Page 139 of Forever To Me

Mack immediately panics. “I mean, like, in acoolway. Not in a ‘you’re my new stepmom’ way. Forget I said it. Never mind. Bye.” And then she hangs up.

Walker stares at the phone.

I stare at Walker.

Silence. Then I burst out laughing.

“Oh my God.” I gasp between laughs. “Yourkidjust dropped the ‘L’ word.”

Walker groans. “That kid.”

I lean against him, still giggling, still lightheaded from everything. “Well, come on. We have a syrup crisis to solve.”

Walker shakes his head, muttering, but I catch the ghost of a smile on his lips.

And just like that, we’re back to real life. But my skin still tingles where he touched me. And the way he’s looking at me tells me we’re not done yet. Not by a long shot.

We're just getting started, and I love it.

Chapter 31

Walker

Violet hums the melody under her breath, tapping her fingers against the body of her guitar. She’s been sitting across from me on the couch in the cabin for the past hour, looking unfairly gorgeous in my old green and black flannel and a pair of leggings, her hair piled up in one of those messy buns that makes my hands itch to pull it loose.

We're supposed to be writing a song. But hell, how am I supposed to focus when she looks so beautiful in my space, wearing another one of my damn shirts?

I strum a chord, watching her. “What if we take the second verse up a notch?”

She tilts her head. “You mean make it sadder? Or sexier?”

I swallow hard. “I was thinking…both?” Big mistake. Now I can’t stop thinking about her voice, low and breathy, about how damn thing she says sounds like it was made to wreck me.

Her lips curve. “Bold choice, Asher.”

I love it when she says my name.

She jots something down in her notebook, biting the end of the pen. I watch her mouth, completely losing my train of thought.

She lifts an eyebrow. “You got something, or are you just staring at me?”

Busted. I clear my throat and lean forward, resting my forearms on my knees. “Maybe something about knowing you shouldn’t love someone, but you do anyway. Like, ‘I know this isn't supposed to happen, but I’d still burn it down for you.’”

The second I sing it, I know. It’s not just a song. It’s the truth. She’s fire, and I’m the fool who’d burn the world down for her.

Her breath hitches. She blinks at me, something unreadable flickering in her emerald-green eyes. “That’s…” She swallows, her voice softer now. “That’s good.”

We sit there for a second, the air thick. I don’t know if it’s the late hour or the low glow of the fire, but suddenly, the space between us feels way too small.

She licks her lips. “Sing it.”

I grab my guitar, strum the opening chords, and let the words roll out low and rough.

"I know this isn’t safe, but I’d still cross that fire for you…

One step, one touch, and I’m burned right through…”

When I look up, her expression is unreadable. But her eyes are locked on mine, deep and wanting.

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