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I’ve already thrown out the plan, the future. It was wiped clean the moment I left Anders in that church. Everything from here on out is whatever I make of it. And for the first time, not having options laid out is freeing rather than scary.
Devin presses his lips to my temple and murmurs, “Whatever you’re thinking, keep thinking it. It’s making you glow.”
Loving his view of me, I decide toglowall day and do everything I want. And Devin does his part simply by being by my side. He lets me gawk at ornate homes and historic architecture without a fuss. Even getting into some of the stories we read about the places we visit. He bows to my food suggestion, and we hit a little joint where we eat the best cajun food to ever touch my lips—who knew I’d like crawfish. Then he walks me around Audubon Zoo, laughing at my obsession with the lemurs and calling me a child, even though he spends the same, if not more, time gawking at the river otters playing in their exhibit.
“Are you going to keep giving me otter facts for the rest of the day?” I nudge his side as we leave the zoo and walk along the Audubon Park Trail. “I’m amazed at your random knowledge on sea mammals.”
“Semiaquatic mammals.” He shoves me back, and I giggle.
“Ohhh, right. My bad.”
Grabbing my hand, Devin pulls me into his body and dips me back, bringing his mouth to mine. It’s a simple kiss exchanged beneath the canopies of moss-covered oak trees, but it’s blissful, and he’s been doing it all day. Kissing me when I least expect it. Taking my hand, staring at me when I smile.
Righting me, he tugs my hair and resumes walking. “Did you forget I was a Monterey Bay Otter?”
“That’s right. The least intimidating college mascot ever.”
“Okay, Ms. Berkeley bear, have you seen your mascot’s costume? Those little otter’s jaws are strong enough to break any bone in the human body. Oski looks like the worst he would do is lick your face off.”
Stopping, I place my hands on my hips. “Hey. Bears are ferocious.”
Devin laughs and turns around so he’s walking backward and flutters hit me at how light and carefree he looks. He must be a mind reader because his smile grows, so I deepen my frown.
“Don’t smile at me like that, Hawthorne. Oski could take your otter down in one swipe.”
“Is that so?” He stops. His mouth twists and his eyes narrow. “Do you know what else is ferocious?”
The low, flirtatious tone of his voice, accelerates my pulse. I drag a deep inhale through my nose.
With measured steps, Devin meets me where I stand, his eyes holding mine, until we’re standing nose-to-nose. “That scowl of yours. That scowl is scary.”
My lips twitch, and he brushes the tip of my nose with his. “But even scarier is your smile.”
Goosebumps assault me when his fingertips brush my outer thigh. “Dimples, your smile is deadly.”
His lips touch the edge of mine as he says, “deadly,” and I fold, turning my head and offering him my mouth’s full attention.
Groaning, he takes me in his arms, his hands smoothing across my back, digging into my hair, brushing the side of my neck as we get lost in one another.
Immortal. Reckless. Unstoppable.That’s the sense I get when I’m with Devin. How my heart beats.
When he pulls away, the urge to confess feelings I shouldn’t possess overwhelms me, and judging by the faraway look he wears, Devin’s having similar thoughts. I open my mouth to say something, anything, and his thumb brushes the moisture lingering below my lip line, stopping me.
Bending to his unspoken cue, we twine our fingers and resume our walk, heading across the street, where we wander Tulane’s campus and find their campus chapel, for history’s sake. The day is planned and not, and it makes me want to throw all my lists away because I never could have planned a more perfect way to spend time with Devin.
twenty-five | nova
We spendour final day with the dead, touring NOLA’s famous cemeteries, and our night exploring each other. We do all the things we didn’t give ourselves the chance to explore before. Toe-curling, spine-tingling, insatiable exploration.
My brain set no expectations or boundaries for what would happen between us on this trip, but the moment Devin’s mouth touches mine, I don’t care that this is probably a bad idea. That we have no promises of permanency or that I was engaged to another man seventy-two hours ago. Nothing about us feels wrong. So when clothes pile on the floor and our skin kisses beneath the covers, I toss out logic and immerse in madness. I drown in every caress, every grasp and curl of his fingers. His mouth turns into my favorite obsession, an instrument I don’t want to delve into why he knows how to use so well as my world explodes in a constellation of stars.
It’s not until Devin inches up my body, his mouth tracing me like a road map, that I waver. We’ve been here before. Except this time, there are no secrets between us, no complications, no teenage immaturity. It’s just the two of us. And then what?
His nose nudges mine before pressing our lips together. “God, Nova. This feels like a dream.” As he kisses me, his hands wander my rib cage. “You don’t know how many nights I’ve laid awake thinking about this. About you. Never imagining I’d get another chance to be with you. A redo.”
I chase his tongue, savoring the connection of our mouths as a breath catches in my throat. When his teeth nip my bottom lip and his hand strays higher and higher, grasping, our bodies aligning, I gasp.
“I hate being the voice of reason, but maybe we need to take this slower.”
