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Aiden nodded and then pulled me by my arm to my feet.“It doesn’t matter, anyway.Even if you love her and decide to mate with her, she couldn’t replace me even if she tried.Go take a shower and let’s go out.I want to take you somewhere.”
I held his gaze for a few seconds before pushing my feet into the fluffy rabbit slippers Mateo gifted me.“Where are we going?”
“You’ll know when we get there.It’s a surprise.”Aiden said, staring at the cat-shaped night lamp, sitting on my bedside table, which he’d gotten me.
“Do we have an appointment?”I asked as I moved toward my closet.
“Not really.I mean, I paid for tickets online so we could just check in when we get there, but it doesn’t count as an appointment.”He said, straightening my bed covers before moving toward the door.
“Then do you want to take a shower with me?”I asked as I opened my closet.
Aiden hesitated, tightening his grip on the knob of my door and causing it to squeak.“No.This is a one-time event, so we have to go on time.”
I nodded and continued asking as I pulled off my clothes in the closet, resisting the urge to walk out of the closet naked.“Are we going somewhere fancy?”
“No.Stop trying to get me to tell you where we’re going ...”
I chuckled, unable to resist the urge to tease him.“I didn’t do anything.You’re the one who can’t resist my charms.I’m just asking, so I’ll know what to wear.”
“Fine.Dress casually but wear gloves and a jacket.We’re going to be there with several people.”
“An amusement park?”I asked.
He couldn’t resist laughing as he turned the doorknob and pulled the door open.“I’m not telling you where we’re going.Just get ready.I’ll be in the living room.Don’t worry, you’ll like it.”
And then he was gone.
I sighed and then picked out a pair of jeans, a black turtleneck top with long sleeves and finger holes, and my favorite leather jacket.
Forty minutes later, I got into Aiden’s car, texting Caden, who was supposed to be in a meeting, and Mateo, who was handling paperwork for Crawford University’s disciplinary committee.Then Aiden and I sang along to our favorite songs as he drove.
An hour’s drive later, we arrived at our destination, which was located in the same town we’d gone to for Aiden’s basketball celebration a few months ago, where I’d earned the hostility of several of his friends with a few drunken sentences.
“Where is this?”I asked, looking around as Aiden led me down a trail surrounded by large trees into a park clearing.“A day-use camping site?”
“Nope,” Aiden answered with a smirk as he swung our intertwined hands back and forth while leading me across the park.
We walked past the tiki torches scattered around, the porta-potties, a hand-washing station, two food trucks, and several vendor tents, but nothing stood out.When I saw the two tents placed together with two large banners that said, ‘Water Lantern Festival’, I finally understood where we were.
“You brought me to a Water Lantern Festival?”I asked, looking up at him.
“Mm-hmm.Do you like it?”He asked, even though the grin on my face showed how pleased I was with his surprise.
I hugged his arm to my chest.“Of course, I do.I’ve never been to a Lantern Festival!”
“Then let’s go check in and get our lanterns so we can find a good spot by the lake.”
I smiled up at him, pecking him on the cheek before we started moving toward the organizer’s tent.At the tent, we checked in, got a wristband and the bag containing our lanterns, picked a chair, and moved it to a spot close to the lake’s shoreline.
Before I sat down, I walked toward the lake’s shore, staring at its shimmering surface that glistened under the setting sun, mirroring the fiery hues of twilight.
After taking a few pictures and staring at the beautiful sight for a while, I returned to our spot, which Aiden had set up.Sitting back in my recliner chair, I stared at the buoy line placed some miles away from the shore to prevent the water lanterns from going too far into the lake, imagining how beautiful the water lanterns would look on the reflective surface of the lake.
I looked to my right to find Aiden staring at me with his elbow resting on the arm of his chair and his chin resting on his raised palm with an amused smile.
“See what you like?”I teased.
“Of course.You look beautiful every day.”He said with a smile.
