She nodded, and I scanned her over one more time, checking for any sign of harm. But other than her lips pulling down at the corners and her lashes clinging together with remnants of her tears, she was perfect.
Even if her big night hadn’t been, she was home. Safe.
I couldn’t change how her night had gone, but I wanted to leave her with something—anything—to make the lingering sadness in her eyes fade.
“You know what I’ve always thought?” I swiped my thumb over her cheek, wiping away a streak of makeup. “I think when it happens again, with the right person…none of the times before will matter.”
She peered up at me. “You do?”
“I do.” I nodded. “But I don’t think that’s something we really believe until it happens.”
After thinking about it, she mustered up a smile.
“Well. I hope you’re right again, Blake.” She leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to my cheek, her lips curving as she failed to contain an impish grin. “Not just for my sake. Definitely for yours.”
“Har. Har.” I returned her teasing grin. “Guess we’ll see, kid.”
Her brow furrowed, and a frown slashed across her face before she brushed off the fleeting thought and rolled her eyes at me. “Alright, old friend. Thanks for the ride.”
She climbed out of the car, and I followed her progress until she was safely inside the house. After Adam waved and shut the door, I sat there, one hand brushing over the lip gloss she’d left on my cheek, with the image of her by the pool in my mind.
No matter how I tried to clear the vision away, it lingered.
Even once the porch light went out and I took that as my cue to leave, the memory of her bathed in moonlight drove out the thoughts of going to my house. Long after I pulled out of the driveway, my mind remained on the one with the white picket fence and cobalt blue door.
Because the only place I called home—the only family I wanted—wastheirs.
As I drove around, I hoped somewhere along the way I’d forget they weren’t mine.
3
ADDIE
HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION, 2017, AGE 18
The last few weeks of senior year flew by in a blur.
I blinked, staring into my bedroom mirror as I zipped up my black graduation gown. The polyester itched my skin, and it hid the cute dress I’d talked my mom into buying for the occasion, but once the ceremony ended, I’d get the chance to wear it for pictures.
I unzipped the gown one more time, making sure I’d carefully tucked away my bra straps under the cap sleeves where they rested slightly off my shoulders. Running my fingers along the scalloped neckline, I went back and forth over adding a necklace, but the dress was already more feminine than what I usually wore. The deep navy-blue fabric complemented my blue-green eyes. I’d even put on a touch of mascara to make them pop.
With its fitted bodice hugging my waist and the flared skirt landing just above my knees, it displayed my curves, making me feel like the woman I was becoming. Not the girl I’d been.
Just like prom night.
Maybe I’d imagined Blake’s eyes lingering that night by the pool. Maybe my hopes were too high, and today would be another fruitless attempt to get him to see me clearly.
But even if he didn’t notice, Ifeltbeautiful and grown up.
A day shy of my eighteenth birthday, I deserved to look the part, even if I ended up crushed over his lack of recognition by the end of the night.
Sitting down on the edge of my bed, I slipped on the nude pumps my mom had gotten me to go with my dress. With a lowheel, they refined my posture without exaggerating my natural height.
When I looked up, Blake stood in my doorway.
I froze and watched him, barely breathing.
He stared where my black gown remained unzipped, his eyes unmistakably trained on my dress. The sky-blue shade darkened, and his lips parted before he swallowed deeply. Tension in his jaw mirrored the crease in his brow.
