Page 34 of Back to You
A chuckle rumbles through the line. “I see you and Lyse had a good brunch. How many did it take before you got buzzed? One?”
I scowl, slowing my steps as I wave a hand in the air, despite the fact that he can’t see me. “Noooo, for your information, I had three,” I announce proudly, lifting three fingers, which, again, no one can see but me.
Sebastian laughs, full-bodied and deep, a laugh that feels like sunshine on a cloudy day. “Three whole drinks? Wow, you’re really living life on the edge, Mari.”
I gasp, outrage burning through me. “I can live on the edge, Sebastian! I can be wild if I need to.”
His laughter only deepens, and I swear I can hear him shaking his head through the phone. “Oh yeah?” he teases, the smile evident in his voice. “You, Mariana Vargas, are the definition of reckless now?”
“You can stop laughing now,” I grumble, rolling my eyes at the sidewalk like it’s somehow in on the joke.
“Alright, alright.” He humors me. “But, to be fair, you’ve always been a little… risk-averse.”
I halt mid-step. “Excuse me?”
“Don’t get me wrong,” he continues, still entirely too entertained. “It’s a good thing! You’re careful. You think things through; more people should be like you.”
I narrow my eyes at absolutely nothing, fists curling at my sides. “Oh, I’ll show you careful.”
A slight pause. “What?”
“Where are you?” I demand, suddenly fueled by mimosa-driven determination.
His confusion is palpable. “Right now?”
“No, yesterday,” I deadpan. “YES, right now.”
There’s another pause, then a wary, “Uh… I’m in the parking lot of the station. Just finished my shift.”
“Perfect,” I declare. “I’m coming over.”
“For what?” he asks, suspicion creeping into his tone.
“We’re going to do something daring. Something reckless.”
Sebastian laughs again, but this time, there’s an edge of disbelief to it. “Mariana, you’re crazy. You don’t have to prove anything.”
“Shut up, Seba, and come pick me up.”
“You just said you were coming here.”
“Yeah, well… I got all excited and now I have to actually follow through, but I’m not about to drive across town when I have a perfectly good friend wholovespicking me up?”
He groans. “Unbelievable.”
“I prefer irresistible.”
Another laugh, this one softer, like he’s shaking his head at me but still indulging me. “Alright, give me ten.”
“Great,” I say, then hang up, staring at my phone as the reality of what I just did sinks in. What the hell did I just get myself into?
Exactly ten minutes later, Sebastian pulls up in front of me—right on time, because of course he is. He’s always reliable.
My buzz has mostly worn off by now, but there’s still a slight lightness in my limbs, a lingering warmth from the mimosas, or maybe from the anticipation curling low in my stomach.
I pull open the passenger door and slide in, the familiar scent of him filling the small space—clean, warm, something undeniably Sebastian. “Hey,” I say, glancing at him. I immediately lose all sense of thought. His shirt is snug around his arms, the soft fabric stretching over muscle, and damn, I don’t remember his biceps looking this good before.
I’m staring, I know I’m staring, and I still can’t stop.
