Page 80 of Shattered Hearts

“They’re biscuits,” is all I can mumble. Reaching out, my fingertips glide over his soft skin, which flinches at my touch. “Why did you get this?”

Lifting my chin to meet his face, Grayson’s eyes are darker, shinier, and I already know there’s a deeper meaning here. My fingers linger on the spot.

“Because you’re special to me, Laynie. You have been since the day I met you.”

My throat works, hand dropping from his skin . He lets the material go, covering the tattoo once again. Turning to face me, I can’t ignore the undeniable energy between us. The shift that’s occurring. That’s pulling us together like two magnets.

“You shared your biscuits with me.”

“Actually, you stole one,” I correct him.

He snorts, his dimples showing, and I feel my body melt like ice. “Possibly, but you offered.”

I nod, because I did offer him one. He was all alone, much like me, and I could see how pure he was. “So you got a tattoo because of preschool?”

Grayson chuckles, and I frown in confusion. “I got it because of you.” He exhales, dragging his hand through his messy hair. “A part of me was worried that you’d find someone else, and this way, I could have a part of you forever. Even if you found a better friend or…”

My eyes prickle with water as his gaze flickers away, not able to look at me.

Reaching out, I take his hand. It’s strong and rough against mine, and dirt hides beneath the nails, but it doesn’t bother me as I pull myself closer. “Or what, Grayson?”

My chest moves faster, despite my breaths shallowing. I sense I already know what he’s going to say, but I need to hear it from him. To confirm that every emotion I’m feeling isn’t just one sided. That we’re both aware of the invisible string pulling us together.

He swallows. “Or found someone else you loved.”

My breath hitches in my throat as his hand lifts, curving around the nape of my neck. Gaze holding mine, simmering with heat and tenderness, I can’t bring myself to blink. I don’t want to miss a second of him holding me this way.

“I’ve never loved anyone else,” I admit softly.

His eyes drift to my lips. “When you told me about your baby and him, I thought for a minute that you’d found someone better than me. That you’d fallen for someone—”

“I hadn’t,” I tell him, my head shaking slightly. “It was a mistake. It didn’t mean anything.”

That makes the corner of his mouth tick upwards as his face nears mine. “I know that now. And you have no idea how much relief I had when you told me. I know that’s selfish of me to say, but—”

“I would never think that.” Grayson blinks down at me, his fingers tangling in my hair, while the other wraps around my hand. “I just want you to be honest with me, Gray.”

I hear a slight shift in his inhale as he leans in, pressing his lips against mine and closing the gap between us. My eyes flutter shut at the contact, my fingers entwining with his as he holds me close. Heat rushes through me, flooding every cell and crevasse as I breathe him in. All his spice, adoration, and yearning. My body is flush with his. Hands snaking around his waist as he deepens our kiss. Lips moving, tongues swiping, and chests heaving, I fall further for this man.

Letting me go, my lungs inflate as Grayson’s forehead tips to rest on mine, our faces so close that I can almost taste him once more. He tastes like pastry and apple, which has me thinking that he snuck some of the filling while helping me with the crumbles, but I don’t care.

I just kissed my best friend.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Grayson

Ijust kissed Laynie Adler.

After years of dreaming about this, countless sleepless nights and the hope slowly fading out the older we got, I finally kissed her.

And it was… awesome.

Brilliant. Amazing. Stupefying. Tremendous. Incredible.

I can’t wait to do it again. I’m already missing the feel of her lips on mine, that’s how much I crave them. And I was correct. They taste like berry lip balm, and it’s blissful.

“Gray…” Laynie whispers, slightly out of breath, and I can’t tell if it’s from the kiss that’s blown us away, or the baby. But either way, it makes my pulse jump.