“I need to pack a bag and tell my mom. You should come inside,” she says, glancing around the street and blinking when she notices several neighbors watching us from their balconies.
I noticed them long ago. It’s been a long time since I could be anywhere without being hyperaware of my surroundings.
I don’t care how many eyes are on us.
Nina’s gaze, however, tells me she does.
“I will,” I say as soon as I register her discomfort, unlocking the car and moving to follow her inside.
***
“The Four Musketeers,” Nina reads the name of the sailboat before tilting her head and laughing. I take advantage of the moment to hug her from behind and plant a kiss on her neck.
“Obvious?”
“I thought it was modest. The name—not the size. It’s huge! But I kind of had you labeled as the Fantastic Four in my head.”
I drop my forehead against her shoulder with a groan.
“Please don’t tell Drako or Apollo that. They’ll never talk about anything else again.”
She laughs at me.
“I don’t make promises I can’t keep,” she repeats—a phrase she’s used before, but after the last week, it carries a different weight.
I lift my middle finger and index finger to her chin and tilt her face up to mine.
“That was the last time. You have my word.”
Her lips part, caught off guard by the seriousness in my tone.
“I didn’t mean it like that.”
“I know. But I want to mean every word,” I assure her, kissing her cheek. “Shall we?”
She bites her lower lip and nods.
I step past her, boarding the sailboat first and extending my arm to help her in. As I settle her, the marina assistant unties the vessel and starts the engine. When he leaves and I head toward the helm with nothing more than a wink for Nina, her eyes widen and she turns to follow my path.
“You’re the one steering?” she asks, eyes wide.
“Worried? You don’t need to be,” I reassure her, furrowing my brows and nodding with playful seriousness. “I’ve done this many times.”
She tilts her head slightly, as if weighing whether to believe me.
“In a video game,” I add in a low voice.
Her eyes nearly pop out of their sockets before she starts walking toward me.
She stops two steps away, opens her mouth, then closes it. Nina raises her fist—but does nothing with it before lowering it again.
“All right. Trip canceled,” she declares, making me burst out laughing.
I wrap my arms around her waist, confirming that keeping my hands off her is nearly impossible when she’s this close.
“I’m kidding,Little Fae. I’ve had my license for years and I sail regularly.”
“You swear?” she asks, and I laugh again.
