“That makes sense,” April said, and left it at that. Elena had come along in her life at a pretty similar time. She might not have been quite as unmoored as Daphne, but in every way that mattered, they’d been the same, secretly desperate for someone who would simply choose them over and over, come hell or high water. And Elena…she was good at making you feel like you were the only person in the world who mattered to her.
But really, it was all an illusion. Because Elena truly excelled at finding vulnerable women who needed her far more than she’d ever need them.
April swallowed, her mouth dry. “Do you think you’ll ever talk to your family again?” she asked. “Make amends?”
Daphne was quiet for a bit, tapping her nail on one of April’s rings.
“It would be a nice story, wouldn’t it?” she finally said. “The queer kid runs away from an oppressive home, and years later the family realizes just how horrible they were to choose doctrine over their own daughter. They seek her out, write her letters, maybe even travel to wherever she is to profess their love, their regret. They all begin to heal, to become a family again.”
“I think it’s a sad story,” April said. “But it has a nice ending.”
Daphne nodded, then sniffed. “Unfortunately, not everyonegets that ending. And after seven years, after the letters I wrote them when I first left, all the letters they never responded to, I don’t think that’s how my story concludes.”
“I would travel to wherever you are.”
Daphne’s head popped up, her eyes wide.
April forced herself not to look away. She hadn’t meant to say it, but it was out there now. And it was true. In some way, in some universe where Daphne and April were infinitely less complicated, April would travel to the moon to see Daphne Love smile. Or hear her laugh. Or just sit on a dock, holding her hand.
There.
She could admit it.
She had no clue what to do about it, but she could admit it.
“What do you want, April Evans?” Daphne asked, her voice a whisper.
And goddess, what a question.
Thequestion, really.
She wanted so many things—she wanted a life full of art and beauty. She wanted a queer community with friends beyond Ramona, beyond Clover Lake. She wanted to travel and create, and she wanted the Devon. A chance, at least, to do something that felt big. That felt like stepping out of the tight circle she’d locked herself into for so many years.
But right now, on this dock with Daphne Love, of all people, she didn’t want to talk about any of that. She only wanted one thing. A simple, beautiful, terrifying thing.
“I want to kiss you again,” she said.
April expected Daphne to hesitate. To laugh shyly or shake her head as though April might be joking, but that wasn’t what Daphne did at all.
Instead, she made a sound that nearly did April’s head in—aquick, almost relieved exhalation—before untangling her fingers and taking April’s face in her hands.
Then Daphne kissed her.
She kissed her like she’d been waiting to kiss her every moment since Mirror Cove. For months, even. Maybe years. Her fingertips trailed down April’s cheeks, and April’s hand circled around Daphne’s wrists, holding her in place. Their mouths teased for a second, then opened, Daphne’s tongue sliding against April’s so perfectly, April heard herself moan. It was quiet, but it was audible, and Daphne responded in kind, pressing deeper, licking into April’s mouth and then tugging on her lower lip, desperation building between them. It was sweet and wild all at once, and April couldn’t imagine anything better.
She couldn’t even begin to think about anything she wanted more than this.
Except maybe her legs around Daphne’s hips.
Her fingertips dancing along those elegant collarbones.
And goddammit, this was about what she wanted, wasn’t it?
She broke contact just long enough to hook her arms around Daphne’s neck and settle in her lap, her jean-clad legs circling Daphne’s hips. Daphne held on to her waist, their mouths finding each other again. April sank her fingers into Daphne’s hair, soft curls that smelled like her usual smoky vanilla mixed with the coconut from April’s bodywash. She must’ve borrowed it in the shower, which made April feel suddenly wild with want. She imagined Daphne in their cabin’s bathroom, naked, soap sliding between her breasts, down her stomach, even farther south where April wanted her mouth right now so badly, she nearly released a whine.
“Why are we at this party?” she asked against Daphne’s mouth.
“I have no idea,” Daphne said, then trailed her mouth toApril’s neck, sucking harder than April expected, but fuck, she loved it. Still, the sting caused her to startle right when Daphne’s hands were moving from her waist to her ass. The shift caused April’s body to fall backward enough for them both to realize they were pretty damn close to the edge of the dock.
