Page 95 of A Sky Full Of Stars

“Does anyone?”

She shakes her head before leaning forward and burying her face in the curve of my neck.

“What about Luke?” I ask, thinking back to his urgent call yesterday.

“Especially not Luke.” She giggles, but it comes with an incredulous sigh. “I know, I have to tell him something. And I will. But he doesn’t need all the details.” She reaches out and squeezes my arm again, a soft smile on her face. “Thank you for listening. I promise, I’m okay. Being with you makes everything okay, and I’ve got my volunteer trip to look forward to.”

“I’m here whenever you need me. But I wish you’d let me hurt that guy.”

Lainey laughs before shaking her head again.

The mention of her trip makes me anxious, but at the same time, I know she needs it. Her expression changes when she speaks about it, and she gets lighter somehow. Like this trip is her escape. Her time to process everything that happened to her.

And no matter what I’m feeling, I could never take that away.

Not that I think she’d let me.

Sixteen-year-old Lainey often held back. She kept her cards close to her chest and went along with things she didn’t necessarily like. Nineteen-year-old Lainey is stronger, more decisive, and not afraid to go for what she wants. It’s beautiful to think about until I realize it’s her time at Jaiton that changed her.

“Is it your turn now?” she asks me after a beat, and while it should be, my pain seems trivial compared to what she’s been through.

“You know most of my stuff. I haven’t heard from Summer, I’m in Seattle on my own, and…”I hate myself for what I’ve done.“I just feel a little empty. If I didn’t have you…”Fuck, I don’t even want to think about that.

Lainey’s face drops before she palms my cheek. “You’ve got me.”

Her gaze bounces between my eyes as though searching for something, and when I lean into her hand, she releases a breath before relaxing into me. We’re quiet for the beat, as a comfortable air surrounds us and I feel the shift in her demeanor, both of us content to just…be.

I’m not sure how much time passes, but as I begin to drift off, Lainey giggles, lifting her head to look at me. “Sooo…you win.This was a nice way to end our time together and start my day.”But now it’s time for her to go.

With a grin, I bop her nose before shaking my finger with a tsk. “You should never doubt me, Lainey. I live to see you smile.”

That smile wavers for a second before she recovers, but once again, she’s not fast enough to hide it, and my sharp pang resurfaces.

“Lainey, is there—”

“Busy week?” she asks, cutting me off as she stands up and walks toward the spiral staircase, glancing over her shoulder. I jump up when she motions for me to follow her, trying hard to ignore the fact that each step is taking us closer to goodbye.

“We have our exit meeting on Thursday,” I say, in answer to her question. “I have to clean out my locker, and then…”I have no fucking idea, and I’m a little terrified if I’m being honest.

“Your locker? What happened?” The sheer panic on Lainey’s face makes me laugh even though it’s not something I’m looking forward to.

“We have to clean out our locker each year. Standard practice so we can start fresh again in April.

“So that’s it. After Thursday, you’re done for a few months?”

“I am. Got any grand plans for me?”

To my surprise, Lainey hits me with the most breathtaking smile before she bites her lip, and her smile turns a little wicked. “I can think of a few things.”

I bite back a groan as I imagine doing those things to her right now, while Lainey shakes her head, stepping back with her arms raised, her lips pulled into a smirk. “I can see that mind ticking over. Don’t even think about it, Kelly. I have to go.”

“Twenty more minutes,” I joke.

“Nope.”

“Ten. I’m sure we could do a lot with ten.”

“No.” She giggles again. “I’m supposed to meet Luke because I refused to see him yesterday. I wanted to wait for him to cool off. He’ll be calling soon if I’m not home.”

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