Page 63 of Forgive You

Julie walks out wearing shorts that bring out her long legs, a black crop top that’s snug around her upper body, showing me the swell of her perfect breasts.

Oh, I can’t wait to have those babies in my hands again.

She yanks the passenger door open, and instantly I’m greeted by a whiff of vanilla I want to die in. I want to bottle it and put it in my home diffuser. I bet there’d be a permanent smile on my face if that’s the first thing I smell at seven in the morning.

The moan I stifle puts a crack in my chest, but the agony is not enough to wipe the grin off my unshaved face.

There’s a scowl on her pouty lips, her heartbreaker whiskey eyes narrowed.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I wait as she drops her pretty ass in my car, tempted to pull her high ponytail and kiss her senseless like I did when I called atruce.

Which was as smart as it was stupid. I love that we sorta agreed to stop fighting. But did I have to kiss her? It’s all I’ve been thinking about ever since.

“Where are we going?” Julie puts on her seatbelt and neatly folds her hoodie on her lap.

“The beach.”

Terror launches in her widened eyes, complete with a shaky gasp, as if I just confessed I killed her childhood dog.Damn.She’s really terrified of open water.

“Jason.” Her tone is careful, hesitant, but the rigidness in her muscles makes it clear she’s not liking this one bit.

Out of habit, I grab her hand, just like I used to do back at home, and link our fingers.

There’s a little glint of confusion in her fiery embers, but she doesn’t pull away when I let our connection rest on the center console.

“Relax, I’m meeting Jordan at the beach to go surfing. Thought you could hang with us. Like old times?” I shoot her a hopeful expression.

It’s a form of self-torture, I’m aware. But now that we're on speaking terms again, I want to at least get some of what we had back. Whatever it was in the end.

Especially after her drunk babble about my asshole brother. Something tells me she needs to know she’s not alone in this big city of fame and fortune. To know that even though nothing between us is what we’ve always known, I’m still here for her. I can still be that little piece of home away from home.

“Truce, right?” I meet her eyes, and when her lips curl just a teeny tiny bit, my heart bounces like a kid at the carnival.

“Truce.”

“How was your week?” I’m in no hurry to let go of her hand, enjoying her soft skin against mine, so I continue driving one-handed.

“Good.” She relaxes, putting a smile on my face and a fuzzy feeling in my stomach. “Relatively uneventful. Pulled in Thomas Marino for a commercial today.”

“Thomas Marino? San Diego Scorpions Major League Baseball legend?”

She nods, and I squeeze her hand.

“Really? That’s amazing! Bet your dad went ballistic when you told him.”

I still remember her dad trying to buy some signed jersey from eBay, ready to throw down some serious zeros for it. Being theson of a tradesman from San Diego, Mr. Bradford never made it a secret he’s a Scorpions fan through and through.

Julie clears her throat, then untangles her hand from mine before she starts fidgeting with her hoodie. I briefly whip my head to find her eyes, the fire burned out by…guilt?

“I– Uh, I haven’t told him.”

“What? Your dad is, like, his biggest fan.”

She drops her gaze to her lap. “We haven’t talked in a while.”

The discomfort radiating from her entire stance fills the vehicle, pressing on my chest as if it’s replacing the oxygen.

“Jules?”

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