Amy rolled her eyes. “That much I know. But you can’t just do nothing. You must have some plans.”
I tried to pretend I wasn’t heavily invested in his answer. Dominic and I had been skating around the topic of his plans for weeks now, never fully broaching it.
“A little bit of this, a little bit of that,” Dominic drawled, his fingers tapping on the table between us. “I’m eighteen. I don’t need to have my whole life planned out right now.”
Amy shot me an eye-roll. “Why are they like this? Do they think it’s cute?”
My brows drew together, not understanding her. “Huh?”
“These two.” She gestured to Max and Dom, then leaned forwards co-conspiratorially, mischief sparking in her eyes. “They’re both the same. Do they think they’re being hot and mysterious by not sharing their plans?”
Their plans.
My heart dropped into my stomach. I couldn’t stop myself glancing at Dominic for reassurance. For him to let me know with a cocky grin that he didn’t have secret plans with Max. Plans they were intentionally keeping from me for some reason.
But Dominic wasn’t looking at me.
He was looking at Max.
The two of them seemed to be having some kind of silent conversation. Max’s brows were raised, his expression almost smug. Knowing.
Dominic’s was tense. Lips thinned and eyes dull.
Then he looked away and slumped back in his seat.
Resigned.
What the fuck is going on?
I couldn’t take it anymore. Ripping my gaze away, I turned to the window.
If my eyes were glassy, I’d blame it on the sun.
The topicof the future didn’t come up again. We were back in our bubble, and I wasn’t going to be the one to burst it. Not this weekend. Not with what we had planned. The words I wanted to say.
Nothing was going to get in the way of that.
Fine, maybe I was being a chickenshit, but so was Dominic. We both seemed content to pretend there wasn’t a shadow looming over us. We’d learn to love the shade of it, if it meant not ruining us.
We stepped into the festival grounds and a slow grin worked its way over my face. There was so much to take in, and Iloved it all immediately. The noise and banter between different groups. The smells wafting over from the various food stalls. The colourful and humorous signs being waved over heads. You could almost feel the excitement in the air.
Dominic’s mouth came close to my ear. “What do you think?”
“This is awesome.” I grinned at him. “Thank you for bringing me, Dom.”
He wrapped his arm around my shoulders, giving me a far-too-brief hug before letting it fall away. “Can’t go anywhere without my Shadow.”
I bit my lip to stop myself kissing him. Fuck, I loved this guy. It was amazing how much could change in just a few short months.
The cruel jibe had become a term of endearment. A reminder of just how much Dominic wanted me around.
Me.
He wanted me.
No matter how many times he said it, I never got tired of hearing it.
“Come on,” Max said, appearing beside us suddenly. “Amy wants to see Beyond Eden.”
