“For taking care of me,” I tell him. “Cooking me dinner, hanging out with my dog?—”
“Our dog,” he corrects.
“Our dog,” I say, rolling my eyes. “And sometimes…I feel really bad you’re in this situation. If it weren’t for me?—”
“Hey,” he says gently, cutting off any chance for self-blame and guilt. “It wasn’t your fault. We both know who’s to blame.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “But still. Even if Frankie was the one who was egging you on, if we hadn’t been…you know, then you wouldn’t be in this mess.”
“And if we hadn’t been…” He waves his finger between us, a playfully teasing gesture, pointing out how what we’ve been doing is something worth noting. “Then I wouldn’t be here with you.”
“That’s what you want? To be here with me?”
He turns to face me, cupping my face in his large hands. The breeze blows between us, and it’s a stark contrast to his warm touch, making me hyper aware of how cold it’s suddenly become and how badly I want to wrap myself in his arms. “Grace, I honestly can’t think of a place I want to be more than here with you.” He kisses me, letting his words sink in. “You mean a lot to me, and if being with you means standing up for you and beating the shit out of someone who absolutely deserves it, then so be it.”
“You mean a lot to me too,” I tell him, my words squeezed through the lump lodged in my throat. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt like this with anyone. You make me feel safe, and when I’m with you, I don’t worry I’m doing the wrong thing or that you might find some fault in me that’ll make you suddenly change your mind about being with me.”
“Yeah,” he rasps. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone either.” A low rumble sounds somewhere in the distance, and the sky sits veiled behind a layer of dark clouds. “You know that—” His cautiously spoken words are cut off by a sudden downpour, and Andrew exclaims, “Oh shit!”
I scream, an excited squeal tacked on by a giddy laugh, and we both rush to collect our things. I shove the takeout container back in the bag it came in at the same time Andrew whips the blanket off the sand and holds it over us. I manage to toss theremains of our meal in a trash can on the way to our car, and as soon as we get to mine, we both pile into the back seat.
“I swear, that was not part of the surprise,” I tell him. Our breaths are coming out in heaves, but the smiles on our faces are anything but strained.
“Are you sure getting all wet and breathless wasn’t a part of your plan?”
I smack his chest, reacting to his bawdy words with a playful swat, but he grabs my wrist, pulling me to him. He kisses me, our damp skin creating a wave of heat filling the car.
“Honestly,” he adds. “I wouldn’t be mad if that was your intention.”
“Then I guess now’s the time to tell you I can control the weather.”
A mock gasp has him pulling away. “And you are telling me thisnow?”
“Shut up,” I demand. I hook my leg over his lap and straddle him. I’m thankful for the secluded street we parked on as well as the slowly fogging windows as his hands start to roam under my wet clothes.
CHAPTER FORTY
Grace
“Baby,you’re going to miss the movie.”
“I don’t care!” I shout from behind my hands. When Andrew tugs at my wrist, trying to pry my fingers from covering my eyes, I bury my face into them harder.
“It’s not even that scary.”
“Yes, it is!” I argue. A shrill of loud, ominous music rattles through my apartment, and I duck my face behind Andrew’s back.
“It just started,” he reminds me. “Are you going to watch any of it?”
“Probably not,” I answer meekly from my hiding spot. I have to admit, the scary movie was my suggestion. With Halloween just a few days away, I thought it would be fun. And even though my aversion to scary movies hasn’t changed since middle school, when Andrew told me he enjoyed them, it seemed like the perfect way to get into the holiday mood.
The sounds stop, and Andrew’s arms wrap around my back, guiding me upright.
“Why’d you turn it off?” I ask when I see the paused image of an unsettling demon on the TV screen.
“Because I’m not going to watch a whole movie while you’re hiding behind me. We can watch one you can actually sit through.”
“But it’s Halloween week,” I tell him. “I want to watch something festive.”
