life trying to be Little Miss Perfect, keeping everyone happy, that I forgot to think about what I wanted.”
“And what do you want now that the world is your oyster?”
She cocks her head. “I want to go to Paris.”
“And what about after that?”
“I don’t know.” Her eyes are huge, like she’s seeing all the things that are possible now. She’s in charge of her own destiny. “Maybe Italy. Oh, or Spain! Then Japan.”
“You can see the whole world.”
For a minute, we sit quietly together. It’s easier to think about “what’s next” in terms of big trips and work and everything else, because the topic we’re both avoiding is what we do about us.
“I’m sorry I kept my motivations quiet about wanting to get dirt on Mike,” I say. “I know it was a shit thing to do.”
Not only was it shit, it was grasping at straws, because my family situation feels completely and utterly out of my control. I’m so driven to do something that I manufacture action even when it’s pointless, because the idea of just waiting to see what happens feels like torture to me.
She presses a soft kiss to my jaw. “I put you in a bad position with your family by tricking you into being my getaway driver, so I guess we’re even.”
“Not quite, but I’ll take it.”
We know this can’t become anything. She’s right; her name is mud in my family. Our being together would kill any chance I have of repairing things with Dad because he’d assume it was nothing more than me trying to get one up on my stepbrother. Besides, I still don’t know if this is a rebound for her. Neither one of us is willing to risk ourselves by digging too deep.
It’s bad timing and there’s too much baggage.
I hate to be the kind of guy who places my stock in such bullshit things as “fate” and “the universe,” but that’s kind of how it feels right now: whatever it is between us, it’s not going to work out.
“How much longer do we have?” she asks.
“What do you mean?”
“Before we really shouldn’t be doing this anymore?”
I lean down and brush my lips over hers. “I think we crossed that line day one.”
“We did, didn’t we?” She sighs and I feel it right down to my bones.
I know what I need to do, but the idea of getting off the couch right now and walking away for good has my body rebelling. My arms and legs are stone; my gut is filled with rocks. I’m weighted down. Glued to the spot.
Just stand up, say goodbye and walk away. It’s not difficult. You did it to your own bloody family and you barely even know Presley.
But I can’t move. I can’t pull the trigger.
“Can I be greedy and ask for one more day?” Her hand curls into mine. “Like a last hurrah before we go our separate ways?”
One more day.
It’s like a lifeline and a knife at my throat all at the same time. But there’s no way I won’t take it—because an extra twenty-four hours with Presley is more than I deserve. It’s more than I should take. More risk. More chance of us getting caught.
But I’m powerless to resist her.
“Sure,” I say, leaning down to kiss her. “One more day.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Presley
I’M A WOMAN with a plan...even though Drew told me I need to let go of the idea of planning everything out. Maybe I’m at my best when I know what I want and have a four-point list of steps to achieve it. There’s nothing wrong with being organised, so long as what I’m working toward is the thing I want, right?
That explains why I’m wearing a dress with a full skirt and a pair of sunglasses that cover half my face. I contemplated buying a wig, but I came to the conclusion that sex stores don’t really deal in high-quality disguises.
And there was no way I was going to ruin my biggest sexual fantasy with some nasty polyester wig that was shinier than an Instagram model’s overly highlighted cheekbones.
Besides, focusing on doing rather than thinking is critical right now. I have mere hours left with Sebastian before we walk away for good. Yesterday, after our unexpected heart to heart, we stayed in and ordered pizza and lost ourselves in exploring one another. We did it in the shower, on the balcony, on the couch—again—and up against the windows.
I know, I know...it’s not my apartment. I’ve already booked a cleaner