Page 35 of Faking Ever After

“You didn’t overreact,” he said as I pulled the ribbon loose. “In fact, you’re more patient with me than most guys have been. I…” He paused and scratched the back of his head. “It takes me a while to see what everyone else sees, Finn.” Then, smiling, he added, “Open it.”

I pulled the lid off the box and discovered a small, black cushion in the box. On it, a golden bracelet with an intricate Greek pattern of infinity awaited. I pushed it forward as I gasped. “I can’t…”

“I saw it, and I thought of you,” Percy said kindly in a tone that made me believe his words meant more than they would on a piece of paper. They carried a weight of importance I still didn’t dare to believe in. But when Percy put one hand under mine and the other over it, gently nudging them both and the box in them back to me, I realized I wasn’t just a silly dreamer. “I thought it would look great against your skin.”

That it would, although a gold bracelet was too much, even if he did suggest it was a first-date gift.

“And I thought, ‘He’s so beautiful. He should wear it.’” He kept his smile on, although a sliver of anxiety rose in his eyes. “Can I put it on you?”

I managed a nervous nod.

Percy’s hands were steady as he pulled the bracelet off the cushion and wrapped it around my right wrist. He hooked it and took my hand in his, pulling it closer to him and taking a good look. The weight of the bracelet surprised me. I had expected it to be light and thin, but it was not.

“Hm, I guessed the size,” Percy judged proudly. As he held my hand, something like warmth had traveled up my arm. The bracelet caught a bit of sunlight and glinted in the way only goldcould, making my heart stumble. This was easily worth as much as everything else I owned put together. Twice.

“I don’t know what to say,” I blurted, shaking my head. In truth, having my hand in his melted my heart away just as much as receiving a gift.

“Do you like it?” Percy asked simply.

I lifted my gaze from the bracelet to meet his eyes. “I love it.”

“I’m glad,” he said. “It looks really good on you.”

“I like the pattern,” I said, untying my tongue a bit more.

Percy nodded. “It’s supposed to symbolize the waves. See how each goes over the one that went before it? And it continues without an end.”

“Thank you,” I said after a moment of silence.

Percy released my hand and tucked both of his inside his pockets. “Did you have breakfast?”

My stomach rumbled at that exact instant. “Actually, no. I was kidnapped from your room very early.”

“Perfect,” Percy said happily. “We’ll eat together.” He crossed the space between us and the basket on the bench before I could ask him what all of this meant. He peeked inside the basket, under the red and white checkered cloth that hid its contents, and shared a delighted smile. “Nektaria packed a thermos of coffee.” His happiness over coffee matched mine. He picked up the basket, then gestured toward the town with his head. “I want you to meet someone.”

My heart sank a little. I’d imagined us being alone now. Although, I really needed to learn to trust Percy. So far, he hadn’t let me down, even if some of my expectations had been too high to begin with. It seemed that even those were being met with the slightest of delays.

As he started walking, I hurried to catch up. I decided I would follow him wherever he wanted to take me. He had already brought me to the highest peaks of the island, far away from hisfamily and the noises of a busy seaside town, and I didn’t regret it.

“But Percy,” I said, walking shoulder to shoulder with him. “About last night.”

He smiled again. “It was on me, Finn. I misunderstood pretty much everything I could misunderstand.” We crossed the street and reached the heart of the town. From here, the marble-paved street stretched out, and vehicles were banned. There, at the edge of it, Percy stopped and looked at me. “I want to fix it, Finn. And I should start by saying thatI’msorry. I brought you here as a guest, so I felt a certain sense of responsibility for your comfort. It clashed with my feelings, so they had to be kept in check. I couldn’t let myself make an awkward situation for you when you’re going to such lengths to help me. And I am slow to pick up the more subtle kind of cues.”

“Feelings? What feelings?” I whispered, not daring to hope too much even though that very hope was leaping high in my chest.

Percy hesitated, then smiled. “I think it’s better to show you.”

My heart tripped when Percy offered me his hand. I embraced it softly and walked when he walked. To our right, steep stairs rose toward the residential part of the town, each step made of marble that aged gracefully and shone under the bright sunlight of a fresh new day.

The street we walked on was created for perfect leisure to the last detail. Bars and restaurants with little terraces had their doors open, servers sweeping the leaves and needles from the street. Artisan shops sold their arts and crafts, from a pottery store to a marble store to a bronze store. Sculptures, paintings, and all sorts of fabrics and trinkets were on display, each catching my eyes as much as the last one.

To our left, beyond the terraces, was a waist-high wall, and over it were grassy and rocky slopes.

Percy greeted someone with his head, his hands occupied. “Kalispera, Nikos. Is my friend around?”

“He is around, Mr. Davenport,” a wiry man with a white beard and hair replied. “You know where to find him.”

Percy thanked Nikos, then hurried slightly. In a few minutes, we passed the terraces and walked along the wall. “Here,” he said, and placed the basket on the wall, then hopped over it. He extended his hand to help me over the wall and I took it gladly. Scrambling over it, my curiosity kept growing, but so did Percy’s smile.

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