White paint. White paint is spread across the bottom half of my hoodie, and I notice the brush still in her hand.
“That’s why you’re supposed to wear an apron.” She shrugs.
“Oh yeah?” I ask, raising my eyebrow in a challenge. “Is that apron really gonna protect you?”
I grab one of the paint bottles and pop open the lid.
“Declan Sanderson, don’t you even think about it.”
“I’ll give you a head start.”
“To go where?” She giggles, looking around the room, trying to plan her escape.
“Three… two…” And then she’s running. I don’t know where she’s planning on going, and I don’t think she does either. I plop a decent amount of paint onto a pallet before dousing one of the clean brushes in it.
It takes me three strides to catch up to her. My hand loops around her waist, and I easily hold her to me, even as she kicks her legs.
“Don’t you dare.”
She shakes her head, trying to move away from the brush approaching her.
“Mine was an accident! It was an accident.”
“So’s this.”
I do one long swipe from cheek to cheek, giving her the perfectJokersmile.
“You’re dead,” she says as she pinches my arm, causing me to release her from my grip. She runs back toward the easels to grab a bottle of yellow paint, she pops open the cap, but she doesn’t play it safe like I did. She doesn’t use a brush; before I know it, paint splatters all over my hoodie and jeans.
“This means war.”
And then we’re off. I’m lucky I decided to go to a studio instead of just getting the supplies and doing it at my house because this floor is covered in plastic. Paint already covers most of it, so our antics will hide among the rest of the paint on the floor.
Before I know it, her gray sweater is more purple than gray, and myRockfordhoodie looks like tie-dye with all the white and yellow mixing with the already black hoodie. Paint is everywhere, in our hair, on our clothes, covering us from head to toe.
I give up first.
“Alright, alright, you win.” I wave my hands in the air, walking toward Ember, who puts her paint bottle back on the table.
“Giving up already, Sanderson? I expected more from you.”
“Well, as much as I’ve enjoyed covering you in paint,” I begin, “and trust me, I’ve had a lot of fun. I’d rather be doing this.”
I pull her against me before finding her lips. Her fingers tug at the hair resting at the nape of my neck, allowing her full access to my mouth.
Chills travel down my spine as she mumbles against my mouth. “Definitely better than a paint war.”
twenty-four
Ember
So, you used to bang Cam Bowman?”
Maia’s eyebrows knit as she looks at me with aIs this guy seriouslook. I hide a laugh as I nod.
“You get used to it after a while,” I say, wrapping my arms around Zeke. “He’s just always straight to the point.”
“And to the point, is asking me if I used to sleep with your brother?” She laughs. “He didn’t even introduce himself.”
