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I punch his arm, quaking with the throes of more laughter. “I was so exhausted … I couldn’t risk injuring myself. If that happened, and I got hurt or worse, you would have blamed yourself. Admit it. You would miss me the most.”
His grin widened as she stared at me, and I fell quiet for a moment as I met his gaze.
“I missed you,” he whispers after a moment passes. “Every day I was away from L.A. … I missed hanging out with you the most.”
His words warms my heart and makes me sigh. I sense the tension sizzling in the air between us, and I know I can’t let it spiral out of hand here, so I push the passenger’s door open and jump out of the car.
“I’ll race you,” I announce, laughing as I pick up the hem of my ankle-length dress to allow me to run freely.
Ethan gets out of his car and races behind me, reaching out to grab me by the waist before I can make it far from him. His hands circle around my waist and he lifts me off the ground with ease, turning me in a circle till I giggle hard and struggle to break free from him.
He lowers me to the ground, and I instinctively lean into him. My entire body shudders and I notice his eyes gain a spark as I stare at him.
My blood hums with the trickle of my excitement, and we both reach to brush off the strands of hair falling to the sides of my face at the same time.
“Ethan,” I murmur in a strained voice, unable to hold back the urge to move closer to him. I arch my face away from him when he starts leaning closer to me.
The jolt of my pulse makes me put some distance between us. “It only complicates things,” I whisper in a shaky voice. “You don’t want that.”
“Right,” he answers after a moment.
Ethan turns his back to me, and I take the moment to suck in a deep breath. After a brief pause, he glances over his shoulder. “One moment.” He hurries back to his car and returns with a pair of sneakers for me.
“You carry these around?” I question, holding onto his shoulder when he bends into a squat to assist me in putting them on.
“Yup,” he replies while helping with the lace. “I am always prepared.”
Thankfully, my silk dress has a snug fit bodice while the skirts flow freely down my legs, allowing for easy movement. Once Ethan gets on his feet again, I lift my dress and dash into a race, not giving him a second to catch up even.
Ethan calls for me and follows me towards the Griffith Observatory hiking path leading to the sign. I love the sound of his laughter trailing behind me. It warms my heart and makes me enjoy his company far too much for my own good.
Chapter 12
Ethan
One and a half hours later, we arrived at the hill’s top and found a spot to sit for a while. Nelly stretches her legs in front of her and she looks at me with a wide grin.
My heart doubles in speed when I look at her. The light in her eyes is enough to have me leaning closer to her. “This feels nice,” I whisper, loving the feel of the cool breeze on my skin.
From high up here, I have a good view of the city. Everything looks miniature compared to how they are in reality. The buzz of L.A.’s traffic is still very visible from here, and a thrill zaps through me, making me feel like I’m on top of the world.
“If I’m too tired to hike back down, you’ll have to give me a piggyback ride.”
“Or I’ll let the rescue crew do it again,” I tease and Nelly pokes my ribs, causing me to giggle uncontrollably
We both laugh again, and my heart warms just from listening to her vibrant sounds. We’re quiet for the next few minutes until she clears her throat.
“The last time I was up here, I told myself it’ll be the last time. I wasn’t going to let you make me do something this stupid again.” A small smile cracks her lips and she tilts her head to one side, meeting my eyes intently.
“What changed?”
She shrugs. “I don’t know … It’s easy to get carried away with you.”
My smile ends with a chuckle and I wish I can stroke her skin without losing myself and craving more. Just like in the past, Nelly makes me jittery inside. Back then, I didn’t pay much attention to it. We enjoyed each other’s company. Her brother was my best friend, and so our worlds were intertwined.
The tingles she brought alive in me weren’t meant to mean anything.
“Don’t you think Mandy will be wondering where you’ve run off to?” she asks after the moment of silence melts away, and arches a brow.