Page 81 of The Future Play

“Yep,” Jamie clears his throat and glances at me. “Can I order for you?”

“Only if I can order for you.”

He smiles at that. “Go ahead then.”

I look at the server. “A vanilla raspberry cake.”

Jamie’s smile gets even bigger. “And… the chocolate lava cake?” He raises his brows in question, and I nod.

“Yes. The chocolate lava cake. Thank you.”

“Phew. Got it right. So did you. How’d you know?”

“It was similar to the cake you said had at your birthday and you always love fruity things. And frosting.” I give a little shrug, and his eyes dance like he’s thrilled I’ve noticed those little things, but he shouldn’t be surprised. I notice them for the same reason he does. “And how did you know I’d want a chocolate lava cake?”

Mine was a harder guess since there were several things on the menu I would’ve really enjoyed.

“Because your favorite seasonal latte is the chocolate lava cake. And when I asked you why, you told me it’s because it’s like drinking brownie batter. I figured a lava cake gives the same vibes. Plus, I know how you feel about brownies.”

“You’re always paying attention.”

“Baby, it’s impossible to keep my eyes off you.”

And, ugh.Swoon.

I’m so head over heels for this boy, it’s ridiculous.

Every time I look at him, my heart races and my body flushes as I think about what might happen next.

Jamie holdsme close as we walk down the street toward his car. When we get there, he presses me against the passenger side door for a long kiss.

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” he breathes against my lips. “But I got a hotel room for tonight.” He clears his throat and leans back. “Actually, it’s for the whole weekend. Not for sex—Imean, obviously, I want you. But we don’thaveto. If all we do is snuggle, I’ll be happy to have you in my arms.”

I press my finger to his lips to shut him up. “I want to snuggle with you.” Then I lean in, face just inches from his. “And I want to do so much more.” I lightly press my lips to his, then give his bottom lip a quick bite.

He jolts back, gasping. “Okay, good. Let’s go.”

A laugh bubbles out of me as he grabs my hand and opens my door for me, his cheeks blazing red the whole time.

I’m ready to have some fun.

“Here we are.”Jamie swings open the hotel room door and flicks on the light.

It’s not just a hotel room, though. It’s a whole ass suite.

“Jamie… this is huge. You didn’t have to do all this.”

He sets our bags down and wraps his arms around me. “I wanted to. You deserve all the best things. I just want you to know how much you mean to me. I messed up before and?—”

“And I forgave you. We’ve moved forward, and it’s important to me that you know none of that happened because of things you gave me or money you spent. It wasn’t that you paid for my coffee, but that you knew where I liked to get it and how frequently I went there. All the little things you did that showed me how much you care for me are what mattered.” I rest my hand on his chest. “You told me once that people tried to take advantage of you because of your family’s wealth. I need you to know I will never do that. I’ll never take advantage of you. I’ll never take you for granted. You’re what I want. Even if that scares me because all I see is a countdown until we’ll be apart.”

“Do you want this to work?”

“Of course I do.”

“Then we’ll make it work.”

My chest still aches thinking about not having this every day. We waited so long to have it, and I’m a little obsessed now. Every second I spend with him makes me want more. Makes me want to hold on a little tighter.

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