“What was that, Mouse?” he mocked, squeezing tighter. “Did I see what?”
I squealed, laughing and feeling like I was going to pee my pants. “Please!” I begged.
“You want my mercy?”
“Please!”
He softened his hold. “Alright, but only because you begged.”
I thought he’d remove his hand from my thigh, but he kept it there, caressing my skin with the tips of his fingers. It was crazy how quickly we could go from that to this. It was one of the things I loved about Julius, how easy it was to remember we were best friends first. Honestly, I thought that was how our relationship was going to survive. We had a foundation, and at the end of the day, we needed each other.
Out of nowhere, he questioned, “How’s school?”
“It’s fine.”
“Grades are good?”
“School is the only thing keeping me busy.”
“I’m glad you have that.”
Unable to resist, I countered, “You could have school too. You ever thought about going to college?”
He smiled. “You’re going to have to liquor me up to answer that question.”
“But we’re having such a great conversation. Let’s keep that going.”
“At whose expense?”
“Currently yours.”
He gripped my thigh.
“Don’t you dare!
“You’re so bossy.”
“Come on… I know what you’re doing. You’re sidestepping my question.”
“Is that what I’m doing? What can I say, Isla? You bring out the best and worst in me.”
“Why can’t you tell me if you’ve considered college?”
“It wouldn’t change anything.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. It can change everything.”
“I never considered much future other than making sure I kept a roof over our heads.”
“At your expense, Julius. You could have?—”
“I did what I had to do, end of story.”
I let it go. About an hour later, we were pulling onto a private beach.
“Where are we?”
“Don’t worry.” He opened his car door. “I know the owner.”
