Page 48 of Butterfly Effect

I gotta stop before it’s all out there. Some things are better left behind closed doors.

Not that she needed any more ammunition to tease me about. She already has a whole arsenal ready to go.

If I’m lucky, she’ll forget about it by morning.

I smoosh my chin to my neck and slide my eyes to the lower right corner to check.

Affirmative. Gabe Finch is dozing on my shoulder. She must’ve been pooched.

There’s a subtle warmth from her body where it touches mine, and she’s nothing short of stunning.

The cute slope of her nose, the curve of her strong chin, the way her pretty pink mouth isn’t scowling at me. Yeah, she’s stunning, alright. Like a napping lioness who could wake up any moment and rip my intestines out.

For a moment, I wonder how different it’d be if she liked me. I already know she doesn’t like the fake, superficial parts of me. Other than my mouth. Or cock, but that’s beside the point.

What would she think of the person beyond that? Would she think my Harvard degree is impressive? Or my rare book collection is cute? Would she agree that a grilled cheese is the cure to pretty much every problem? Or would she prefer to believe I don’t have a singular intellectual thought in my brain, like everyone else does?

How could she? No other woman has. Not even in a fake way. Skylar and Maman don’t count.

A text notification buzzes, and I mute it from outside my pocket before removing the phone.

It’s another sea otter video, compliments of Donovan. Its paws block sunlight from its eyes so it can nap during the day while floating along.

Me

Okay, that’s cute, but I have something cuter

Donovan

Doubt it

Me

Wanna bet

Donovan

Loser buys winner doughnuts from SuzyQ

Me

Done

I tuck a few hairs hiding her face behind an ear, unintentionally touching the faint freckles peeking through fading makeup.

She hums. My stomach flutters.

Putting the back camera on a wide angle gets a good frame of her against me, and a content half-smile bows her mouth when my lips meet her hairline to click a picture. She wouldn’t be smiling if she knew what I was doing. I immediately feel guilty for the stolen kiss.

But not enough to stop me from sending it.

Donovan

Ugh fine

Donovan

We get it, you adore her

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