Page 92 of Don’t Be A Stranger

“One more thing.” I squeeze his hand.

River grins, as if he knew I was going to say that. I lean in so our noses brush against one another.

“I want it to be for the summer.”

His expression falls but I quickly continue.

“And the fall. Winter. And spring. I want to be an us every day of the year for as long as you’ll have me.”

River smiles and presses a kiss to my forehead. Then nose. To both of my cheeks. And then finally, his lips hover over mine.

He whispers against me. “You’ve got yourself a deal, Pretty Girl.”

River’s eyes darken and he’s pulling me closer, so that I’m now sitting in his lap. I slide my hands up the side of his neck, closing the gap between us. Tingles travel down my spine, the buzzing in my hands causing them to shake.

Our first kiss as an official couple and my body is highly aware of it, like it’s waited a lifetime for this moment and I’m finally granting it that wish.

His tongue meets mine, warm and delicate. Our foreheads remain pressed against one another, neither of us daring to come up for air. How could we when this whole moment is the start of everything?

***

River

I don’t know at what point Summer and I fell asleep last night. One minute we were talking about how this was all going to work with our schedules when school started. Then we moved on to making out with Summer laughing against my lips, warning me that we had to be quiet so her parents wouldn’t hear us.

Now, I’m watching Summer breathe as her head rests on my chest. She hasn’t woken up yet, which is surprising because I’m usually the one she’s hitting upside the head with a pillow to get up.

I rest one hand on her hip and the other on top of her own hand that’s resting on my chest. My body is so relaxed, as if this is all it’s ever needed. If I told little River Choi that Summer was his girlfriend, he’d probably call me a big fat liar.

I can hear Nick and Santiago downstairs in the kitchen. Their voices are muffled. I can already smell the bacon and usually I’d be the first one down there, piling my plate full, but for now I think I’ll stay right here with Summer.

Or at least I thought I’d be able to, but there’s a light knock at Summer’s bedroom door.

I barely have time to react before I see a head full of curls peek from behind the door. I completely freeze in my spot as Lily scans the room and her eyes land on Summer and me almost immediately. Then she’s assessing the situation in front of her.

“Hey, Lils.” I keep my voice quiet. Not just for Summer’s sake but I’m also not a fan of getting Summer’s parents involved.

They’re usually pretty cool but they’ve also never caught me in bed, cuddling their daughter.

Lily seemingly can’t help but smile.

When Summer is awake and I’m not hiding out in her room, I plan on giving Lily the biggest hug ever, and maybe find out how much she knows about Summer and me. For now, she reminds me just how much of a saint she is.

“I’ll just tell Nick and Santi that Summer asked for a few more minutes before getting out of bed,” Lily whispers.

“Thanks, Lils.”

She goes to back out of the room, but I quickly call out to her, still trying not to wake Summer.

“Yeah?” Lily asks.

“I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” She smiles. “But I’d hurry up if I were you because I can only distract her parents for so long.”

“How long do you think I have?” I can’t help but ask.

Lily hums, thinking about it for a moment. “Maybe…fifteen minutes?”