Our new relationship just might break the internet, but how exactly is my heart going to fare?
CHAPTER EIGHT
Stars twinkle high above us as Boone and I quietly gaze into each other’s eyes. Somehow, despite the velvety darkness of the night, some golden ray of light faintly illuminates his dark blond hair and his flawless face.
I don’t even remember it getting this late, but the evening is still and hushed. There are no owls hooting or crickets chirping. It’s just Boone and me.
When I hear the faint sound of treetops rustling, I realize we aren’t on the beach anymore. I take a curious look around, noting that we’re in a woodland clearing. A bubbling brook babbles nearby as the water gushes over smooth gray stones. The air is cool and fragrant with cherry blossoms.
“Where is this place?” I whisper out loud.
I’ve definitely never been here before.
Wait, when—how—had we even gotten here?
I can’t recall. My whole head feels pleasantly hazy.
“All that matters is that we’re here together,” he says huskily.
Boone’s calloused palm glides against my cheek, turning my face back toward his. He leans closer and I notice that his shirt has suddenly vanished. Instead, his sun-kissed skin sparkles underneath the silver moon. I swallow hard, almost too distracted by his accent and deep blue eyes to care about how his shirt disappeared as fast as it had.
“Are you a magician?” I sputter.
He leans closer, pulling me toward him. I place my hands against his chest, feeling the strength of his chiseled body. If I’d known that rugby guys were so gorgeous, maybe I would’ve watched the sport before meeting Boone.
Boone flashes me a flirtatious grin. “Some girls might say so.”
“O.M.G.,” I whimper. “I’m in real trouble now.”
He chuckles and pulls me onto his lap, his muscular arms secure around my waist. A delightful shiver creeps up my back inch by inch. Even my ears are pounding.
“Boone, what are you doing?” I ask “There’s no one here but us. We don’t have to act…”
“What if I told you I don’t want to act anymore, Sutton,” he breathes into my ear.
My jaw drops as I stare at him. I blink hard, desperately trying to make sense of what Boone just told me. Could he really be feeling like this?
The hand caressing my face slides around the back of my neck. Beneath his rough fingertips, my skin grows warm and tingly. It feels like my whole body is shaking.
“Sutton…” he whispers, embracing me.
He bends his head to kiss me and I want to taste him so badly I’m trembling.
I’m lost in his eyes…but there’s something strange about his voice.
“Sutton,” he repeats, but his southern, deep twang is slowly growing oddly high-pitched. He gives me a small shake in his arms. “Sutton!”
I crack my eyes open to find my two BFFs’ faces inches from mine.
“Ahh!” I scream, jerking backward.
Both Liv and Kali scream as well, Liv falling backward, arms pinwheeling as she tumbles headfirst off my bed. She pops up again a second later and pouts at me.
“That wasn’t nice!”
“Neither is sneaking up on a girl while she’s getting her beauty sleep,” I say, rubbing my palms over my eyes, trying to clear my head.
That whole moment with Boone had apparently only been a dream. A delicious, glorious…torturous… dream. I gather my comfy blankets around me, hoping my face isn’t too flushed. That dream had felt way too real. My heart is still pounding, and my blood is still pulsing like crazy in my veins.
