AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“How about you?” he faced the skyline, avoiding eye contact with me. “Are you going to miss me?”
Over the last week, I tried to commit everything about him to memory as best as I could every time I looked at him. I memorized every laugh line that formed on his left cheek with his smile, his sometimes earthy and sometimes smokey scent, the feel of his hand on my waist and how his fingers pressed in every time he pulled me in for a kiss, and the sound of his labored breathing while we jogged. But I especially memorized every shade of blue in his eyes.
After tomorrow, what I memorized would be all that’s mine to keep.
“Blake?” he whispered.
“Yes, I will.”
He leaned back, putting his hand over mine. It was warm and sent goosebumps up my arm. His touch left like a jolt of electricity on my body.
“I want to spend more time with you before we leave tomorrow.”
“Aren’t we spending time together right now?”
“Alone.”
For the millionth time in the last few months, my brain warned against something that would undoubtedly be a bad idea. I wasn’t confused about what I felt for him, but I knew from the beginning that this was temporary. I should say no, but I could never say no to him.
“Okay. Do you want to grab some ice cream tonight? We could go to Scooped.”
“How about I come over and make some food?” he countered.
“You know I can’t turn that down.”
His lips curled into a smile. Laugh lines appeared on his cheek. His gaze was still locked on the buildings in front of us. There was a moment of heavy silence between us. We both knew it was over no matter what happened over the last few months.
“Will you visit me?” he asked.
I saw his gaze move toward me from the corner of my eye. His Adam's apple bobbed hard as he swallowed, waiting. His eyes weren’t full of life for the first time in months. They were sad. And it was tearing me apart.
“Do you want me to?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“Then, yes.”
“Promise?”
I made eye contact with him for the first time since I sat down. This might be the only promise I couldn’t keep.
“I promise.”
He let out a sad chuckle and put his arm around my shoulder, pulling me into a brief but lingering hug. He hesitantly released me and shifted his body toward me. His hand reached my knee and squeezed it. I laughed as a tickle ran up my leg.
“There’s that smile that I love to see,” his hand lingered on my knee as I met his eyes.
I looked away and inadvertently met Richard’s fiery eyes. Erik was standing too close to him, whispering something in his ear. I knew he was telling him about what he saw outside of the office.
“I knew it!” Richard’s anger flared, and his scream distracted everyone in the pool. “I fucking knew it!”
Richard crossed the pavers towards Parker and me. He left his drink at the bar, and his fists were curled into balls at his sides. I tore myself off the edge of the pool and stood up to meet him.
“You are sleeping with him!” he screamed, getting closer to me. “Dammit, Blake, I knew it. I knew I wasn’t imagining things when he looked at you. He knew your favorite muffin. He defended an idea that even I knew was pretty bad. I knew it!”
“What are you talking about?”
All the other conversations around us stopped. Amelia had a defeated look about her.
