Page 20 of Don't Look Away

He shrugs one shoulder. “Shouldn’t she be the judge of that?”

I turn on my board to face him more fully. “Ash, do you have a fucking death wish or what?”

He points at me. “See,that. That right there is why you need to let her go. That darkness in you is going to destroy her. You and I both know it.”

I want to deny it. I want to tell him to fuck off, but he’s right. If I’m not careful, the darkness inside me will swallow her whole….

CHAPTEREIGHT

Lux

The next day,Saturday, Roman gets up early, but I end up sleeping most of the day. I get up at some point in the afternoon to shower and eat something, but then I crawl right back into bed, opening my laptop to knock out some classwork. I’m so behind on everything, and I really need to get caught up.

I’m working on my digital collage for my visual anthropology class when

Roman walks in. He’s wearing nothing but his black swim trunks, and his tanned skin is glistening, his dark hair wet, like he just stepped out of the ocean. He must have been surfing.

“How were the waves today?” I ask.

But instead of answering me, he walks straight to the bathroom to grab a towel. When he steps back into the bedroom, he’s drying his hair. “Get up. Get ready.”

I blink at him, confused. “Get ready for what?”

“I’m taking you somewhere,” he says, walking into the closet.

Um.“I can’t. I have way too much classwork to catch up on.”

He walks over to the bed and pulls me up so I’m standing. “It’s not an option,” he says, pulling me against him. His mouth is so close to mine that I wonder if he’s going to kiss me. “You’re coming.”

I consider fighting him on it, but Roman can be so stubborn, I know fighting isn’t going to get me anywhere. In the end, I’ll do exactly what he tells me to do, anyway. So I might as well accept it now.

“Fine,” I say with a huff. “What should I wear?”

“A dress,” he says, stepping back with a smile. I know he gets off on bossing me around, and it makes me want to slap that smile right off his fuck-me face.

Pushing out a harsh breath, I move to the bathroom, thanking the universe that I shaved my legs earlier. I throw on some light makeup, brush my hair, and then move to the closet. I pick out the same sage dress I wore to Tyler’s tribunal, putting on a pair of strappy beige sandals.

I have no idea where we’re going, but this will have to do. I’m not wearing heels. That’s where I draw the line.

Roman is getting ready in the bathroom, and when he emerges, he’s wearing beige slacks, and a white button-down shirt, the sleeves rolled up, exposing his toned forearms.

Oooh, yes, daddy.

I lift my arms. “Is this okay?”

One side of his mouth curls up into a smile, and he steps forward, hooking his arm around my waist. “You’re perfect.”

I laugh. “Oh,I’mperfect? Not just the dress, eh?”

His lips hover over mine, and he’s still smiling playfully. “I said what I said.”

I touch my lips to his, luring him into a kiss. It’s long and warm and languid, and when his tongue pushes into my mouth, I actually sigh.

We’re getting pretty hot and heavy when adingfrom one of our phones breaks the silence. Roman pulls back, and takes his phone out of his pocket, looking down at it.

“It’s Lucas. We’ve got to go,” he says, threading his fingers through mine.

Wait, what? “We’re going somewhere withLucas?”

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