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“You caught that, huh?”
Fuck, she looked so adorable, all starry-eyed and flustered.
“So does that mean, if I’m your girl… you’re my…” Her breath hitched as if she didn’t dare say it.
“Go on,” I whispered against the corner of her mouth. “Say it.”
“Are you my boyfriend?”
“Yeah, freckles, I think I am.”
CHAPTER17
DAYNA
“Wow, it’s great out here,”Laura smiled over at me as she tilted her face to the sky, letting the cool spray wash over her.
We were out on The Deke with Carson and Aiden. His mom had arrived yesterday, and Carson had offered to take us out on the boat.
So here we were. My best friend. My boyfriend. And his mom.
But Laura hadn’t made any of it weird. She took one look at me when she’d arrived and had pulled me into her arms and whispered how nice it was to finally meet me.
I’d chuckled at that. It had only been a couple of weeks since Aiden and I had decided to give things a go. But strangely, it felt longer. I guess that’s how it was supposed to feel with the right person.
“Yeah, it’s nice,” I said, glancing over at the guys as Carson instructed Aiden on all things boating.
“He’s so different around you.” My eyes snapped to Laura’s, and she smiled. “Sometimes it takes the right person to bring out the best in us, Dayna. I’m so happy he found you, sweetheart.”
There was so much sadness in her voice that my stomach dipped. I knew a lot about what they had endured when Aiden was small, before Dawson Dumfries rose to criminal infamy. But I still didn’t know everything.
“Hockey has always been his outlet”—she went on—“his escape, but I always worried that it wouldn’t be enough. You can love a sport, but it never loves you back.”
“Hockey is his life.” I looked over at him again, and Aiden glanced up, flashing me a small, secretive smirk. A bolt of heat went through me.
Damn, I had it bad.
Really bad.
“It is, and I’m so proud of him. But all a mother ever wants for their child is to be loved. To know that another person out there cares the way they do.”
Her words settled deep inside me. It was soon, far too soon to be thinking about the future, about what happened after the summer ended. We were both content spending our summer exploring the coast and each other. But I couldn’t deny that sometimes my mind did wander. Did think about all the what-ifs and maybes.
I wanted more than one summer, and something told me Aiden did too.
“How are my two favorite girls getting along?” He appeared over my shoulder, his hand curling around my waist as he sat down beside me.
“We’re good.” I tucked myself closer.
Laura smiled. “This one is a keeper, Aiden. Don’t do anything to screw this up.”
“Geez, Mom.” He let out a thin breath, and we all chuckled.
“I’m just saying. I like her. I like her a lot.”
“Yeah.” He gazed down at me, sending my pulse soaring. “I like her a lot too.”
“Dupont Beach really is a beautiful town,” Laura added. “You’re very lucky to have grown up in such a wonderful place.”
