“I have no idea what that is.”
“Then you can’t judge.” I lean against the wall outside Wildfoot Adventure HQ, tilting my face to the morning sun. “Not complaining if you want to drive me around, though. I’m all about that life.”
Kai gives me a look I don’t know him well enough to understand yet and goes inside.
I wait in the sunshine. This weather is the tits. Newquay at its best, but without the wind. And the tourists, though there are enough people around to keep my nosy self occupied. There’s a building site too, across the street. I watch men work and note that none are as hot as Kai.Stop thinking about how hot he is. It’s gonna be a long summer if you can’t.
Too true. But it’s a gargantuan feat. Kai is beautiful, and somehow I know that spending this day with him and the elements is only gonna cement that fact into my brain.
He returns to my side with a set of keys and a scowl marring his handsome face. I follow his frown to the building site. “Something offend you over there?”
For a moment, he ignores me, gaze sharp as he watches a man stack wood against a wall. Then he seems to shake himself. “Nope. Not my circus.”
“You’re a strange boy.”
“Am I?”
“Maybe. I’m still deciding.”
“Let me know when you figure it out.” He dangles the keys in my face. “Ready?”
As I’ll ever be. We have water, sunblock, and every portable scrap of food from the fridge at home.
And I have my fascination with him for entertainment. Who needs fucking Netflix?
Kai leads me to a vehicle my dad would call a wanker truck. But it’s in context with its surroundings and not driven by an Essex boy with a wheelie-bin haircut, so I let it slide. Also, Kai’s not a wanker. Not even a little bit. He’s the perfect gentlemen with the sweetest smile.
He’s a better driver than me too. Swears a lot less. Keeps his middle fingers to himself. Who knew?
Not everyone drives like an angry melt.Whatever. I try to calm my racing thoughts—my meds work, but they aren’t a miracle cure—and enjoy the view instead.
The viewoutside.
Tempting as it is to watch Kai the whole time, I need some mother earth therapy and Vermont doesn’t disappoint. Green grass, blue skies. Fruit stalls every half a mile. I make Kai stop at a boysenberry cart. “Can’t get these much back home anymore.”
He watches me scarf down half a pint, gaze dropping to my mouth periodically enough that I know I’m not imagining it. “You gonna use them for something on the menu?”
“Maybe. I’ve been avoiding the desserts. It’s not really my thing.”
“For real?” He glances at my mouth again, but it’s deliberate this time. Pointed. “You look pretty sweet on those.”
“That’s cos I’m greedy and I want all the things I shouldn’t have.”
“Like what?”
In the fantasy world I’m tryingsuper hardnot to create, he steps closer and his already deep voice drops another octave. In reality, he stays where he is, expression unreadable as I stuff more berries in my mouth. “Like sugary things,” I admit after a pregnant pause. “Trust me when I say I don’t need the extra stimulation.”
“I trust you.”
The words feel weighted, but they shouldn’t. He has no reason to trust or not trust me. I’m just a bloke who rocked up in his life a few days ago. A temporary roommate.A summer fli—
Wind your neck in, boy.Jesus. I need this fucking walk.
I finish the berries—Kai didn’t want any. And we go back to the truck. He slips a pair of aviators over his eyes, and I relax a little. Those honey-browns are fucking quicksand. Maybe if I can’t see them, I won’t fall headfirst into him.
Dramatic.
Hey, sometimes you have to be to pull your shit together. Ask me how I know.
