Page 37 of When Fate Breaks
“I never said I didn’t.”
“Mhmm,” Blake hums smugly.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“What aweirdo,” he teases.
“Oh, shut up,” I say, shoving at his shoulder. “I never called you weird–”
I’m cut off by Blake’s accusatory glare.
“Okay, maybe once or twice,” I correct. We both shake our heads, laughing, as we continue on our way.
* * *
Hours later,just after 9 p.m., we are walking out of the football stadium, Dad and Kyle heatedly debating the final play of the game that ultimately resulted in Alabama’s narrow loss. By the time our shuttle van pulls in front of the hotel fifteen minutes later, they’ve rehashed the game’s final seconds at least ten times and Steph is fully asleep against my shoulder. I jostle her awake just long enough for us to get up to our hotel room, her being the first inside the room and promptly face planting onto our bed within seconds.
Mom and Emily stay chatting in the hallway as Dad stands in the open doorway, continuing to go at it with Kyle. I pull my crossbody off my shoulder, setting it on the small bedside table inside the room, and spot Blake leaning against the hallway wall. We both cross our arms awkwardly at the same time.
“Boys?” Emily cuts in. Dad and Kyle’s heads both snap in her direction, pausing their passionate discussion. “I’m pretty sure the entire floor is about to call the front desk and complain. Should we call it a night? Or at least go finish this conversation downstairs over a drink at the bar?”
“I love that idea,” Mom chimes in, poking her head in the doorway. “Annie, do you mind?”
“That’s fine,” I respond. “I’ll find a movie and stay with Steph.” A loud snore comes from Steph right on cue.
“Or you can go to our room and watch something with Blake,” Emily suggests. “So you don’t wake her up.” Though we’re nearly ten feet apart, I notice Blake’s head perk up slightly.
“Oh, um, yeah,” I shift on my feet. “Okay.”
“You rock,” Dad says, planting a kiss on top of my head. “We shouldn’t be much more than an hour. You still got your key?”
“Yep,” I say, pulling the hotel key card from my back pocket and holding it up.
“Perfect. See you in a bit,” he says, holding the door open to let me into the hallway and then turning to follow after Mom, Kyle, and Emily. The door quietly shuts, leaving me alone in the hallway with Blake.
He starts walking in the direction of his family’s room and I silently follow after him. Something weird starts to knot in my stomach as we get further down the hallway and I suddenly realize my bottom lip is becoming raw from how hard I’ve been chewing at it. As if reading my mind from several paces in front of me, Blake pauses, turning my way.
“We don’t actually have to go to my room,” he says.
I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. “Okay,” I reply casually. “What should we do instead–” I start to ask but then pause, seeing a maintenance man over Blake’s shoulder coming out of a stairwell door markedEmployees Only. I notice the door doesn’t fully shut, catching on a rumpled doormat on the ground just inside. Considering our rooms are on the top floor of the hotel, there’s only one place the stairs could lead. “Nevermind, I have an idea,” I say.
Blake follows my gaze over his shoulder, immediately spotting the open door and turning back to me. “Seriously?” he asks.
A mischievous grin plays on my face. I walk over to the door, pushing it all the way open and looking back at Blake. “C’mon, Di Fazio. Are you in or are you out?”
Blake steels his spine, challenge in his eyes. “Oh, I’m in, Jacks.” He walks straight past me in the doorway and heads up the stairs. “I just better not see you crying when they drag us to jail,” he calls over his shoulder as he shoves open the top door, the warm outdoor breeze flooding the stairwell.
I follow after him, rolling my eyes. “Don’t be a drama queen,” I joke, stepping out onto the roof.
“Wow,” Blake and I both mutter at the same time, the lights of the Boston skyline taking our breath away. We make our way closer to the edge.
“Holy shit,” I say, crossing my arms.
“Language, Evangeline,” Blake teases.
“Shut up,” I say, sitting one hip down on the thick cement ledge. “God, this is beautiful. I’m moving here.”
“I thought you were moving to New York?” Blake asks, sitting down next to me.
