Page 28 of Visions & Shadows

A smile starts to form on my face. “Yeah?”

“Sure. We can hang out and watch a movie or something,” he says as he slows the truck down to turn into the parking area of the school.

“Now that sounds more like my kind of party,” I chuckle.

He brings the truck to a stop in his regular spot, and leaning toward me, he grabs his bag that’s lying by my feet. I get a whiff of his delicious cologne and try to ignore the fluttering in my stomach.

I’ve somehow managed to keep my growing feelings for Ryan a secret so he doesn’t notice, and I plan on keeping it that way.

You can feel the change in the atmosphere when we get to school on Friday morning. Everyone’s excited about the party later today.

Even I’m looking forward to it because I’ll get to spend more time with Ryan.

Yep, I’m crushing hard on my friend, but just being around him is enough for me.

The day takes its sweet time, and when the final bell rings, everyone rushes out of the building to get to their cars.

“We need to hurry,” I tell Ryan. “I forgot to lock my bedroom door.”

I grab his hand and practically drag him toward the parking area.

“Why are we rushing?” he asks as I climb into the truck.

“I don’t want some horny couple making out on my bed,” I mutter.

He shuts my door, then jogs around the front of the vehicle. As always, my eyes follow him, and I drink in the sight of every hot inch of his body.

He slides behind the steering wheel and soon we’re heading home.

I glance at his strong hands gripping the steering wheel and let out a dreamy sigh.

I love the way he drives.

Scratch that. I love everything he does.

Ugh, I’m so screwed.

Within minutes, he parks the truck in front of the house because the driveway is already packed with cars.

Damn, I won’t be held responsible for what I’ll do if I find someone in my room.

Grabbing our bags, we quickly get out and hurry into the house that’s crowded with partygoers. I rush upstairs, and when I open my door and find the room empty, I let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank God.”

“Now you can relax,” Ryan says as he places his hands on my shoulders, rubbing them as he pushes me into the room. “Let me see what your bedroom looks like.”

He steps around me and walks toward my dresser.

Crap, not the dresser!

My diary is sprawled open on the piece I wrote about how dreamy he is.

I dart forward and grab the book, squashing it against my chest.

The corner of his mouth lifts in a mischievous grin. “Hmm…what are you hiding there?”

I try to play it off as nothing. “Just a book.”

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