Page 101 of Crossing the Line

Her eyes narrow at him with his use of the nickname. She doesn’t know him like that—she doesn’t know him as anything more than a Florida friend. “Absolutely not.”

“She won’t let go of the guy I was back in high school,” Mike says with a shrug.

Glaring at him, Violet says, “It’s not like you’ve changed.”

Blowing her a kiss, Mike just says, “One day, baby. You and me.”

Rolling her eyes, Violet mutters, “My point exactly.”

The group gets another round. They have a lot to catch up on. They’ll probably be here all night. The more time passes, the more flushed Claire’s cheeks get, and the less Aiden feels annoyed by Chad.

The more they drink, the more Claire tries to convince Em to give her a tattoo, and the less Aiden feels inclined to fight his smile when Chad tries his luck with Violet again.

And by the end of the night, Claire has picked her tattoo—even though Em still hasn’t agreed to give her one—and Aiden can’t seem to tear his eyes away from her. When she feels his eyes burning into her, she looks over at him and mouths, “What?” her grin growing.

And he mouths, “I love you.” He’s said those words to other people before, but they’ve never felt as natural as they do with Claire. He’s never meant them as much as he does when he says them to her.

Playfully flipping him the bird, she mouths “I love you” back, and Aiden shakes his head, a low laugh escaping him.

She’s his greatest adventure, and it’s only just beginning.

The End

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