Page 18 of One Last Wish

“That’s my cue to leave...” Daisy hurried away, giving Darce a grin as she passed him.

“I’m waiting, Alora. Why are you being so judgemental? Is this still about me telling you to give Theo a chance? I felt sorry for the guy. Anyone can see how you treat him.”

“No, it has nothing to do with him!” I fumed. Couldn’t I have fifteen minutes of peace to read my book? “You have this talent of infuriating me just bybreathing!”

His lips curled into a breathtaking smile. “Youreallyare quite the ray of sunshine, aren’t you?”

“Fuck you!” I spat, picking up my book. I was done with this conversationandhim! I didn’t care how attractive he was. Darce was a self-righteous prick!

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IMANAGED TO AVOIDDarce until closing time. Everyone else had finished and were already gone. Theo had left a little earlier to run some errands for his parents.

Turning all the lights off on the top floor, I gazed down the grand staircase. Darce was standing right at the bottom. He didn’t take his eyes off me as I descended the stairs.

“Do you really spend Thanksgiving alone?” he asked when I reached the bottom. All the lights were off on the ground floor. Once I coded the alarm, we could leave.

“Yeah.” I shrugged, heading towards the alarm panel.

“You haveno onethat you could spend it with?”

“I killed my mother during childbirth and my father died when I was sixteen. I’m kind of out of options.” The words fell out of my mouth before I could stop them. I’d never toldanyonethat. “I...I...” I was speechless.

“It’s okay, I won’t tell anyone.” His voice was soft as I turned to face him. In the dim light it looked as if darkness was swirling around him. As I gazed into his eyes, I saw that the sparkle was back: flicks of silver and gold that showed me a never-ending universe. It had to be some trick of the light. Eyes didn’t shimmer like that. “You don’t always have to isolate yourself so much, Alora. You have plenty of people in your life who care.”

“Are you including yourself in that statement?” I stepped closer towards him, our bodies only inches apart. It was the closest I’d ever been to him. When I started to reach out, Darce grabbed my wrist and stopped me from touching him.

“No,” he whispered.No?“I’m not a good choice, Alora. You’ll get hurt.”

“Maybe I like getting hurt.” Trying once more as he released my wrist, I reached for him, but Darce completely pulled away.

“This was a bad idea,” he sighed, running his hands through his hair. “I should have listened to them.” He was ranting to himself, but I took that moment to move closer. He was so distracted with his internal struggle that his eyes didn’t snap to mine until I was touching his torso. I wastouchinghim, finally.

He felt solid and defined. I didn’t explore his chest, I simply kept my hand above his heart and searched his eyes.

Whatever turmoil was in his mind evaporated as his hand moved, placing it over my hand on his chest.

My body convulsed at the simple touch. All my nerve endings were pulsing in a way I’d never experienced.

“Whatever you think might happen between us, I can assure you, itwon't.” The way Darce was staring at me, I didn’t believe a word he said.

“You’retouchingme.”

“A moment of bad judgement, I assure you. Even sanctimonious people likemehave those.” His mouth twitched into a smirk as he pulled away. At his lack of touch, I felt...bereft. My hand yearned for his touch back. It sent pins and needles through my arm up to my elbow.

“Why are you fighting this?”

“Because it is safer for you to hate me. I can’t get caught up in you, Alora. The price is too high.” Anger flared through me. Oh, was I notgoodenough for him? Was that the price?

“Fine! All I wanted was a quick fuck, but if you’re not man enough for that,fine! I’ll look elsewhere!” With a spin, I punched the code into the alarm and grabbed my bag that I’d left on a table near the entrance. “Did you want to be stuck in here all night?” I seethed, opening the main door while signalling for him to move. He was still there, motionless, looking at me. “Let’s go!” Finally, he moved. After locking the doors, I zipped my coat up while Darce still watched me silently. “You’re a strange one, Darce Undergrove.” This guy might be more messed up than me. “Goodnight.” With that, I stepped away and walked home.

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EVELYN WAS WATCHINGsomething on her laptop in the living area when I got back. Throwing my bag down, I pulled my hair out of its tie. The walk home hadn’t helped. I was still as furious with Darce as the moment I’d left him.

“Bad day at work?” Evelyn asked, raising an eyebrow at me. “What’s Theo done now?”

“I don’t want to talk about it!” Evelyn didn’t know Darce was the new guy at work and I planned on keeping it that way for as long as possible.

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