Page 33 of Collided

“Order so many things for me.”

“It’s done now.”

She rushes out. “I’ll pay you back.”

I glare at her. “No, you won’t. When you’re with me, you’re not going to pay for anything.”

“Like ever?” she asks with a cute frown.

Cute? What the fuck is wrong with me?

“Like ever,” I finalize.

I need to put distance between us. Because sitting here with her is suffocating my damn heart. It’s beating rapidly. I never knew it could beat this fast.

Picking up the order from the station, I park a few blocks away. Handing her food, I get mine and start eating.

From the corner of my eyes, I watch her open the wrap of the burger and take a bite. I feel content that she’s eating when she skipped lunch. I swear, she’s so fucking skinny it makes me worried.

“Do you have any siblings?” I ask, out of nowhere.

“No.”

It must be so fucking lonely for her to be on her own all the time. I have Marie and Sebastian who are always at my place, but she’s got no one.

No wonder why her lonely eyes haunt me.

“What do you do all day?”

She waves the novel at me. “I read books.”

“You don't get bored?” My eyebrows pinch.

She laughs. “Never. It’s so interesting to read about other people’s lives. When you open the pages you know nothing about them, but as you keep flipping you get to know the characters so well that by the end it feels like you’ve known them your entire life. It’s almost like you have a friend.”

That’s the most she’s ever talked. It makes me want to listen to her more.

“Huh?” I act clueless so she can elaborate.

She straightens and her eyes fill with fire I haven’t seen in her before. “Standalone books are great. But when you read a series, it’s the best thing ever. If there are six or more books, you feel like those characters are your best friends. How you’ve gone without them in life makes you question everything. Closing the last page of the last book is the most excruciating experience ever but also so heartwarming and just perfect.”

A silly smile takes over her face and her eyes brighten with the light she’s always missing.

I realize something.

Hope looks dreamy when she talks about books—the look is pure magic.

“What genre do you read?”

Just like that, the light goes away, and intense blush covers her cheeks. Hiding her eyes from me, she takes a mouthful bite.

I find that amusing and lean back in my seat.Fascinating.

“Mostly romance,” she replies.

“So, you’re a hopeless romantic?”

“I am.”

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