Page 156 of The Perfect Spiral
Then it stops after a few more shots. He lowers the camera from his face and looks up at me with a smile.
“Let’s go down to the beach,” he suggests, lightly slapping the outside of my thighs. When he stands up, his hand brushes my leg on purpose, making me shiver at his touch.
I start to walk ahead of him and see a crowd of paparazzi andfans waiting for him. Thank God they didn’t see us up there. That would require a lot of explaining.
Oh, we were just messing around. Nothing to see here!
Yeah, that would go over well with the media.
He places a hand on my upper back as we walk side by side. I ignore the questions from the paparazzi and head straight for my family, who are relaxing and ignoring the commotion behind them.
Knox stops in the sea of bodies to pose for pictures and sign autographs, but I don’t wait around for him. He can handle himself.
I reach my towel that’s laid out in the sand and apply more sunscreen before lying down on my back, facing up.
Minutes pass, punctuated by the occasional snap of a camera shutter above me. I open my eyes to find him, once again, the culprit. “Quit taking pictures of me!” I protest.
I feel like I’ve been through the wringer today. He settles back down next to me, scrolling through the photos he’s just taken.
“I’m keeping all of these,” he murmurs to himself.
“Why? I’m shocked I didn’t shatter your lens with the way I look right now.”
“Because I want to. I think you look really pretty.” His words jolt me upright.
“What? Are you blind? I look awful!” I shake my head, covering my face. I’m far from pretty at this moment. The sound of camera shutters clicking and people calling out for Lauren fills the air behind us.
“You never look awful, baby doll. You have natural beauty, unlike some girls.” He turns to watch Lauren navigate throughthe crowd. He sighs, resting his head in his hands before reclining back on the towel.
He laces his fingers behind his head, soaking up the sun. I slowly join him, resuming my previous position, still reeling from his...compliment.
I’m stunned that he said I have natural beauty. Seriously, where did this version of Knox come from? I turn my head to look at him, and he catches my gaze. “What?”
“You’re seriously freaking me out with these compliments. I feel like you’re a body double who killed the real Knox and took his place,” I tease, eliciting a sweet laugh from him.
God, his laugh is sexy. Wait, no! No! No! Not the time for that, Alex.
“I told you, this is the real me. You got the version of me that I changed. I hope you like the real me, because I know you didn’t like the other me.” He looks at me, waiting for a genuine response.
I lay my head back on the towel and reply, “I’ll let you know,” a smirk playing on my lips.
“Knox, baby, come take a picture with me? I need an update for Instagram.” Lauren’s voice dominates the beach, her high-pitched, fake giggles and her grating, nasal tone are starting to seriously piss me off.
Did I mention she’s annoying? He doesn’t even bother to respond. He remains motionless, not giving her the satisfaction. “Knox? Knoooooox? Is he ignoring me? Knox!”
“What! What do you want, Lauren?” His voice, laced with irritation, startles me.
“Come take a picture with me, babe?” “No!” His curt response prompts a huff from Lauren. A shadow falls over me, and I look up to find her glaring at me, her eyes shooting icy daggers.
Her hands rest on her hips, her purple bikini contrasting with her sunglasses perched on her head. “You’re in my spot.”
“Uh, last time I checked, this was my towel. So no, get your own ‘spot.’ You’re blocking the sun.” I retort, not in the mood for her antics.
“Alex! Girls photo! Come on.” Sam saves me from the prima donna looming over me. I spring up and join the girls lounging in the sand.
“Alright, go in the water and get your butt wet. Knox, come here!” I do as instructed, wetting my butt with the cool water. I notice Knox is also wetting his hands.
We return to the sand, and Sam nudges him to put his hands in the sand. She signals for me to turn around. Suddenly, I feel two hands pressing against my ass, lingering there. I gasp and dart away from Knox.
