Page 46 of Seeking Stars
She closed her eyes again, her heart in her throat. The spark of her feelings for him roared to life, each heartbeat fanning it further and further away from her control.
She exhaled slowly this time, pressing her lips together, trying to reign in the torrent of emotions.
"It was my turn to tell you a fear," she finally said.
"Go on, then."
"Me, too."
The words barely made it out of her; silence stretched between them. Lifting a hand, he pressed the button to stop the recording. He left the camera on her bedside table.
"I guess it was true," he said. "Filters do come down."
Her head still on his shoulder, he surprised her by kissing the crown of her hair. She lifted her face to gaze at him, but he'd turned away. With slow movements, he got out of the bed and stood next to it. Her side felt cold and unsupported without him there.
"Try to sleep in tomorrow. I've been wanting to take you on an adventure, but we need to wait until it gets dark."
"Okay."
He got to the door. "Good night."
He closed the door with a small smile. It didn't reach his eyes.
***
"So what's the adventure?" Her eyebrow arched in suspicion. "Are you going to tell me now?"
Giddiness filled every cell in Liam's body at the night's prospect.
They'd spent a lazy day swimming in the pool. They had dinner outside, talking until the sun had disappeared behind the tree line. After cleaning up, he'd asked her if she was tired because, if not, he'd like to go out with her. Although he'd referenced their little quest during the day, he hadn't told her any details. He'd wanted to surprise her.
He collected a few items: a big flashlight, a blanket, a couple of water bottles.
"We're going stargazing." He'd kept his plan close to his heart and now he watched her reaction closely.
He'd brought these things with him hoping he'd get to use them; he'd hoped he'd go away one night by himself to look at the stars— or that had been the original plan. After these many days with Ana, he'd changed his mind. He couldn't imagine not sharing that with her, anymore.
"We are?" She exclaimed, voice full of joy. "What else do we need?"
He grinned at her reaction and did nothing to hide it. He put everything they needed in a backpack, and considered anything else they might want.
"Do you want us to take something to drink maybe? Not too much since we need to be sharp for the drive."
She nodded. "Yeah, I think it could help with the cold."
She went to the kitchen, getting a bottle and glasses. She wrapped them in kitchen towels for safety, before handing them to Liam.
"Alcohol doesn't really help," he said, taking the bottles and glasses from her. "That's an illusion caused by blood flowing to the periphery of the body, but alcohol doesn't actually help keep you warm."
"There's no need to get technical. I'm good with an illusion."
He snorted. "Okay, then."
They packed what they needed into the car and he drove them away from the property. They went back on the same road that they'd taken on the way in but, instead of taking the highway back to the city, they kept going on the small road inland.
They drove for close to two hours, chit chatting and laughing. He slowed down when he saw the sign for the regional park. Going from memory, he made his way to a location he'd visited several times before.
After following some gravel roads, he turned one more time and followed a trail going upwards.
