“Maybe just a little?”
“No!” I protest, though I feel confident in thinking he might be right.
“Okay then, it can be our little secret. Are you ready for adventure?” The sun catches his dark eyes, turning them into brown pools of warm light. His long black eyelashes sweep down and up, and I cannot look away.
This alpha is a spell that I have long been ensnared by.
“Yes,” but I’m not sure I am. My head is reeling; my emotions change between one wave and the next. Courage has me pushing forward with this foolhardy plan, while fear is tempering my expectations.
It’s fake, I remind myself for the millionth time.
I take a seat beside Danger while he throws the ropes onto the jetty and shoves us away from it.
He starts the motor, and we slowly move away from the shore. Once we’re a safe distance away, he accelerates, and the boat really moves.
The wind snatches my hair, the gulls call and sing, but I’m lost in this feeling of being home.
“I didn’t see the ocean the whole time I was there,” I say without thinking it through.
Devon turns so he can see me. “You didn’t?”
“No.”
“The ocean is part of who we are, Rebel.”
“I know that now. There was always a reason why I couldn’t, but I think I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
“That if I saw the sea, I wouldn’t be able to stay.”
Devon motions for me. I stand up, scooping up Danger and walking into the helm. He pulls me in front of him and presses up behind me.
“What happened there?”
I hesitate. “Can we skip that question for now?”
“You can tell me anything. No judgement.”
“You said that when I was fourteen.” I brush my hair back from my face and avert my eyes from him. He shines too bright. I never understood why it took so long for people to see how amazing he was.
“I meant it then, and I mean it now. I never told a soul about that night.” Devon leans in, and I feel my mouth go dry as my cheeks heat. Not even the cold ocean breeze can cool them.
“Oh, god, don’t bring it up. That was so embarrassing.”
“No, it wasn’t. You didn’t need makeup to be beautiful.” His soft admission sends the butterflies in my stomach into acrobatic feats.
“You were sixteen and being kind,” I protest.
“I was being nice to my best friend’s sister, but I’d also never looked at you or really noticed you until that night. After that, I couldn’t look away.”
“Liar.”
“Not lying. I was there when you and Mack decided to date. That night was awful. I fell off the boat the next day, and Dad almost hit me; he was so mad. I wasn’t allowed back on for a month until I proved I could pay attention to my surroundings.” He laughs, and I think, seeing him so happy, I could be happy forever, too.
“You knew about Mack? But it was a secret.”
“You looked at him, and it wasn’t a secret, Rebel. Besides, after he left, nothing could make you smile. It took weeks before you even resembled yourself.” He heaves a sigh. “I was there the night you met Elijah.”
