Oliver resisted the urge to roll his eyes. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean, I want it to be romantic,’ Declan said. ‘She tried to kiss me, and I kinda left her hanging, so I’ve got to make it up to her with something special.’
‘Why’d you leave her hanging?’ Oliver asked, feeding Declan the line he needed.
Declan grinned sheepishly, rubbing his neck. ‘I don’t know, mate. I suppose I was a little drunk and…’ He drew out the pause.
Oliver snorted. ‘You chickened out?’
‘I didn’t chicken out,’ Declan said through gritted teeth. ‘I thought I had bad breath.’
Oliver laughed – it was a flimsy excuse and they both knew it. Declan grinned back at him, and Oliver’s heart caught. It was the crooked smile he’d come to think of as reserved just for him.
‘I guess I’m waiting for the right moment,’ Declan said.
‘It’s more important that it’s the right girl than the right moment,’ Oliver said. ‘If you feel like Zoë is the one, the moment will present itself.’ The words felt oddly heavy coming out.
‘Is that how you felt with your ex?’ Declan asked.
‘Yes.’
Declan stared at him, his gaze searching. For nearly Oliver’s entire adolescent life, Sophie had been the exact person he was looking for, but he found that impossible to articulate while looking into Declan’s eyes.
Declan didn’t say anything for a long time, turning to look at the pool. Oliver watched him carefully, feeling strung out as he traced the broken curve of Declan’s nose.
‘I think I’m looking for something like that,’ Declan said finally. ‘Someone to understand me fully. But it doesn’t come easily to me. I’ve always held myself back because I wasn’t sure I could manage to give… everything.’
The raw quality to Declan’s voice made Oliver certain he had forgotten they were being recorded. He pointedly glanced towards Paige, hovering in the periphery, but Declan didn’t seem to notice.
‘Well, it’s only a kiss,’ Oliver teased, trying to lighten things. ‘Maybe you’re scared of rejection.’
‘I’m not scared. It’s just—’ Declan stared down at his fingers, flexing them. ‘I’ve never had the option of the kind of love you’re describing. And if I did, would it make a difference?’ An expression like panic flashed across his face so quickly that Oliver hardly registered it. Then Declan glanced back up, his eyes reflecting the fairy lights in the bushes behind them. He looked lit from within.
‘Yeah, it would,’ Oliver said, not fully cognisant of what question he was answering.
An uncomfortable lump formed in his throat. He knew that Declan was more invested than Zoë in their relationship. That he was going to get his already fragile heart broken, and that Oliver was letting him walk into it blindly.
That, and Oliver was annoyed – jealous of the fact that Declan had found someone, while he felt more lost than ever.
‘Hey, boys,’ Paige interrupted. When Oliver looked over, he saw that she had moved closer. ‘It’s looking good, but we were hoping for more of a comedic angle on this one. Declan’s fit and he’s nervous about kissing a girl, so he comes to you, Oliver, for advice. You see?’
‘Er, no,’ Oliver replied. ‘That doesn’t sound funny to me.’
‘Yeah, I think we’ve done enough for tonight,’ Declan said, hoisting himself up.
Declan and Paige looked at each other for a moment, then she shrugged. ‘Fine. Are you going to watch the fireworks?’
Declan nodded. ‘Where’s Zoë?’
‘Here,’ Zoë called, emerging from the villa. ‘Did you know Brian’s daughter is a fan of my channel?’
Brian trailed behind her with Imogen. ‘If you lot don’t get a move on, we’ll miss the fireworks,’ he complained.
‘You okay?’ Oliver asked haltingly. Imogen’s calm demeanour showed none of the ire from minutes ago with Jack.
‘Grand,’ Imogen said with a wink.
Zoë linked arms with Declan, leading him to the gate, and he whispered something in her ear that made her beam up at him. The rest of them followed from a distance.
