“Ihaveto let it go, Cole. I can’t let anyone see us and get the wrong idea. Besides, I didn’t think you’d want to hold my hand where everyone can see. It feels a little intimate.”
“Why does it matter what it feels like? Not everything is going to feel right or wrong, and not everything needs to be so deep. If it feels good, just go with it, Snow.” She nods reluctantly, and we walk the rest of the journey to her parked car, our hands still molded together as one. I can ignore the whispers of people who pass us by. I just hope she can, too. “And you’re right. I have no plans for the rest of the day. What did you have in mind?” I ask, all too aware of how badly my body wants hers.
I would take her right here, right now, if she let me. But I know not to push my limits. If people take photos of our hands holding and it gets out in the press, it can be passed off as friends if that’s what she wants. But if I were to pin her up against the brick wall beside Laney’s Yoga House…thatwould be harder to explain.
Something I would be happy to ignore, but would no doubt send her into a spiral.
“I have an idea. Are you up for it?” she asks, and I nod once, kissing the back of her hand. “Then let’s go.” She drags me to thecar, opening the passenger side door for me, shoving my body inside, and we drive with silence between us while the sun sets, and the radio blares through the speakers.
The windows are down, and the wind is blowing her blonde in every direction, but that smile on the face…the one that hasn’t left since we walked out of Katie’s Diner hand in hand.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen something so beautiful.
There’s a change in her.
Like having someone defend her has set free the person she’s been wanting to be, but feared to accept.
A person laying dormant, finally brought to life.
She looks radiant.
Her fair skin glowing under the golden sun, hints of citrine shimmering off her blonde hair.
“Why are you staring at me like that?” she asks, and I don’t know how long I’ve been watching her for, but I can’t seem to look away.
I smile. “I like seeing you happy. It suits you,” I say, and she flashes a quick grin before turning her attention back onto the road.
“This whole ‘friends with benefits’ thing might have its perks after all.”
I hate that she assumes that ‘friends’ is all we are.
She knows as well as I do that this is so much more.
It just doesn’t have a label on it.
“So…” She slows the car down before putting it in park. “Those things you told my mom about you, were they true?” She fidgets with her fingernails, her eyes glued to the giant theater screen a hundred yards in front of us.
“Where are we?” I ask, veering the conversation away, because truthfully, I don’t want to talk about it. I don’t want her to think of me as anything less than the guy she’s unknowingly falling for.
The guy who was once a model.
Now actor, Cole Green.
Not broke, bartender Cole Green, who couldn’t fit on the bed he slept on every single night.
“Cassandra told me about it weeks ago. Harley apparently owns the land it’s on, but in summer they have an outdoor cinema.” She smiles, unbuckling her seatbelt, and turning to face me.
There are food trucks surrounding the area. People are sitting closer to the screen on picnic blankets and beanbags, and others are coupled-up in their cars further back.
“Should we get some food?” I ask, my hand already on the handle to open the car door.
“I’m not really hungry,” she replies with a shrug, but I don’t buy it. At the diner, only her mom and Mark had plates in front of them. Jenna had an untouched, black coffee in front of her.
“You haven’t eaten since this morning.” It’s a safe guess, but the way she hangs her head and turns her face to look the other way tells me I’m right. “Is it because of your mom?” I ask, and she nods before attempting to open her door, but I lean across her and pull it shut.
My lips hover an inch from hers, and I kiss her too quickly for her to realize what I’ve just done, and I’m back in my seat before she can protest.
Her cheeks turn rosy before her eyes soften. “Whenever I’m with her, I just…lose my appetite, I guess. It’s not a big deal.” She blinks rapidly to will away the tears, and I rest my hand on her thigh.
