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She has a power over me no one ever has. One I’m betting no one ever will.
“You can’t have her here … but you don’t want her to go.”
I fell for the blond-haired, blue-eyed boy next door that night, but I was too stupid to know it.
My chest constricts. “You’re not mine, Kens,” I gently tell her, pain I didn’t mean to show clear as day. “And that’s a problem for me.”
I’m struck with a realization I only guessed at before. She is, without a doubt, everything I could ever want.
“Wait, Noah Riley from Avix?”
“He’s not just good. He’s damn good.” Lolli brings her eyes back to mine. “I want him. Bad.”
“You need someone who will be there for you, Kens,” I quietly tell her, staring at the ceiling. “You need someone to take care of you, not hurt you like this all the time.” “And what do you need, Parker?” she whispers as she slips into slumber. You.
I spot Kenra against the fence, jumping up and down, as she screams her congratulations.
What I wouldn’t give to go over there, lift her by her waist, and spin her around. Instead, I grin her way, and she winks.
“Why are you here, Kens?” “To dance,” she whispers, bringing our hands to cover her heart. “You came here to dance?” “I came here to dance with you.” Her eyes fall to my lips.
I sense it. Her final good-bye. That’s why she’s here. With a shuddered breath, I tighten my hold, burying my head in her neck as she begins to cry into mine. This is it. She’s marrying Kellan. She chose him for real. Over me.
“After two years of it, I realized I could never be enough for you, so I stopped waiting, but I couldn’t fucking let go. I was a zombie in my own skin who ran around like a fucking clown, not a care in the world when all I wanted was the girl I couldn’t have. All I thought about was how I wasn’t enough for my mother to love, not enough for my dad to be brave, not enough to save my sister from the hell I lived, and not enough for you to walk away from your asshole fiancé.”
“So, plan for tonight.” Mason claps, then gestures toward Payton. “Pretty Little here has never been on a walk on the beach at night. That’s a crime. So, I wanna take her.” Payton smiles, and Deaton scowls. “Guess you can come.” Mase meets Deaton’s scowl, cutting a glance at his arm around her shoulders. “If you can keep your hands to yourself.”
I sigh. “I want him,” I admit, plain and simple and for the first time out loud. “For keeps.”
They get a full four steps when Deaton calls out, “Hey, Mason!” Mason nods over his shoulder. “You got my family in your hands.”
I’m convinced I’m the only one who can bring her back to being her. And I will. Because I’m her safety.
“When it comes to each other, our hearts are defenseless. No way out. No others in.”
