Текст книги "Adore Me "
Автор книги: Jillian Dodd
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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 8 страниц)
“Until I know we have a chance,” I say softly, meaning not until I get my life back.
The green flash.
4:30pm
After going to town, getting tattoos, and coming back home, I tell Aiden I want to get ready in my room alone, but ask him to meet me at my door at 5:20.
“Five-twenty?” he says, kissing my nose. “That’s very specific.”
“There’s a reason why it’s very specific, but it’s a surprise.”
He leans on my doorframe, looking like he has no intention of letting me get ready by myself. “I’m glad you got the tattoo,” he says, flipping my wrist over and looking at the four-leaf clover on it.
He says it in a dreamy way that makes me feel guilty. I’m afraid he thinks I got it just because of him. What he doesn’t know is that it’s about so much more.
“I like it too. I’m glad you talked me into it. Now you have to go.”
“I want to watch you get ready,” he says. And the way he says it touches my heart. It’s like somehow he instinctively knows this is our last night together.
“Please, Aiden. I haven’t really fixed my hair or done my makeup all week and I want to look nice on our last night here.”
He kisses me and says, “Your wish is my command.”
I get ready, doing my hair up in big curls, teasing the crown a little, and applying more eye makeup than normal. I even added a glittery gold powder across the tops of my lids that I hope will glimmer in the moonlight.
At 5:20 on the dot, Aiden knocks on my door.
As soon as I open the door, he takes in my dramatic shimmering orange silk ruffled dress and says, “Wow. You look gorgeous.”
“Thanks, but come on. We have to hurry,” I say, dragging him down to the beach.
I watch his face as he sees the table set up for two in the sand, tiki torches blazing around it.
“Is all this for us?”
“Yes, we’re going to have some wine, watch the sunset, and then have dinner here in the moonlight.”
“We are supposed to watch a million sunsets together,” he says adorably.
I look at the sun moving down the horizon and listen to the waves crash.
I have to tell him tonight.
Just not now.
I pour us each a glass of wine and ask, “Have you ever seen the green flash?”
“Like the super hero?”
“No, like, just as the sun goes down, right before you can’t see it anymore, sometimes, if you watch carefully, you can see a green flash. Some people say it’s a myth, but I think it’s magical.”
“So have you seen it before?”
“Yeah, but not everyone sees it.”
“We’ll both see it tonight.”
“You’re always so sure of everything.”
“Only the things that have to do with us.”
We toast to sunsets and sit and watch the sun move closer and closer to the ocean.
Look,” he says, pointing toward the horizon, “I think it’s almost time.”
He grabs my hand. And when he squeezes it, all of a sudden, I see it.
The green flash.
“Oh my gosh!” I yell.
“Did you see it too?” Aiden asks excitedly. “Was that it? I’ve never seen anything like that before. The sun literally turned green for a second. How did it do that?”
“Yes, I saw it! But I’ve never seen it do that before! It was amazing!”
“But you just said that you’ve seen it before.”
“I think I lied.”
He cocks his eyebrow at me.
“Not on purpose. I think I wanted to see it so bad that I convinced myself I did. But I didn't know I hadn’t really seen it until I just saw the real thing.”
Aiden reaches out and touches my cheek. “Kinda like the difference between loves.”
“The sunset was like loves?”
“Yeah, like, everyone falls in love at different times in their lives. And when you’re in it, you think you know what it’s like to be in love. Until you meet your true love and feel the real thing.”
I nod in understanding.
He grabs his phone out of his pocket, presses a few buttons, and reads, “It’s an optical phenomenon caused by the refraction of light . . .”
I take the phone out of his hand. “Don’t read that, Aiden. I don’t want to know if there’s a scientific reason for it,” I say as I walk over to a fake rock just above the sand line, pop it open, and connect his phone to the beach’s speaker system, turning on our twenty-nine song playlist.
“May I have this dance?”
“Yes.”
He pulls me into his arms and sways with me.
“You were pretty hot in the shower,” I tell him.
“And you wore the skimpiest bikini known to man today. No wonder I can barely control myself.”
“I did not. It’s not like I had on a thong. No one needs to see my naked ass.”
“I do,” he says with a grin as he twirls and then dips me.
“Dinner is served,” Sven tells us, setting our dinner on the table.
This one’s for you.
10:30pm
We’re all in the hot tub, being careful to keep our tattoos out of the water and listening to Damian entertain us with stories from his recent tour of Japan. About how he couldn’t fit his knees under the table at a fast food restaurant because the table was so small. About the ongoing pranks the band plays on each other. And even what’s up next for him.
Peyton talks about school and the things she’s looking forward to. How she’s thinking about graduating early. About how she’s not ready to go back.
Aiden tells us a few funny family stories and I tell a couple about my crazy little sisters.
Damian says, “I think we need some champagne,” just as Sven walks out onto the pool deck.
“There’s a call for you on the house line, Mr. Damian,” he says, handing him a phone.
Damian puts it up to his ear, gets a huge grin on his face, puts the phone on speaker, and says, “Holy shit, Keats! You’ve gotta hear this.”
I squint my eyes, like it will help me hear better, and lean toward the phone.
There’s all sorts of noise. Almost like it’s a concert. Is this Twisted Dreams playing at the Undertow without him?
But then I hear B’s voice yell, “You guys are never gonna believe this. Hell, I can barely believe it!”
My eyes get big and I sit up straight.
There’s a crowd that’s cheering and going crazy.
Then a booming voice announces, “And in his first ever pro tour victory, BRRRROOOKLYYYYN WRIGHT!”
There’s more cheering and then the announcer voice says, “Brooklyn, tell us how you’re feeling!”
B’s voice gets even louder, like he’s using a microphone now. “I’d like to thank my dad, my sponsors, and the great fans here in Oahu that came out to support us, but I wouldn't even be here if it weren't for one special girl.” His voice gets quieter, almost like he’s speaking just to me. “Keats, you told me to follow my dreams wherever they took me and even though you're not here with me, know I wouldn't be here without you. I love you, Keats.” Then he yells, “Here’s to causing a little chaos!”
The crowd goes crazy and the call disconnects.
Oh my gosh. He did it!
He won!
Happy tears stream down my face.
Then it suddenly dawns on me that I’m not the only one who just heard what B said.
Seeing the hurt look on Aiden’s face causes me to quickly jump out of the hot tub, saying, “Uh, I need a minute.”
Then I run down to the beach and cry.
I cry for everything I'm missing out on.
And because Aiden just heard B say he loves me.
I cry for all the hurt I’m causing everyone.
Maybe I should just walk out into the ocean and never come back.
Damian plops down in the sand next to me. “I’m an idiot. I got excited and put it on speaker, not even thinking about Aiden. I hope I didn’t screw things up for you.”
“It’s okay, Damian. I’m not mad.”
“For what it’s worth, I get it now. You’re stuck. You can't go forward and you can't go back. You’re like a hamster on a wheel, spinning and spinning but going nowhere.”
I sniffle and wipe the haze of tears from my face. “Exactly.”
“The last time we talked, when you told me you were cracked, I didn’t get it. And other than the first night, I haven’t seen it. You looked like your normal happy self. But the look on your face when you got out of the hot tub. You couldn’t hide it. You looked exactly like you did at your dad’s funeral. I’m so sorry I haven’t been more understanding. There’s no excuse for why I haven’t talked to you more. Been more supportive. I was busy doing stuff that didn’t matter.”
He wraps his arm around me and pulls me toward his shoulder.
“Damian, I don’t think you can understand what you haven’t gone through. Now do you see why I’m not going back? This is killing me. If Vincent hadn’t happened, I know I would’ve been there today. I would’ve celebrated with him in person. I’m so incredibly proud of him.”
“But then you wouldn’t have met Aiden. I like him. And I like his sister a whole lot.”
“I like Aiden too. That’s why when I left to come here, I wasn't planning on going back. I can't take heartbreak too. I can't form a lasting relationship with someone when I'm lying to him.”
“I think Aiden loves you.”
“Which only makes it worse. I don't want to hurt him. His nose got broken because of me. Imagine what Vincent could do to him. And what it will do to his heart when he finds out the truth.”
“So you like B more?”
“Everything with B is familiar. I know what to expect from him. And he’s growing up. He’s not smoking. God, his eyes are so beautiful when he’s not high. And what he did for Gracie. He’s like home . . .”
“But?”
“But my idea of home is kinda starting to shift.”
“Like how you said Aiden made your loft feel like home?”
“That’s the real reason I can’t go back there. Because Aiden ruined it.”
“Keats, how? What did he do?”
I touch my mouth and start crying harder.
“He ruined it like he ruined my lips. When he was there, it felt like home. And I don't ever want to kiss another boy.”
“Then don’t.”
“But I promised B.”
“Why did you promise him?”
“Because I want to go home. I want my life back. I want to press rewind.”
“If you did that, then where would Aiden be?”
“That's the problem. I don't know where all my friends from school would fit into my life. And I’m really worried about B now.”
“Why?”
“Because if Vincent hears what B just said. It’s gonna put a big target on him.”
“Do you still love him?”
“I’ve always loved him. It sounds bad that I dated Sander for so long and was in love with someone else, but I was. He was my dream guy.”
“Even before you and B got together—those two years you were friends—everyone knew. Why do you think none of the other guys ever hit on you?”
“Because they thought of me as B’s.”
He nods his head.
“I even wrote a song about it. Because I wanted that. I wanted to find a girl who would look at me that way. I know you were fighting some when you were on tour with us, but I always believed you’d work it out. I thought you’d marry him someday.”
A wedding flashes into my mind. Our beach at sunrise. Even though it’s a crazy time to have guests, it would have to be at sunrise.
Stop it.
Don't do this to yourself, Keatyn.
Think about now.
“Can I be honest with you?” Damian asks.
“No, Damian, lie to me. I'm sick of the truth. I want you to tell me it's all going to be okay. Just lie to me.”
I start crying again, so he hugs me tighter. Which, in turn, makes me cry harder as I remember the way he hugged me the night of my party.
I determinedly stop crying and state, “It was love at first sight for you and Peyton.”
He looks at me funny and says, “Yeah, I told you that.”
I pull out of his arms, get to my feet, and pull him up with me. “Come on. We have something important to do.”
“Where are we going?”
I smile at him. “We’re going to do what I should’ve done the second you met her. We’re going to make a wish.”
He smiles at me and starts down the pathway toward the mermaid fountain.
“No, this way.” I lead him up to my room. “I have something more powerful.”
“Did you make your wish when you got here?”
“I did.”
“Did you wish the same thing you always do? That you will find your prince?”
“Yes. Then Aiden gave me his penny and told me to wish for something new.”
“For him?”
“I think that's what he wanted me to wish for.”
“But what did you wish for?” I hesitate, so he adds, “We decided a long time ago that it’s legal to share your wish with your very best friend.”
“I wished for my life back.”
“That's a good wish. And it would solve all your problems at once.”
“Not really, but it's the only wish that would allow me to solve them.”
I look up and see Peyton standing on the veranda. Her cover-up is moving in the breeze as she looks out into the ocean. And it makes me feel good to know that I’m not giving up on the fairy tale. And if I can’t have it, I’m going to make sure someone else gets it.
As we enter the turret and climb the stairs to my room, I say, “You know, when I was little I always thought I'd marry you.”
“That's just cuz I have a castle on the beach.”
“And you sing like a good frog.”
I lead him into my closet, grab my suitcase, unzip the top part of it, and pull out Tink.
Damian starts laughing. “You carry around a wand? Seriously?”
“Don't laugh. Ivery gave me this Tinkerbell wand when I left home and told me I could make a wish on it. She was selfless and I’m selflessly using my wish for you—which makes it doubly powerful.”
I grab his pinky with mine, wave the wand at him, and wish, “I wish Damian and Peyton will live happily ever after.”
Damian grins at me, then runs his hand through his hair. “I can't believe I’m excited that you just made a wish for me on a plastic wand. Jesus, I’m in deep. It’s just so amazingly weird, though, how we’re both here, don’t you think?” He stops in his tracks, pulls out his phone, and types something down.
I know that means he just thought of a song lyric he doesn't want to forget.
“I better go find Aiden and talk to him,” I tell Damian.
We go downstairs and see Aiden pacing the beach, his footsteps kicking up sand.
“Keatyn, if you love him, don't let your circumstances get in the way.”
“I don't want to hurt him.”
“You can't have love without risking heartache, and he seems like he's more than willing to take the risk.” I nod, but don’t move, so he pushes me toward the beach. “It’s time to go see if you and Aiden have enough dirt to survive that phone call.”
I must not look convinced, because he adds, “And if you still want him to get on the plane without you tomorrow, I’ll personally see to it.”
From the beginning.
11pm
“Hey,” I say, for lack of a better line.
“You've been crying,” he says, sitting down next to me.
I nod. “I have lot of conflicting emotions.”
“Did you tell me the truth about when you saw him at your sister’s birthday party?”
“Yes.”
He runs his hand through his hair and shakes his head. I realize now that I won’t have to tell him goodbye tomorrow. That he’s going to walk away gladly.
Hell, he’ll probably thank me.
“I was just stalking him on Facebook. He doesn’t seem to have a personal page, but he does have a fan type page that he made in August. The first three pictures he uploaded were of you. The two of you.” Aiden lowers his head a little, his eyes shiny. “You looked happy with him.”
“I was happy with him. Most of the time.”
“Tell me about him. About the two of you. When we fought that day, you defended him.”
I feel his pinky grab ahold of mine. It’s a simple gesture, but one that speaks volumes.
He’s not running away this time.
“Of course I defended him. You were way off base thinking our relationship was about sex. Do you really want to hear all of this?”
“Yeah, I do. From the beginning. From when you met.”
“My mom traveled for her job, so I was tutored. I never went to a real school.”
“But wait, I thought you met Damian at school.”
“Not a regular school. We shared the same tutor and depending on where his dad was and where my mom was, sometimes we ended up in class together. Anyway, I was around adults a lot. My mom always said that I was mature and worldly. But I was very naive about some things. Like relating to kids my age. I watched a lot of movies. Read a lot of books. And I had this fantasy school experience in my head.”
Aiden squeezes my pinky and laughs. “Let me guess, you planned it out down to the shoes.”
I smile at him. “Kinda. It was the summer I turned fifteen. My mom had been with my stepdad for a while, and we were living on the beach. It was the first time since before my dad died that we had a real home, and I knew this was my chance to go to a real high school. I'd seen the movie High School Musical and wanted that. That perfect high school experience. I wanted to be the most popular girl, date the most popular guy, and if the basketball team had broken out into song during practice, I would have joined in.”
Aiden touches my face. “You're so adorable.”
I get tears in my eyes again. Because how could he even say that after what just transpired? He should hate me. “Why do you think that?”
“I can see the sparkle in your eyes. How excited you were. It's like you believed your life could be a fairy tale.”
“Well, I used to.”
“We'll get to that later. Keep going with your story.”
“So, I got two things for my birthday. They told me I could go to a real high school and they got me a surfboard. My stepdad explained how to surf, then sent me out to do it. I spent hours in the water trying to get it right.” I pause, because I can still see it so clearly in my mind. “And then he walked down the beach and helped teach me. Shaggy blond hair and the bluest eyes I'd ever seen. And it was like bam—I was in love. Fast forward two years. He’d become one of my best friends, and I was living out what I thought was my perfect high school experience. I was dating the hottest guy at school. And I was popular.”
“That doesn't surprise me. You're in everything.”
“I wasn't there. My friends considered school activities uncool. I only played soccer. But we had partying down to an art form.”
“That surprises me. I just can’t picture you a drunken mess.”
“I wasn't. My perfect boyfriend was the mess.”
“He's the guy you dated for a year and a half but didn't sleep with?”
“Yeah.”
“So he was gay?”
I roll my eyes at him. “Yes, but I didn't know it at the time. So it’s prom night. I had a beautiful, sexy dress, great shoes, and knew it was the night I’d finally lose my virginity.”
Aiden tilts his head. “But he didn’t want to because he was gay?”
“I still didn’t know he was gay, but I guess. He dropped me off at my door after the party and barely kissed me.”
Aiden laughs. Really laughs. I’m afraid he’s losing it.
“Why are you laughing? It’s not really funny.”
“Because our proms were like horrible mirror opposites.”
“What do you mean?”
“You're going to laugh at my stupidity.”
I run my fingers across the top of his hand. “No, I won’t.”
“I did what you wanted. Got a nice hotel room. Even had chocolate covered strawberries and champagne.” He laughs again. “Honestly, I didn’t come up with that. Shark helped me plan it. Said that’s what girls want. What she’d want. I think he’d taken a poll or something.”
“Who was your date?”
He gulps and looks at me intently. “It was Chelsea.” He runs his hand through his hair again, like he’s struggling with telling me.
I want to scream and throw a fit. But after what he just heard and how he’s calmly talking to me about it, I can’t. I bite both my lip and my tongue as he continues.
“I thought . . .” He shakes his head at himself. “Remember you asked me about my most embarrassing moment?”
“Yeah.”
“We’d been hanging out since I asked her to prom a few weeks earlier. We’d done everything but sex, so this was supposed to be the big night. I was going to tell her I loved her, ask her to be my girlfriend, and then we’d do it.”
“Did you love her or did you just want sex?”
He shakes his head. “Honestly, probably a little of both. I liked her, but I wanted more. I should preface this by saying that I pretty much thought I was the shit. Up until that point, I had dated and slept with whoever I wanted. I wasn’t like Logan, who was totally in love with Maggie. But after seeing them together, I wanted that. That one person to love me, not just who wanted to hook up with me.”
“Okay.”
“So, we’re at the dance. It’s a slow song. The lights are dim. And even though I had planned it out differently, it just felt right. So, I told her I loved her, then and there, and asked her to be my girlfriend.”
“That’s sweet, Aiden.”
He rolls his eyes and sighs. “She was sort of drunk, and when I asked, she let out a scream and started laughing hysterically. Then she proceeded to grab two of her girlfriends and loudly tell them what just happened and how she couldn’t believe I didn’t know she was dating– and fucking– two other guys.”
“And everyone heard?”
“Yeah.”
I wrap my arms around Aiden in a hug. “That must’ve been awful. What'd you do then?”
“Well, it gets worse. Believe it or not, that wasn’t the embarrassing part.”
“What else happened?”
He looks at me tentatively. “I’m not sure if I should tell you this, but I need you to know. Especially after what happened with Chelsea. Because if you ever only heard just part of the story . . .”
I put both my hands on his face, forcing him to look at me. “It’s okay, Aiden. You just had to listen to my ex tell me that he loves me.”
“That was rough.”
“I know it was. I’m sorry. Please tell me.”
“So, Logan and Maggie—I swear, I totally ruined their night—anyway, they took me to an afterparty. We did some shots. Well, I did quite a few shots. And there were a couple of girls there who felt sorry for me.”
My mind is trying to figure out why he wouldn’t want to tell me this.
Wait. “A couple of girls?”
He hangs his head in embarrassment and nods. “Yes. Two. My life was out of control. Eastbrooke was a blur of drinking, girls, and sports. And although my friends were proud of me, I wasn't very proud of myself.” He pauses and looks at me. “You haven’t walked away yet.”
“I’ve done some stupid things too, Aiden. Things I’m not really proud of. So then you just decided to change?”
“Sort of. I went back to my hotel room. By then, I had sobered up and was feeling pretty bad about myself. So I sat out on the balcony, drank the champagne alone—straight out of the bottle—and, as the sun was almost ready to come up, I made a wish on the moon.”
“You what?!”
“Silly, right? You're supposed to wish on shooting stars. But I was tipsy, couldn’t find any, and the moon was just there.”
“What did you wish for?”
“My perfect girl,” he says wistfully, looking out at the moon shimmering above the ocean.
I feel like I just got punched in the gut.
Could he have really wished for me?
Could it be true?
“Um, Aiden, when was your prom?”
“It was May 13th. Friday the 13th. Weird, huh? Having Prom on Friday the 13th like some bad horror movie. But I guess that was the only time they could get the venue. Probably because no one else wanted it then.”
Aiden is speaking. Going on and on about Friday the 13th, but my mind is busy calculating. It was 2:30 when I got in my room the night I made my wish. A three hour time difference would be around 5:30am. Before the sun came up.
Oh. My. God.
“So after that, I didn’t date anyone. Didn’t do anything with anyone. Until you kicked a soccer ball at my head.”
I start to cry.
I can’t help it.
Fate is so, so cruel.
I want to tell him that I wished on the moon too. That he’s my perfect boy.
But I can’t tell him that.
Not when I have to tell him goodbye.
I have to make him believe I’m not it.
That it’s someone else and that she’s still out there waiting for him.
And that’s when I lose it.
I put my face in my hands and start bawling.
Aiden puts his arm around my back. “Why are you crying so hard? Do you hate me? I’m so sorry. I should’ve told you before, but we were . . . And then everything . . . Please stop crying and tell me what you’re thinking.”
I look up at him and say the last thing in the world that I want to say to him. “Because I’m probably not the girl you wished for, Aiden.”
He squints his eyes at me and shakes his head. “Is that because after what I told you, you don’t want to be that girl?”
“No, it’s not because of that.”
“Then what is it?”
“I just don’t think . . .”
He grabs my hand and places my palm on his chest. “Close your eyes. What do you feel?”
I close my eyes, only because it will be easier to finish this without looking at him. “I feel you breathing.”
“Try again,” he says in that voice. The voice that has the power to make me comply.
“I feel your heartbeat.”
“No, what you feel is my heart beating for you. Always. Only. Ever. For you.”
I open my eyes and look at him, shaking my head. “How can you even say that? After everything?”
“Because I can feel it. And I know you feel it too.”
“Love at first sight is just a crazy notion made up by hopeless romantics.”
“There's a lot about us that's crazy, but there’s a lot about us that’s right. You belong with me, Boots.”
“Because I couldn’t be anyone else’s?” I say before I think better of it.
I get the blazing love god smile. “So you do listen to what I say?”
I let out a little chuckle. “Maybe.”
“I always thought Dawson was the reason you were holding back emotionally, but it was him, wasn’t it?”
I nod.
He flips both our wrists over, exposing our fresh tattoos. “Did you know that each leaf on a four-leaf clover has a special meaning?”
I shake my head and let out a big sigh, trying to stop myself from crying.
“The first petal is for faith. You need to have faith in us. The second is for hope. The hope that we can get through whatever life throws at us. The third is for love. And the fourth is for luck. We already know that we’re lucky together.
I notice that he skipped commenting on the love petal.
But then he grabs my hands and looks into my soul. “Look, this isn’t at all how I wanted to do this. But I love you. A deep-within-my-soul, heartbreakingly beautiful kind of love.”
I open my mouth to speak, but he holds up his hand. “No. I don’t want you to say anything. And I’m not even saying I love you yet. When I say that, I want it to be perfectly right. Like out of one of your fairy tales. But I need you to know how I feel.”
I wipe my tears and nod.
And then we kiss.
And this kiss kills me.
A knife straight through my heart kills me.
Because I feel that way too.
“You’re still crying,” he says, wiping away my tears.
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, baby. It’s been a rough night. Let’s go to bed.”
Then he takes my hand, leads me to my turret, takes my dress off, puts his blue linen shirt on me, pulls me into bed, kisses me sweetly, and holds me tight.
Pretty soon, I notice that he’s breathing heavily; asleep.
I glance at the clock, counting down the time I have left with him and holding him tighter than I ever have before.
Sorta like fate.
3am
I can’t sleep. My brain is still counting down—ticking and ticking– the hours and, now, the minutes until I have to say goodbye.
My stomach hurts. My heart aches. I feel sick.
I still can’t believe he wished on the moon.
But, yet, I know it’s true. Deep down inside me, I know it’s true.
And I don’t want to leave him.
But I know I have to.
I know it’s the only way.
I stare at him sleeping next to me.
Knowing it will be the last time.
I close my eyes and try to soak him in. The feel of his body curled into mine. His strong hand protectively holding my leg. The smell of his neck. The pace of his beating heart.
As I start to cry, I hear music. The same chords gently strummed across a guitar over and over. A soft, dreamy voice.
I slide out of bed, being careful not to wake Aiden, peek out the window, and see Damian sitting down by the water with his guitar.
I throw a robe around me and tiptoe out of the room.
“That’s pretty,” I say, sitting down next to him. “Is it new?”
When he replies, I see the boy I used to know, who was a little unsure of his talent, not the confident man he’s become. “I’m working on a song for her. I feel like I know everything about her but yet I don’t know the most important thing.”
“What’s that?”
“How to make her mine. She’s gorgeous. Sweet. My dream girl. When I walked up the beach, I felt like . . . I don’t even know; it’s hard to put into words. That’s why I’m having a hard time with this song.”
He studies me closely. “Are you and Aiden okay?”
I shrug, not knowing what to say.
“He had a chat with me. Like the talk Tommy had with me the night before I took you parking.”
“We didn’t go parking.”
“You and I know why you wanted to go up there.”
“Research for a role.”
“Exactly. But Tommy didn’t believe that. He basically told me if I touched you, he’d fuck me up.”
“He wouldn’t say that!”
“He didn’t say that, but that was the message. Trust me.”
“He's really protective of her. They've been through a lot together.”
“I know about everything.”
“Like what?”
“She told me all of it. Listed every reason why I shouldn’t like her. What happened with her mom. Why she ended up at school. Why Aiden went there. Her affair with the teacher. Her friend threatening her. Her partying, activities, and the names and addresses of every boy she ever kissed.”
“Why would you need their addresses?”
“So I can write each one a thank you note for being a dick to her.”
“You really have been talking.”
He nods. “And I told her everything about me. My past, the tour, and even the groupies. Now if I could just put in words how I felt when I first met her.”
I think about how Aiden made me feel when I first met him. “Did you feel like she spoke to your soul? Or like she was a magnet that you couldn’t help but be pulled toward?”
“That’s exactly what it felt like. Hang on,” he says as he writes the words magnetic and soul into the notes app on his phone. “She probably thinks I’m a freak because I can’t stop staring at her, but I feel like I’m looking at my future. And that smile.” He stops again and adds smile and future to his list.
“Wanna hear a funny story?”
He nods at me.
“I tutor Aiden in French. And one of the very first times we were in the library studying, he told me we were fate. That it was fate that we were there. That we both ended up at the same school. And I laughed at him . . .”
Damian starts typing, so I stop talking. “No, keep going,” he says.
“Anyway, he asked me what the French word for fate was and it’s . . .”
“Sort,” Damian says slowly.
“Right. And then he said that we’re sorta like fate.”
He puts his palm into the air. “Hang on.” He types some more then says, “What else?”
“Then he told me that he’s going to ask me to marry him at the . . .” Tears start streaming down my face. Damian looks up from his phone.
“Marry you?”
“Yeah, at the top of the Eiffel Tower, at sunset.”
