Page 50 of We Never Kissed

She shrugged. “Whatever, you saw me in my underwear.”

She was right. “And it was torture.”

Her sexy grin grew, then she wrapped her arms around me, pulling me in to keep her warm. “Good! Now let’s go before I change my mind.”

I liked the ocean; Ava loved it. So, of course, I didn’t say no. “One quick dip and then home…to a hot shower and bed.”

“Mmm. I like that.” She took off, running.

I followed, catching her before she reached the water’s edge. Swooping her up, I carried her into the ocean. We held each other as the chilling waves crashed over us, a symbol of the outside forces that threatened us being together. But I wouldn’t let that happen.Ava is mine. Now and forever. But I prayed I wouldn’t lose the family over it.I can’t lose them either.

Back at my place, we rushed across the wood floor to my bedroom, our hair still damp. We dropped our stuff in front of the bed, ready to jump into the shower.

“Let me grab some new towels, and I’ll meet you in there,” I told her.

Her phone buzzed, and she snatched it from the pile on the floor. “Oh, shoot, I forgot to text Gunnar that everything was okay.” She laughed.

“Let him sweat it out.” I grinned and went to get thetowels while Ava dropped her phone and headed for the bathroom.

Mere seconds later, I returned with the towels. Ava’s phone had slipped from the pile and I almost stepped on it. Picking it up, I saw there was a new text on the screen, a preview. But it wasn’t Gunnar. I stared in confusion at the screen. My chest tightened as I read the first words:I’m sorry to bother you, but have you told Alex yet? I don’t think I can…The rest of the message was cut off. Her phone was likely locked, but as my heart pounded frantically in my chest, my eyes moved to the name on the message:Maggie. “What the fuck?” My brain raced, my breath labored, heat suffusing my whole body.This can’t be right. Why the hell was Ava messaging with my mother…and why would she keep it a secret from me?

Chapter 29

Ava

I pulled the only towel off the rack and wrapped it around me after a speedy rinse off from being in the ocean. Alex never showed up to get in with me let alone bring the towels he mentioned. My first thought was that he got a work call, but after him being late and our argument, I hoped it wasn’t that.

My hair dripping, I opened the door to the bathroom and saw him sitting on the bed with his back to me. “Alex?”

He didn’t answer, didn’t move.

My underwear was still damp and on his floor, so I grabbed the leggings I wore as I passed the pile and headed over to him. “What happened?” I asked as I cameup beside him. My heart stopped when he turned to glare at me, and I saw he was holding my phone.

“What the hell’s going on, Ava?” His voice was deep, cold, a tone he’d never used with me before.

“What do you mean?” Of course I was pretty sure, so playing dumb tasted horrible on my tongue, but I had to be sure.

“Why is my mother texting you?” His dark eyes held mine, unblinking.

A chill ran over me, partially because I was still in a towel but mostly because I was exposed, caught in my deception. “I can explain…” My breathing labored, and my eyes stung with threatening tears. I held them back because that wouldn’t be fair to him. “Just let me put my clothes on, please.” I turned and heard his deep sigh at my back as I put on my leggings, found my shirt, and quickly pulled it over my head.

The moment I turned, he rose from the bed. “Dammit, Ava! What the fuck were you thinking? You saw how it affected me? You were there.” He closed the distance between us and peered down at me. “Five seconds in my mother’s presence broke me, and you still—what? Did you reach out to her, think you could fix me or something?”

My heart pounded in my chest, fear that if he was this angry at the assumption we’d only recently connected,how would he react to the real truth? “I’m afraid that’s not exactly what happened.”

He roughed a hand through his hair. “I don’t have the patience for these games, Ava. You obviously went behind my back. You’re exchanging texts with my mother. Why?”

I nodded to the bed. “Can we sit?”

His hands on his hips, he shook his head. “Just tell me.”

I drew in a deep breath and began. “I first met your mother at your dad’s funeral.” I winced, waiting for his reaction.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” he growled, pacing away from me over to his dresser.

Strangely, I took that moment to note he didn’t have any pictures in his room of his parents, of them as a family growing up, no memories at all. I didn’t recall seeing them elsewhere either. It broke my heart how much pain his family had caused him, and I made it worse. “I’m sorry. She approached me,” I said defensively. “What was I supposed to do?”

He shook his head, as if he didn’t have an answer for that.

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