Page 63

“Night, Little D,” he says with a smile, but he doesn’t move.
Neither of us do.
I stand here at my door, and he stands there, two feet away, and we just watch each other, our tired smiles growing sleepier by the second.
“What are you doing this time next week?” he asks.
And my resulting smile dips straight down into my soul.
Chapter Nineteen
Jude
The intercom sounds, and I buzz Declan up.
Unlocking the door, I stand and wait for her at the threshold, arms folded across my chest. I catch a head of pink hair coming up the stairs, and my lips tip into an unwitting smile. I can’t seem to help those lately. Not around her. But I like the pink.Reallylike the pink.
A smile creeps over her lips as well, brightening further when she sees me.
I stride forward and pull her into my arms, pressing a kiss to her temple before dipping my head down and inhaling a deep breath. She smells like summer. Like sun, sand, surf, and coconut. How she managed to pull that off through a thirty-five-minute subway ride, I’ve no clue, but I can appreciate it anyhow.
“Hey, Little D,” I say. “You hungry?”
She glances up at me from within my hold, blue eyes hooking mine. “Hey, Brooklyn,” she tosses back with a widening smile. “I skipped lunch today, so I’m starving, actually. What did you end up ordering?”
“A little of everything.” I force out a breath of laugher, but it sounds more like a grunt. “Wasn’t sure what you’d be in the mood for.”
She laughs. “You didn’t have to do that. I’m not picky.”
I shrug. “Between Elijah and I, there won’t be much left by the end of the night anyhow.”
“Oh. Is he here now?” She peeks around my shoulder, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
I have to bite back another smile. “No, he’s not. He shouldn’t be home until later.”
She tries to hide her look of relief, but she knows I can read her. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited to meet him. I am. I just get nervous about these kinds of things sometimes. You know that.”
My smile breaks through this time. “I do know that, Little D. I do.” Holding the door open for her, I lead her inside. And I’m not going to lie—it’s been a trip. Having her in my hometown. Seeing her with my friends. And now, sitting down at the kitchen table inside my brother’s apartment.
It’s where I’m staying for the summer. For the next five weeks before training camp starts up toward the end of July.
Declan’s eyes fall to the food on the table in front of her. “I’m not going to pretend to be upset about how much food you’ve ordered, though. God, it smells so good. What all did you get?”
“A few things from Happy Lin’s, a pizza from Tony’s down the block, a few sandwiches from the local deli, some wings, and—”
Her sharp burst of laughter cuts me off mid-sentence. “Wow. I mean, thank you, but wow. You didn’t have to do all this. I am excited to finally try some food outside of the rec hall, though.”
I halt mid-stride with two plates in hand. “You’re joking. Please tell me you’re joking. You've tried at least a few places outside of school, right? That Thai place around the corner from you? The sandwich shop two blocks over? Pizza, fuckingeverywhere?”Her grimace tells me everything I need to know. “Are you shitting me, Declan? No wonder we haven’t grown on you yet. You’ve been eating fucking frozen burritos and sloppy joes from the mess hall.”
Her renewed burst of laughter splits through my tangent. And I realize, a beat too late, she’s fucking with me. I growl as I narrow my stare at her, but my lips betray me, tipping into a grin.
“I haven’t been out as much as I would have liked, but I didn’t keep myself a prisoner of NYU.” She laughs again, and the light sound penetrates through every layer of my chest. “I’m still hoping you’ll show me all the best kept secrets, though.”
“Damn straight I will.” I sit down at the small table across from her. To-go containers litter the surface. I wasn’t joking when I said I ordered some of everything.
She goes for the pizza first, and then half a turkey sandwich, and lastly, piles a bit of noodles and spicy chicken onto her plate. I take note of what she likes and tuck the information away for later.
We eat in relative silence, commenting every so often on the food. But her quiet little hums of pleasure have me shifting in my seat, tugging at the crotch of my pants to hide the evidence of what those sounds do to me.The way I’m desperate for this girl.