“What is it that you want?” he asks finally.
A delicious curl unfurls in the pit of my stomach. “Nothing.”
He looks down at me and my breath gets stuck in my throat.
His blue eyes are so soft, they make me believe they’re the exact way the love-look in romance books is described — gentle, calm , and full of warmth. All of these emotions consume me so completely, I feel my chest cave in to make room for so much of his love.
“Rose,” and then he says my name and I break. “If you want something, we can get it. We can getanythingyou want.”
My pulse flutters under my skin and my skin turns flush.
I melt from the inside, it’s hard to keep my wishes tucked away.
“I thought we could get something,” I say. “I like a necklace. It looks pretty. But if it’s too much we don’t have?—”
Heath is already tugging me in the direction of the shop I saw the necklace at. When we stop at the counter, I can’t help but stare at it.
Heath notices.Of course, he does.
Not wasting a single second, he buys it. It costs more than it does in Bellmare, but it doesn’t matter to him. He hands the owner a few bills and turns to me.
“Anything else, you want to buy?”
I assess the keychains and their prices. It’s the only thing I can buy here because it’s cheap. Marie gave me a lot of money,but I don’t want to use it that much. I want to spend what I can return to her. Although, knowing her, she won’t take it.
I see a simple H-letter shape keychain that catches my eyes. It’s small and silver in color and has no design on it. Exactly what he likes.
“Can I get this?” I ask the owner and he starts taking it out of the bunch.
Heath reaches for his wallet but I stop him.
“Let me, please.” I hand the money and grab the keychain.
Dangling in front of him, I smile. “Do you like it”
His eyes avert to the keychain then back at me. “I love it.”
I grin wider.
Slowly, he takes it from me. His thumb caress the entirety of the letter with such gentleness, my skin heats up. “It reminds me of you.”
“How?”
“That’s how your name starts. The name I fucking love.”
Now my skin is burning.
Heath chuckles deeply and we start walking.
As we step outside, the late afternoon air hangs around us, and the sun is slowly sinking toward the horizon, casting a warm glow over the parking lot. The sky is painted in a perfect blend of orange, red, and pink hues.
Cold, icy breeze whips past us and I quickly wrap my arms around myself.
“Time to go.”
I stand next to the passenger door, waiting for him to open it, but he jogs to the trunk and pulls out a black jacket. Striding back to me, he helps me put it on.
I laugh as I notice how big it looks on me. Yet the warmth and the scent of it just makes it feel right.
