Page 84 of When the Stars Rise

Which prompts me to pull her even closer. “Inhale nice and deep. You love my sweat.”

“Says you.” She swats me away, laughing when I try to rub my sweaty body all over her. “I have to go do my soundcheck. Go take a shower.”

“Let’s shower together. I’ll make sure to get you good and clean. I’ll even shampoo your hair and massage your scalp the way you love and then I’ll work my way down your body with my magic hands.” I give her some jazz hands.

“Stop!” She laughs and looks around to make sure no one overheard then ducks her head to hide the blush staining her cheeks. The last time we took a shower together, she nearly had an orgasm just from the scalp massage.

“I’m heading over to the arena. I’ll see you later.”

She starts walking toward the SUV, but I grab her hand and spin her to face me, then cradle her face in my hands.

She has five freckles on her nose and a constellation of seven on her left cheek. I know because I’ve counted them. Connected the dots with my fingertip.

I’ve memorized every dip and curve of her body and the planes of her face.

The angle of her cheekbones. The fullness of her lips. The almond shape of her eyes. The length of her sooty black lashes.

I know her face by heart, and if I suddenly went blind, I would still be able to see her face in my mind.

It’s the last thing I see before I go to sleep and the first thing I see when I wake. Even when we weren’t together, that’s how it’s always been.

She gives me a little smile, prompting me to say whatever is on my mind.

There’s only one thing I want to say. Three little words that hold so much power.

My forehead drops against hers. “I love you. I am in love with you, Hayley.”

When the silence stretches out for a bit too long, I pull back to see her face better.

It feels like a sucker punch in the stomach.

Fuck. I shouldn’t have said the words.

Not because I didn’t mean them. I meant it. But because of the look on her face. I don’t even know how to describe it. Confused? Apologetic?Blank?

I didn’t say the words as a ploy to get her to say it back. But what the fuck?

She takes a few steps back and looks over her shoulder like she’s impatient to leave. When her eyes meet mine, her mouth opens as if to speak and then closes again.

Crickets.

Yeah, this is awkward.

I flash her a smile. “Have a good soundcheck.”

I stroll away, trying to play it cool like I didn’t just offer up my heart on a silver platter. A-fucking-gain.

After a quick shower, I straddle my Ducati and take off.

So what if she didn’t say the words? Who fucking cares? I know she loves me, so it’s not a big deal.

Nothing a bit of speed and an open road can’t cure.

The route starts flat and straight but eventually gets curvy as I ride through hills and valleys on a two-lane stretch of road with minimal traffic.

Just the way I like it.

I open the throttle and accelerate into the turns, chasing the rush instead of dwelling on the sinking feeling that everything is headed south again.