Page 34 of The Love Trick

Whereisshe?

I search the lobby for Addy and try to ignore the worry tugging at my heart. All I can think about is how Ialmostkissed her last night.

What the heck was I thinking? Sure, I blew it off as a joke, but that wasn’t fair—and I owe her an apology. A real apology. I shouldn’t have pushed the boundaries like that.

But ugh, if only I didn’t want to.

Everything that happened between us last night reminded mesomuch of how I felt about her in college. The way I pined so hard after her, letting her wear my jersey and hoping she would show some interest in wearing it for the rest of her life.

But now, Ican’trisk losing what we have for a pipe dream like that. Especially given that I have limited experience with romantic relationships.

As I walk toward the double doors, I catch sight of Aurora jogging inside.

“Hey, have you seen Addy?” I ask, straightening out my Rolling Stones T-shirt like she might judge me for it.

She nods. “Yeah, she’s out by the water. She seems a little stressed out. I don’t know what’s up with her.”

“Oh,” I say, my brow furrowing. “Okay, thanks.” I walk past her, pushing the doors open.

“Wait, Blaze,” Aurora calls after me.

“Yeah?” I turn back to her.

“You should’ve just kissed her last night. It was so cute. Everyone thought so. No one cares about PDA. It’s all good.”

“Right,” I force out. “Noted.” I spin back around, my face feeling hot as her words echo in my mind.

Wait … did she sayeveryonethought we were cute last night?

I drop the thought as I catch sight of Addy in the distance, sitting on the sand with her legs partially in the water.

Onlyshewould sit like a toddler in the water.

It’s adorable.

And so is Addy.

I pick up my pace because I made some plans for us this morning, and we’ve got to get going. After everything that happened last night, my goal today is to make it up to her—and prove that I won’t push the boundaries anymore.

We’rejustfriends. I’m not obsessed with touching her.

Nope. Not even a little.

“Hey,” I breathe out as I reach her.

She startles and peers up at me. “Hey.”

“Whatcha doing?” I can’t hide my grin as she splashes in the water with her hands.

“The water’s warm.” Her short reply is abnormal, and I don’t like it. Not one bit.

I have to fix this.

“I made plans for us today,” I say quickly, offering her a hand. “And we need to get going. It was kind of last minute, and I had to pull some strings.” A lot of strings, actually. But she doesn’t have to know that.

“Hmm,” she says, taking my hand and letting me pull her to her feet. “What am I supposed to wear?”

I glance at her T-shirt and shorts. “You look perfect to me.”Gorgeous, actually.

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