“Are you crazy!” she whisper-yelled once he’d gone, pinching my skin.
“Ow!” I rubbed the tender spot, holding up a hand. “Sorry, sorry! I didn’t mean to broadcast it like that! But you did, didn’t you?”
Her eyes shut.
“I knew it! When?” I demanded.
“I’ll tell you later,” she said through her teeth, taking a step away. “I need a goddamn drink.”
When she would have left, her steps halted, eyes locking on something—someone—behind me. I knew who it was.
Brows drawn in concern, she shifted back to me and asked, voice low, “You okay?”
I nodded. Sucking in a breath and holding it, I steeled my shoulders.
“Liss.” Reno’s smooth baritone drifted over my head. Every nerve reacted. The skin at the back of my neck prickled and the tiny hairs on my arms jumped to attention. Liss nodded briskly, giving my forearm a brief squeeze before striding away. She still hadn’t forgiven him fully. They’d get there.
“Riley,” he said. And that closet exploded open. All the pieces I’d shoved, stuffed and forced into storage, lay scattered all around me like storm debris.
Brushing the palms of my hands together, I wiped away imaginary dirt just to give them something to do. I turned to face him slowly, accepting that it had been futile to try to forget or erase him.
Reno was unforgettable.
Forty-Three
Riley
“Reno,” I breathed.
When our gazes finally collided, something slipped back into place inside me. Something I’d sensed was missing but hadn’t quite been able to place. Like a memory that hovered on the edge of your consciousness, but always stayed just out of reach.
Now that it was back, I couldn’t fathom how I’d ever functioned in its absence. Because it was pretty fucking vital.
It felt like my heart. It felt like my soul.
And just like that, I knew I’d never fallen out of love with this boy. Self-preservation had dictated I shut it down, pretend like it never existed. I’d been a fool to think it would stay contained.
His throat worked as he swallowed, the knuckles on his closed hands glowing white in the firelight as his eyes raked over every inch of my face. He looked like he was trying to take in each facet, commit it to memory. I knew… because I was doing the same.
I could close my eyes and bring his face to mind without trying. Most days it appeared, as if it just sat behind my lids, waiting for the instant I closed my eyes. But it didn’t even compare to seeing him up close after so long. My eyes took their fill with no thought of embarrassment or shame.
His head tipped, eyes burning with raw intensity. “Walk with me?” he asked, voice hoarse.
It didn’t occur to me to deny him. I nodded.
We walked silently, side by side, weaving through bodies until the mass cleared, and we edged toward the treeline. Dappled moonlight sifted through the canopy of leaves overhead, illuminating our way. The noise from the party grew distant until all I could hear was the sound of my flats slapping softly against the dirt pathway and stones and gravel crunching underfoot. We continued to pace in silence, a good couple of feet separating our bodies. It was Reno who spoke first, when we both came to a natural stop just beyond a clearing in the trees. My gaze stayed trained ahead, body facing forward. Reno angled himself until he faced me. I gulped, releasing a long breath to control my heartbeat.
“How’s college been?” He asked quietly.
Eyes flickering to the side, I tucked my chin. “Um, it’s been… good.”
“Good,” he nodded, lips rubbing together. “You made a bunch of new friends?”
My teeth chewed nervously on my bottom lip. “Some.”
His eyes seared into my head for a few quiet seconds. “I wasn’t going to come tonight.”
My gaze shot to him. The snap of discomfort in my chest unnerved me. Seeing him… might have been the best thing that had happened to me in a year. But thoughts like that were reckless. I wrestled my mind into submission, averted my eyes, and said nothing.