I took out my phone and snapped a few.
“Come here.” She gestured for me to join her, and I did so without argument.
“Isn’t life better when you aren’t resisting me at every turn?”
“Yes,” I said, staring into her eyes.
Her cheeks turned an adorable shade of pink before she smiled and snatched my phone. She held it out in front of me and snapped a few selfies of the two of us. Our rocky surroundings drifted off into the blue water and our faces were front and center.
She tickled my side without warning.
“Hey!” I exclaimed, unable to hold back a laugh.
“Perfect.” She showed me the picture she'd just taken. Her smile was big, staring into the camera. I was facing her, caught mid-laugh.
“Is this the happiest picture of you in existence?” she asked.
“My mom might have some baby photos of me smiling. I'm sure she’d love to show you.”
Lila's eyes widened almost imperceptibly.
Had I said the wrong thing? Was it too soon to talk about our parents? I meant the comment in the friendliest of ways. Plus, technically, she had already met my parents. But whatever had flashed across her face was gone now, as she returned to examining the picture.
“Should we send this one to Oliver?” she asked.
“I think we better hold off on that.”
I took my phone back from her and slipped it into my pocket. The last thing I wanted to deal with was a million questions from Oliver when Lila and I hadn't even talked things through yet.
Speaking of which, should I bring that up? What would I even say? Was this a relationship? Was it way too soon for that? I was completely out of my element here, and I didn’t want to mess anything up with Lila again by not handling whatever this was in the best possible way.
“Oh. Okay.” She interrupted my spiraling thoughts and gave me a weird look before nodding her head toward the trail. “We’d better follow the group back. I don’t want to get left behind.”
We walked back, strolling in a comfortable silence, her hand loosely threaded in mine. At least the silence was comfortable for me. Shit, should I be talking? I glanced down at her, but she seemed perfectly content, gazing out at the horizon and using my arm to steady her feet since she wasn’t watching where she stepped.
We boarded the boat again and Lila snuggled in as the boat cruised along the calm waters. Whatever was going on between us felt heavy. Heavy in the best possible way, like the weight of my emotions was blanketing me, offering me comfort and security. I could drown in this feeling and be better off for it.
I could only hope that Lila felt the same way. This transformation I’d undertaken was all her doing, and it still didn’t make me half the man she deserved. But I’d show her what I could offer and just pray that it could be enough. Maybe I didn’t have a fancy job or a lot of friends. Maybe I was tech illiterate and had a hard time loosening up. But I was loyal. I would do anything for the small inner circle I let into my life. The circle I now realized she was at the center of.
The realization quickened my pulse.
It was way too soon to be having thoughts like these. This was exactly why I had kept my walls up all these years. Yet somehow, she’d gotten in. She had created a crack that hadn’t been there at the start and slipped right through with ease. And just as my walls were an impenetrable force field to break, they were also just as hard to escape.
I was hers in whatever way she’d have me. I just prayed she’d be patient with me as I navigated it with my piss-poor communication skills.
We’d be on our way home tomorrow. We’d figure it all out then.
No sense in freaking her out now.
TWENTY-SIX
Lila
I was completely freaking out.
In my desperate, misguided attempt to be the cool, chill girl for once in my life, I’d managed to let the entire last day of the trip slip through my fingers without mentioning the status of our relationship once.
Now Harrison snoozed peacefully beside me, hugging me tightly to his chest. Our bags were packed and ready by the door. In less than twelve hours, we’d be at the airport on our way home. After a blissful final day in paradise, I should be sleeping just as soundly as the man curled around me. Instead, my mind raced with possibilities and questions.
