Something else I couldn’t live without.
“If I kill him, Coby will hate me forever. If I lose her, he wins.” It didn’t matter that I’d pictured this moment a thousand times, and in none of them did I fantasize about walking away, but I needed Coby more than I needed revenge. “I’m making a choice not to think about him or my sperm donor ever again.”
“And you won’t have to.”
With one last kiss to my temple, Ocean led me away, back to the Denali. I didn’t even look back as I let him. It was just the two of us when we drove back to the city. Abel had stayed behind to take care of Roshaun. I didn’t want to ask what Ocean would do with him because I didn’t want to lie to Coby. The second reason is thatI just didn’t care anymore. Roshaun had no power over me.
Staring out the window, I was lost in my thoughts until I felt Ocean’s hand curving around my thigh. I looked down at it, and then I did something crazy.
I laced my fingers through his, and when he squeezed, I squeezed back.
Ocean didn’t drive us back to Glainne.
It was the wee hours of the morning, and even on Christmas, the city was still asleep.
The drive-in theater Ocean took us to was miraculously open, though no one else was around. I tried to hide my excitement and curiosity since I’d always wanted to go to one of these. I eyed Ocean suspiciously as he backed the Denali into the perfect spot so that the tailgate faced the screen. Once parked, Ocean told me to stay put before climbing out.
I checked my phone to ensure I didn’t have any messages from Coby in case she’d woken up while Ocean messed with something in the trunk. I was starting to wonder if he had a dead body back there or something. He was swearing viciously as heshifted things around. Whatever he was doing, it took him twice since he only had one working hand.
I offered to help, but he ordered me to stay my ass right where I was, so I did. The last movie of the night/morning was about to start, and I didn’t care what it was. I was just excited to be here.
Wish I had some snacks.
Ocean finished with whatever he was doing back there and came to my door to help me out before leading me to the back of the Denali.
As soon as I saw what had kept him, my heart skipped a beat.
A thick blanket had been laid out where the third row of seats had been stored inside the floor to make room. There were pillows propped against the back of the second row of seats to make it extra cozy and electric candles to add ambiance. The picnic basket, centered on the blanket, caught my eye, along with the large tin can of popcorn. It was filled to the brim with three different flavors—cheddar, caramel, and butter. There was also a wooden board filled with an assortment of sugary sweets.
I felt the heat of Ocean’s body at my back, watching me take it all in. I’d love to say I was a wall, giving nothing away, but it would be a lie. My skin prickled with all the emotions pushing to be free.
“You did all this?”
I felt Ocean nod against my shoulder. “Climb in,” he whispered. “I won’t bite.”
I didn’t believe that at all.
My cheeks were warm despite the biting cold as I crawled into the back of the Denali. The engine was still running, so there was heat blowing through the vents, but it wasn’t enough to combat the northern winter coming in through the open hatch. Once Ocean climbed in with me, I found myself inching closer to him while he pulled two large thermoses out of the basket and handed me one.
Steam poured out once I opened the top.
I sniffed at the contents, and my stomach growled when I smelled the hot soup. I poured some into the lid that doubled as a bowl and greedily slurped at it. Heat immediately flooded my veins and thawed my blood while I moaned in pleasure.
Ocean lounged against the pillows before pulling me between his legs, and I didn’t fight him. I leaned against his chest while he covered my legs with another blanket, and I sighed contentedly.
I’m not sure what came over me, but I grabbed my phone and opened the camera app.
“Say cheese,” I teased, not expecting him to comply.
Ocean surprised me when he leaned over my shoulder and flashed an adorable smile at the camera. I snapped the picture and then took more of our little nook. I studied them for a while, agonizing over whether to send them to Coby when I usually would if Ocean were anyone else. Fuck it. I sent the photos with a text.
You told him. I’m going to kill you.
My idea of a perfect dateandmy favorite snacks? This had Coby written all over it. It was obvious by now that Ocean and Coby had teamed up to wear me down. I knew my text wouldn’t wake her up since Coby kept her phone on silent at night, so I tucked it away as the movie started to play on the mega screen.
It wasDie Hard.
“I was hoping they played this,” he said.
