“Brandon. I?—”
“IthoughtI heard voices!” Liza and Cam barrel up the steps. She halts, making Cam smack into her back. “Whoopsie. We just wanted to hang out. Sorry, guys. We’ll leave you two alone.”
Brandon’s eyes stay glued to mine, and I think he sees my relief at the distraction. He drops his hand from my cheek, and I watch his charismatic mask slide into place as he turns to my sister.
“No, you guys can stay. We’d love to hang out,” he says.
More stars pepper the sky as the night deepens. Cam sits contentedly with his arm around Liza while she yaps about the couple Mom and Dad ran into earlier. Apparently, there is a black-tie charity event at the country club tomorrow night that we now are required to attend, lest our parents die of shame. Liza is quick to comfort our irritated expressions with the fact that she already found a tux rental shop.
I teeter on a precipice, half involved in the conversation and half unraveling as Brandon continues to stroke a thumb over my hip beneath the water.
The ink on my skin has belonged to him for years, but I’m terrified that my heart might always have been as well.
thirty-nine
PRESENT DAY
KATE
It’s extremely late by the time Brandon and I make our way back to the pool house.
He stalls by the outdoor shower. “I can rinse off out here so you can have the bathroom.”
“Okay,” I mumble. “Thank you.”
A short while later, I towel off and slip into silky shorts and a matching tank. I squeeze water from my hair into a towel as I open all the windows, grateful for the salty breeze. I notice Brandon’s bedroom door is shut, so I assume he’s getting dressed.
Checking my phone, I run across a missed text.
UNKNOWN: Florida is way hotter than Chicago this time of year. I can see why you like it here. —Hopefully Yours.
Here.
H.Y. ishere?!
A whimper escapes me as I take in all the windows I just opened. Fear speeds my steps as I bolt to each window, closing them and twisting the locks. My airway tightens by the second, and I fight to suck in thin breath after breath. Without the nighttime breeze, sweat gathers along my lower back.
Why come all this way? Are they really here or just trying to mess with me?
A door slamming behind me sends me crumpling with a cry, and I whip my head around to find Brandon’s worried eyes. A towel hangs from his hand, but he’s changed into dry terry-cloth shorts and a white tank.
“Kate?” When I don’t respond, he rushes to where I’m huddled on the floor.
“Kate?! What’s going on? Are you hurt?” He braces my weight with his arms, lifting me so he can get a better look.
Anxiety grips me so tightly, it’s like it’s crushing my windpipe.
“Air,” I croak, clawing at my throat. “I need air.”
He doesn’t hesitate to collect my trembling body before sweeping us both out the door, across the patio, and through the break in the fence toward the ocean. I realize H.Y. might be able to see us at this very moment, but Brandon’s here with me. He won’t let anything bad happen to me.
“Breathe, Kate,” he demands as he runs. “Low and slow. In. Out.”
I force myself to comply even as tears stream in rivulets down my cheeks.
“In. Out,” he repeats as I suck in another breath. His own chest raises and falls beneath my cradled body. “That’s it. Almost there, love.”
We barely make it past the hilly dunes of brush before Brandon sinks into the warm sand. He keeps me tight against his chest, the moonlit waves lapping in the distance. I continue to focus on the drum of his heart as my breathing steadies, even though tears continue to well in my eyes.
