Page 119 of How You See Me
“What?” he asks, brows lifting.
“We forgot to get a rock in Albuquerque.”
He chuckles, easy and light, and reaches over to lace our fingers together. “I love how much that means to you. We’re good. I found one during my workout.”
“Thank goodness.” I exhale in relief, retrieving my pad and pencil. “I was about to tell you to whip this van around.”
He lifts our joined hands to his lips. Soft, lingering, tempting. My insides go up in flames. I swear, this man could light me on fire with a single breath.
“Have you updated Jordan lately?” he asks.
“On our trip or ourstatus?”
“Definitely our trip. Pretty sure he doesn’t want to hear about the rest.”
“So, Ishouldn’ttell him about your performance this morning? Because it was . . .” I let the sentence hang for a bit. “. . . quite impressive.”
“You can tell the whole damn world if you want—just leave Jordan out of it.”
I laugh. “I think I’ll keep that to myself. Can’t risk other women discovering my secret and trying to steal you away.”
“Impossible. I already told you—you’re the ice cream sundae.”
“And that’s good, right?”
“To me, there’s nothing better.”
My heart flutters, flips, then face-plants. I lean over and press a kiss on his cheek. “Does that mean you want to continue this when we get home?”
“You said ‘yes’ to theofficialquestion, and we told our families. If that doesn’t scream long-term, I don’t know what does.”
That earns him another kiss, and I take his mouth this time. The van swerves slightly as he fumbles with the wheel, catching me before I tumble through his open window.
Using his shoulder for balance, I force myself back to my seat instead of his lap where I’d rather be.
“But we’ll never make it there if we crash,” he grumbles, trying to sound stern, but his smirk betrays him.
“It’s all your fault,” I inform him. “You and your insistent sweetness make me reckless.”
Those kissable lips twitch. “That’s fine. Get as crazy as you want. I’ve got you.”
There he goes again. “I know you do. And it goes both ways, you know?”
“I do.” His grip tightens around my fingers, his expression serious. “Jordan won’t recognize you when you get home.”
“Speaking of my brother, let’s see if he’s awake.”
I reach for my phone and tap Jordan’s name.
“It’s early there. He might be on his way to class.”
When he doesn’t pick up, I send a text.
Me:We’re leaving New Mexico and heading to Arizona. Check out what I did yesterday.
I attach a photo of me and Hayes in the hot air balloon and hit SEND.
Jordan:Shut up! No, you didn’t.
