The Best Kind of Forever (Riverside Reapers #1)

by Celeste Briars

“We can do whatever you want. If you want to go to sleep, we can just go to sleep. But we can also watch a movie, or just talk, or I can just hold you⁠—” He’s still talking and offering me endless alternatives, but my brain has malfunctioned. That heart-bursting feeling is starting to return, and I’m not sure how long it’ll be until I’m sobbing over how completely thoughtful Hayes is. He’s done so many sweet things for me in the time we’ve been together, but this is something I don’t think I’ll ever forget. Not only did he want to make me feel better, but he wants to make sure I don’t feel alone, either. Which is impossible with him. “Oh, Hayes. You did all of this for me?” I slide into the unmade sheets, staring at the spread before me, trying to digest the intention behind such a genuine and heartfelt act, trying to wrap my head around the amount of effort he puts in for me every day. “Of course I did. I couldn’t let the night end like that.” I pick up the mystery container and turn it over in my hands, and that’s when I realize that it’s a green tea face mask. I chuckle. “You’d seriously let someone put this on you?” Hayes brushes his hand over my knee, and his touch sends bolts of electricity that strike me with varying degrees of intensity. He forces me to look at him, to drown in those endless pools of blue, and his half-lidded gaze trails from my eyes to my lips. “No, Aeris. I’d only let you put this on me.” I think I’m blushing as red as a beet right now. Only me.