“Your hand.”
My palm stays pressed against her skin, warm and tense under my thumb. I can feel every shallow breath she takes, every second she hesitates before deciding what to do with it.
She turns her head slightly, just enough that her voice brushes the space between us. “You’re still touching me.”
“I noticed.”
“Are you going to move?”
“Thinking about it.”
Her mouth curves faintly. “That’s new for you.”
The trail is silent except for her breathing and the faint sound of waves in the distance. I can hear people talking behind us, but it’s muffled, distant.
“Maybe you should,” she says, but it doesn’t sound like a suggestion.
I lean in without meaning to. Close enough that my next breath moves her hair against my jaw. “Maybe I don’t want to.”
Her chin lifts. Her blindfold’s still in place, but she’s facing me now, lips parted just enough that it’s suddenly hard to think about anything else.
“Say something,” she whispers.
I don’t. I can’t. The only thing in my head is how easy it would be to close the distance, how stupid it would be, and how I’m probably going to do it anyway.
The muscles in her stomach tighten under my hand. Her fingers twitch near my sleeve.
I move first, but it’s enough.
She breathes out my name, low, quiet, not a plea, not a warning. Just a fact.
And then?—
“See, everyone!” Chad’s voice cracks through the air. “That’s how it’s done!”
Tessa flinches. I step back, fast, letting my hand fall from her waist. She tears off the blindfold and stares at me, cheeks flushed, eyes sharper than they should be.
I look at her mouth, then at the ground.
“Great timing,” I mutter.
She exhales hard, shoving the blindfold into my chest. “Your turn, King.”
“Not happening.”
She smirks, all false calm now. “Scared?”
“Of you? Never.”
She steps past me and pats me on the shoulder. “You should be.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Tessa
Isnuck away.
Technically, I went to “walk Waffles,” which is only partially a lie because he did need to pee, but mostly, I just couldn’t take one more minute of trust falls, paddle instructions, or Chad screaming about teamwork. I especially couldn’t take Rowan and his almost kisses.
