Page 59 of Bliss: Part 1
“Good. Then I won’t ask any more questions.”
He gave my shoulder a little squeeze, then turned his attention back to the movie.
Through all of this, and any situation ever, really, Dash always made me feel safe. And if anything will ever fall apart, I knew I could always count on him the most.
Eighteen
Bliss
On Thursday, Dash somehow managed to talk me into going to Tyler’s house.
I hadn’t planned on leaving the house. I’d spent most of the day lounging around, reading, watching the guys play video games. But then Dash came downstairs, dressed in a clean outfit, looking as casual as ever, saying to me, “Come with me to Tyler’s.”
Thinking about it now, he didn’t really talk me into it. He suggested it, I thought about it for a moment, then agreed to go.
I figured we both needed a break from this house. At least for an evening.
Dash waited patiently by my bedroom door, watching as I put on a skirt and the first top I could find. He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and that small smile he always got. After grabbing a sweater to make sure I wouldn’t freeze later at night, I turned to look at him with a tilt of my head.
“Why do you even want me to come?” I asked.
He shrugged, letting his eyes wander down my body. “Because I like having you around. Especially when you wear stuff like that.”
I pursed my lips and looked down at my skirt, picking at the upper layer before lifting it to reveal the conveniently sewn-in shorts underneath. “It’s got shorts, so nobody will see my butt.”
He laughed. “That’s good. Are you ready?”
“Yes. Let’s go.”
The drive to Tyler’s was only ten minutes long, and as we got closer, the scenery changed into something more sophisticated. The road curved through rows of tall trees, and the houses started getting bigger and more spaced out, each one with their own long driveways and fancy landscaping. His neighborhood was in one of those gated lake communities, with posted speed limits and trimmed hedges and docks that probably cost more than our entire property.
“Our lake is so much better,” I muttered as we turned into the entrance and Dash slowed down for the gate to open.
He looked over, raising a brow. “Elaborate.”
“Oh, gladly,” I said, straightening up in my seat a little. “First of all, our lake has clearer water. You can actually see the bottom near the shore. This one’s always murky and full of weeds. Second, ours warms up faster because it’s smaller, which means it’s actually nice to swim in, like, by May. And it’s private. Totally on our property. No one gets to use it unless we say so. Which means it’s clean and sacred.”
Dash laughed under his breath. “Sacred?”
“Yes, sacred,” I said, nodding. “You know what’s not sacred? This lake. Full of giant, terrifying fish that brush up against your leg when you least expect it. I swear I once saw a snapping turtle the size of a tire here.”
He glanced at me, amused. “You’ve clearly thought about this a lot.”
I shrugged. “Some of us pay attention to important things.”
We finally arrived at Tyler’s place. The house was massive. It was white with tall windows and a wide porch that wrapped around the front, bordered by white railings. The grass was perfect. It looked fake, but I knew it wasn’t. From the driveway, I could see the lake behind it, the water was still, but it still gave me the chills when I reminded myself what all lingered in that dark water.
Tyler came out to meet us as we got out of the car, barefoot and holding a beer in one hand. “Finally,” he called out to Dash. “Took you long enough.”
Dash smirked as he stepped forward and pulled Tyler into a hug, both of them doing that quick, casual back-pat guys always do. They pulled apart after a second, smiling like seeing each other was the best thing to happen in a while.
It was adorable.
“How are you, man?” Dash asked with genuine warmth in his voice.
“Good,” Tyler replied easily. “Summer break’s always a good time to lay back and relax. Needed it after the last semester.”
Then his gaze shifted to me, and his whole face softened as he held out a hand toward me. “Glad you came too, Bliss. Tia’s excited to hang out.”
