so things are easier for you.”
Just then a shadow moves in a way that makes it look like it’s heading straight for us, and my stomach drops. “Should we hide?” I half joke as I frantically search for somewhere to go. He’s one step ahead of me and grabs my hand, yanking me behind a cement wall. We crouch as low as we can without lying down. Honestly, now that we are here, this is worse than getting caught standing next to each other. The wall is only a half wall, and our bodies press together in totally incriminating positions. At this point we’re committed, because if we step out from behind the wall, that’s going to look suspicious. I crouch lower as the figure passes at the slowest pace known to humankind. Inmy painstaking effort to stay perfectly still, I wobble—because, well, I never said I had good balance—and I save myself from toppling over by sliding out my foot to steady myself.
“Ouch!”Ty hisses, grimacing and clutching my ankle.
I look down to find my foot is on his hand, and I mouth, “Sorry,” while trying not to notice how unfairly handsome he is this close. I mean, he has stupidly long lashes that give him this sensitive vibe that makes my pulse skid. If we weren’t hiding from imminent exposure, I would not hold back from kissing him again. Instead, I focus on not breathing too loudly as the person meanders along. We stay frozen, pressed too close behind the smallest wall ever.
Just when I’m about to peek over the wall to see if the coast is clear, a familiar voice cuts through the tension. “Ah! My eyes!” Ham steps behind the wall while slamming a hand over his eyes. “Lottie, this is what you’re doing!”
One side of my brain dials up into panic mode, while the other side crashes with relief knowing it’s just Ham. If there’s one person who has to find us, I’m glad it’s him, especially since he already knows about us.
“This is not only disgusting, but it’s completely irresponsible!” he snaps, while seeming to do his best to keep his voice down as he zeros in on me first from behind parted fingers. “Lottie, I almost went blind. You have to be more careful. Youcannotbe doing this. What if you get caught? Can you imagine how that would look with a photo of you two smashed together all over social media, while Bodan is literally getting ready for a funeral?”
I stand slowly and step toward Ham. “I know. You’re right. This looks bad, but for the record, this wasn’t what we were doing. We were standing here when we saw your shadow. We panicked, fleeing behind the wall without realizing how small it was. We had to smoosh together.”
Ty gets up and brushes his pants off. I have a hunch he doesn’t care if they are dirty, but it’s an awkward moment where he avoids making eye contact with Ham. “How did you even find me?” I look around for a clue I may have left, but it’s dark in this corner of the park.
“Mom has your location on your phone turned on, and she was worried about you being out so late. She was coming to look, but I had a hunch you two were out. I told her I was heading into town anyway.” He wags a finger at me. “You’re lucky I covered for you, but I’m not making this a habit. This was too close of a call.”
“I know.” I start walking back slowly, and Ty and Ham fall into step with me. It’s a little too awkward to say anything in front of Ham, so when we reach the hotel parking lot, I just wave at Ty. “Thanks for tonight. I’ll text you.”
I think he’s going to stay quiet, but instead he leans in close to my ear and whispers, “Always.”
A shiver runs from my ear straight down my spine, as his single word echoes in my head. His mouth curves, just barely, like he’s trying not to smile. He knows exactly what that word means to me, and to us. It’s a lifetime of memories already filed away together.
As I hold his gaze, the teasing drains out of his eyes, replaced with intent that sends a fluttering ache through my stomach. Everything is moving so fast, but after all these years of waiting, I wouldn’t want it any other way. He does what he needs to protect me by disappearing into the hotel entrance, leaving me standing there with a hollow ache in my belly and—Ham, who I avoid looking at like he could turn me to stone. I haven’t done anything wrong, but he’s a reminder of how complicated my life is. It’s the strangest dichotomy; my heart feels both full and heavy all at once.
The night is ending, but my feelings for Ty are far from ending. They are only growing stronger with each stolen kiss.
twenty-nine
Tyson
I’mastealthninjawarrior slipping through the hotel’s door, finding the lobby hushed and dim. Midnight is coming fast, but I’m not the least bit sleepy. My mouth still tingles from Lottie’s soft kisses. I’ve imagined kissing her a million times. Never did I think it would feel like that. Years of wanting packed into one kiss. We just get each other. No awkward fumbling, no searching for a rhythm.
It’s kissing perfection.
Halfway to the elevators, I slam straight into a solid wall of muscle. Or—nope. Not a wall. Just Bryce Chambers, my teammate. “Brah,” I say, looking him up and down. “What are you doing out so late?”
He lifts a crinkly wrapper as evidence. “Snack run.” He pulls a few more packages from the center pocket of his hoodie and grins as he fans them out for me to see. “Emergency beef jerky. Emotional support chocolate. You know, all the necessities.” He looks at my hands hanging at my side. “What about you? What are you doing out?”
“Oh,” I say too fast, and then pat my belly. “Yeah, same. I needed a food run.”
He looks me over and grunts. “Where are your snacks?”
“I ate them already,” I say with exaggerated confidence, which only earns me a suspicious side-eye. We enter into a bit of a stare down.
“Wait a second…” His head tilts as he ponders out loud, “Do you really think I’m that—I think you were out setting up a prank.”
