up quickly.”
She laughed. “And maybe that's why you seem younger.”
“Hey, now! Are you calling me immature?”
“More like carefree,” she said.
He smirked. “I'm happy to be that. So if you didn't go to high school here, I'm guessing you didn't make a lot of friends here either.”
“You're correct, and that's fine since my schedule is so hectic. Coming back is awkward, though. I feel like I stick out like a sore thumb even though I'm dressed in my frumpy jeans and a button-down uglier than your green plaid shirt. They all know who I really am and that I don't belong here.”
“Which is why you don't come home much,” he said softly.
She shrugged and then rubbed at her arms again. “One of many, but I'm not sure where I belong. Is it possible to be a free spirit? Does a person have to have a home?”
Bryce stopped walking and gazed down at her, making sure she was looking back at him. Their eyes met and he cupped her chin in his hand. “You have one, Ari. Everyone has a place they return to when they're tired from their journey.”
Holding his gaze with her own, she swallowed, trying to get rid of the dry feeling in her mouth and to relax the heavy pounding of her heart. She was swooning, there was no question about it. The depth of his heart touched her. How did he always know the right thing to say? Was it possible for anyone to be so perfect for her?
“I'll find it eventually then,” she whispered.
His lips pressed against her forehead. Her eyes closed as she lingered in the moment. Bryce was kissing her. A sweet kiss, but the purity of it made it far more romantic than anything she'd ever experienced in her entire life. And he was giving it to her on his own accord while sober. If it were possible for her to melt into a puddle of goo, she would have done so within two seconds.
****
For a moment, all he could do was look down at her and ache over the sadness he saw in her eyes. She was so much stronger than she believed herself to be. Bryce wanted to show her that, but he didn't know how. Just like he wasn't sure how to show her how he loved her.
“Are you ready to go?” he asked, knowing how uncomfortable being in town was for her. He blinked with surprise when she shook her head. “Are you sure? Like I said, you seem on edge. I don't want you to upset your stomach and lose that delicious breakfast we just ate from the diner!”
She laughed. “I need to be here, to be used to this. At least I'm not the only person people are staring at. They're probably wondering who you are, more than asking what I'm doing back. Plus I promised you a good time. It just takes a little bit to get over the fear. Kind of like before getting up on the stage. This is so similar for me because I'm in a public spotlight, the whole town watching my one-woman show. Small town gossip is just as fun as tabloid fodder, so of course they wanna see what I do next. I think they're waiting for me to do something Hollywood crazy.”
“Let's see, there aren't any night clubs to get drunk at, so that leaves man stealing or joining the no-panty club,” he teased.
Arial giggled so hard that she snorted. She'd done that a handful of times in front of him before. He liked it and didn't understand in the slightest why her cheeks always flushed afterward. Was she embarrassed? She shouldn't have been.
****
It took her a few seconds to find her composure again. She took in a deep breath to stop the laughter from returning. “There's a bar I could get plastered at if I so choose, but I happen to like my lady parts covered, so they'll be staying that way. As for man stealing…” She glanced up at him. “That's never been my thing.” Even if I wanted to try it. The risk of losing him forever hadn't been worth trying to break him up with Katie. In the end, she wanted him to be happy.
“As tempting as it is to see what you would be like drunk, I'm gonna pass on that idea. So instead we should make a different kind of trouble.” He smirked, and she caught a glimmer of childish deviousness in his