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I feel him—only him—every sense and every breath filled with him, because for the first time ever, I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.

And the sky is looking back.

“I want to stay here forever,” I whisper.

I lean over the console, burying my nose and mouth in the sleeve of his shirt. I peer up at him, in love with the sight of me all over him. The hickey on his neck. His hair all over the place, because he swam, we played in the water, and then we fucked and played again.

Then we woke up and played some more.

But he shakes his head, one hand on the wheel and the other holding mine. “Girl, don’t give me that look.” A smile pulls at his lips. “We need to eat. And I need a shower.”

I sigh. I know. Me too.

The sun shines through the trees, waning as the late afternoon warmth soaks into my skin. We’d stayed out at the lake all day, neither of us wanting to ever leave.

My thighs tingle, and an ache throbs between my legs, because I’m a little sore, but I love it. I love loving him with my body. I like sex. With him.

We park the car and sneak up to the roof, descending through the door. It’s only been a couple of days, but the place looks different. Still the same comforts, though. Hidden, quiet, safe.

He picks me up and carries me to the shower, and I kiss him the whole way, laughing as we stumble to get our clothes off.

I wash my hair and rinse, both of us unable to keep our eyes off of each other.

We don’t have long before school starts for him. Dylan and Kade won’t go back for a couple of weeks, but college starts earlier. His aunt Quinn had left to get resettled in her Notre Dame apartment before I even came to live in the tower, he’d told me.

“Is it an option for me to stay here after this is all over?” I ask him.

He remains silent.

“I mean, just in case,” I blurt out. “Like if the kids stay in the area, and I want to be close to them, and maybe until I can earn enough to get a place for them and me?”

I don’t know who owns this place, or if Hawke has plans for it once school starts back, but knowing I have a place to live for the next few weeks would help. I’m asking. It’s what he wanted.

He rubs water over the back of his neck, turning away. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow, okay?”

I narrow my eyes. Why tomorrow? It’s not that hard. Yes or no?

I knew I shouldn’t have asked.

“I don’t expect anything for free,” I assure him. “I was just seeing what my options are. Never mind.”

I turn away, but I hear him behind me. “What are you going to do with a GED, Aro?”

Huh?

“You should want more options,” he explains.

Is that his business? My plans for my future?

I rinse off the rest of the soap. “Or maybe you just want a girlfriend who won’t embarrass you.”

He’s going to have a PhD, eventually. He can’t wind up with a high school dropout. I turn away, but in a moment, he’s there, twisting me around and taking my face in his hands. “Don’t ever say that again.”

Tears sting my eyes, and I don’t know what to think anymore. I want what he wants. In a perfect world, sure.

But that’s not going to happen for me. There are more important things. I just can’t.

I pull away, and we finish washing, but we don’t say more. I wrap a towel around me, heading into the tunnel, but as soon as I step into the dim hallway, I see Dylan and Stoli.

Hawke comes out behind me, charging toward his friend in only the towel around his waist. Stoli starts to run, but Hawke grabs him by the T-shirt.

“Dude…” Stoli gasps. “It was all in good fun!”

Hawke pushes him up against the wall.

“I’ll never touch her again!” the moron shouts, holding his hands in front of his face. “I promise! I promise!”

Hawke holds up his fist but doesn’t punch him. Dylan scoffs, sauntering toward me in black shorts, a long-sleeved, loose black top that cuts up in the front a little, showing her stomach, and sheer black tights. She wears black boots with a wedge heel, making her a few inches taller. “You guys almost ready?” she asks me.

I dive into my room. “I have to get dressed.”

We leave the boys to it, and she follows me inside, carrying a bag.

I pull out some clothes, slipping on some underwear under my towel.

“I saw something you might like.” She holds the bag out to me. “I had to get it.”

“What is it?”

But she just smiles.

I take the bag and peer inside, pulling out something that looks like a shoebox. I drop the bag to the floor.