Page 117 of Heartsick & Lipsticks
SKYE
Seatedbeside Nick in his luxury SUV, I kept my attention focused on the passenger side window as we drove up a winding street in the hills. Being alone with him was a bad idea. I knew that. But I just couldn’t resist the temptation. My lack of self-control had become more annoying than a nervous tic and a hell of a lot more damaging.
“Have you ever been up here?” he asked.
“No,” I responded, keeping my face turned away from him as I looked out the window. After leaving the party, there had only been silence between us. I wasn’t sure what cat had gotten his tongue, but mine was currently being held by a cat using up all her nine lives. Each and every time I was alone with Nick, was like falling off a ten-story building and hoping I landed on my feet. It was a gamble as to whether or not I would come out unharmed, and the more times I fell, the less likely it was that I would walk away without a serious injury. Yet, here I was, tap dancing on the edge of the worst idea in the world.
The SUV came to a stop, and I hesitantly turned my head to the front windshield. The view laid out before us was spectacular. A stream of moonlight shone off the dark waters of the bay like a river of silver on the surface, amidst the reflection of lights from the skyline. It was truly breathtaking.
“Wow. This is…beautiful.”
“It is.”
Nick’s deep voice sent a tremor racing down my spine, and I turned to find him staring at me. I grinned. “I meant the view.”
His gaze remained focused on me. “So did I. You look stunning tonight.”
“Thanks, Ri did my makeup.”
“It’s not the makeup; you always look beautiful.”
“You don’t have to say that.”
“How do you not know how insanely gorgeous you are?”
Wanting, no, needing to change the subject, I asked. “Did you have a good birthday?”
Shit. I’d already asked that question.
“Yes, because you were there.”
My heart was pounding wildly in my chest. Sure, we’d had sex twice, but this felt different. He was saying things people said that were in relationships, not casual flings. Or at least that’s how it felt. Since I had zero experience in either of those things, it was hard to say.
“Skye, I can’t stop thinking of you. I miss you so much. Since you moved out… I’ve been miserable. Bella has been miserable.”
I looked out over the view, trying to keep my heart from bursting wide open. Hearing him say those things was all I’d wanted, but now that he was, I felt overwhelmed. “We’ve all missed you, too.”
I was still trying to get my bearings when he blurted out, “Move back in.”
My lips curled up, and I let out a little laugh, sure that he must be joking.
“I’m serious. Move back in. Not because you have nowhere else to go, but because you want to.”
This time, I turned toward him and knew from the look of intensity in his eyes that he meant what he was saying.
Before I answered, my head was already shaking back and forth. “I can’t.”
“Why not?”
I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
“You don’t want to move back in?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want, Nick.”
“Of course it does. That’s theonlything that matters.”
So many thoughts were racing through my head, and I couldn’t catch any of them.
