“Define troubles.” Okay, maybe I’m messing with him a little, but he did have my head spinning after he walked out without another word. It doesn’t matter how much I like a guy; I will always be honest.
Let’s also not forget: he kissed me first!
His eyes move downward, out of…guilt. “I know I screwed up when I walked out that night. Maybe our first interaction wasn’t the best—”
“I’m just messing with you, Movie Star,” I chuckle. “Mostly.”
He lets out a breath of relief. “Don’t scare me like that again, Firecracker.”
“But it’s so fun to tease you!” My face grows serious. “How do you feel about me?” I may have a hunch, but I want Crew to confirm it. Even if I can tell just by the way he’s pulling at the string on his sweatshirt nervously, like he’s never done this before.
“Well, I don’t not like you,” he says softly. “Like, a whole lot. As more than just a friend.”
My face flushes at the reminder, how I remember that little interaction that felt like yesterday but was a few months ago.
The grip on my hand grows slightly tighter as he shifts it, interlocking our fingers, sending warmth through the rest of my body that I feel instantaneously. “You treated me like a person. Not like the movie star that I was, or pretended that it was never a part of my life. You saw the marine biology nerd and chose to be around me.” He shakes his head. “I still have trouble wrapping my head around how someone like you can do that.”
“It’s easy,” I say. “To see someone as the person they are.”
“You make it seem so simple, Firecracker. I’ve spent my whole life around people who were the opposite of that. Not as selfless, or as willing to push beyond what they already know. Nothing near the kind of person you are.”
Part of me feels like he’s laying it on thick, as if sugar-coating everything would work.
But I know he’s being honest. He’s not fiddling with the strings of his sweatshirt anymore, or the fabric of his pants. Crew’s hand hasn’t left mine the entire time, and his eyes are on me, not wavering once.
The glint in his dark irises isn’t hiding anything. I know his tells, and none of them are right in front of me. I could ask about Ali and what he felt for her when we first met, but I know that it’s not there.
Not to sound cocky, but I knew he never liked her. Fate brought Crew to me, and this is the universe’s way of showing it.
“Crew.” What do I say to all of that? A simple I like you a lot, too, isn’t enough. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, attempting to clear my mind and puzzle the right words into place.
“How do I measure up to that? You even pulled out the theatrics,” I say teasingly, but my heart fucking aches for this man.
“It’s all real.”
“Well, I’m glad it is, otherwise this would be kind of awkward—”
Just as the words leave my mouth, I feel a slight warm pressure on my lips, one that I immediately welcome. My hands cup Crew’s cheeks as his hand rests on the nape of my neck, and oh, how I love the feeling of it.
Crew quickly pulls away, his cheeks a slight tinge of pink. “Sorry, I got a little too excited. I just really wanted to do that.”
I shake my head and giggle at his nervousness. Casanova for one minute, and a ball of nerves the next. I guess romance does a lot to a person.
“Luckily, I don’t not like you, too.” I smile as I pull him close to me, kissing him once again, one thought never leaving my mind in the near future.
I do like him. A whole damn lot.
When I pull away, I rest my head on his shoulder. “Do you think your parents will be in your life again?”
He sighs, voice turning softer than sand. “I don’t know, Carly. I want them to, so badly, but the choice is up to them now.”
I nod.
“Do you think you and your cousin will reconcile?”
“I hope.” My arm hooks around his, my eyes not leaving the view in front of us. “Bailey was one of my best friends growing up. We can’t start from the beginning, but like you said, the choice is up to her.”
Regardless of the choices made by others, I know one thing for certain: I chose Crew in this very moment, and he chose me.
