Me:
Thank you for taking care of him. I’ll see you at 8 :)
His reply comes in quickly.
Aiden:
See you tomorrow :)
“All okay?” Finn asks.
“Yeah.” I lock my phone. “Just my sisters checking in.”
He laughs softly.
“Do you have siblings?” I ask after a moment.
“Yeah.” That’s all he offers.
Something in his tone tells me not to push.
The rest of the short drive home passes in comfortable quiet.
Soon we’re pulling into my driveway. Finn shifts the truck into park.
“Thanks for coming with me tonight.”
“I had fun,” I answer honestly.
“Let me get your door.”
He steps out, walks around the truck, and I watch him through the windshield.
He opens the door and offers his hand.
When I take it, he guides my hand to his shoulder, his other arm sliding carefully around my waist as he lifts me in the air like he’s done so many times now.
I laugh, a little breathless at the sudden closeness.
He lowers me slowly, and his eyes drop to my lips.
I feel the moment unfolding before it happens—the quiet pause, the night air, the way everything narrows to just the space between us.
His lips touch mine, soft and unhurried, and for a moment, the world goes perfectly still.
Chapter 22
Iwake up just after seven.
The memory of the kiss drifts through my thoughts for a moment—soft, easy, familiar—before settling somewhere quiet inside me. I wait for something louder to follow. Butterflies maybe. A flutter.
But nothing comes.
Not in a bad way. It’s just… quiet.
The morning outside is already bright. Sunlight spilling through the curtains in warm stripes across the floor. The sky is clear, bright enough that I already want to be outside. The weather is perfect, and it’s only going to get better. I am already reaching for my shoes.
Neptune lifts his head the moment I move.
