Page 24 of Truth Or Dare
Madi’s still waiting for my response, so I gesture to her boyfriend, who’s gazing up at her with hearts in his eyes. “Need I remind you, you were busy last year? ‘I hate Lucas, I love Lucas,’” I sigh, shaking my head. “There was a lot to process.”
She glares at me. “I definitely didn’t say that, and you could have always told me. You know that.”
Chris glances at me, and I shrug, not wanting to get into it. “Well, now you know. This is Chris. Say hi, Chris.”
“Hi.”
“And he’s staying with me for the summer, okay, bye.” I reach to grab his hand, eager to escape the sudden interrogation, but Aiden’s voice stops me.
“Wait a minute.” I freeze, feeling their gazes boring into me as I turn slowly to face them. “He moved in with you?”
I shrug, pretending like it’s not a big deal. “Yeah. Madi moved out. I needed a roommate, and Chris is only staying for two months. So…”
“Two months?” Aiden asks, his eyebrows lifting as he glances at Chris.
“Yeah. I, uh… I go back to school in September,” Chris explains.
“I’m so glad I graduated,” Grayson says with a shake of his head.
I watch as Aiden glances down at Leila, who shifts uncomfortably, and lets out a sigh, looking away. Aiden frowns, clutching her chin to make her look up at him. She shakes her head, and lifts off the couch. “I need some air.” Aiden’s eyes follow her as she leaves the room, and he sighs, drinking his soda.
“Have you been drafted by a team, too?” Chris asks Grayson.
Grayson nearly spits his drink out, shaking his head. “Nah. Aiden’s the basketball player, not me. I’m working at this garage nearby,” he explains, glancing down at Rosie. “I wanted to leave for so long, but now… I have a reason to stay.” Rosalie smiles up at him, her eyes twinkling with the love I know she has for him. They’re so pure, those two. “And then when this one graduates, I guess I’ll go wherever she goes.”
“Rosie’s a fashion designer,” I chime in, nodding towards her. “And Grayson’s a simp.”
“I heard that,” Grayson grumbles, shooting me a scowl.
I gasp dramatically. “Great. Your ears are working.”
Grayson flips me off, and I laugh, nudging Chris on the arm. “What do you think?” I ask him, feeling a twinge of nerves about what he thinks of my friends. “You can be honest. Grayson’s annoying, right?”
Chris chuckles, shaking his head. “No, he’s great,” he says. “They all are. You’ve found amazing friends here.”
Yeah, I really have. I’m lucky to have found these guys. They’ve made the last four years better than I thought possible. “It doesn’t compare to us, though,” I admit, my gaze softening as I look at him.
Chris’s face lights up into a smile as he reaches out, his hand covering my thigh. I glance down, feeling the warmth of his touch seeping through the fabric of my jeans.
His hand moves as he lifts his palm off my leg, his finger tracing a path across my leg. My heart quickens in my throat as I watch his movements, realizing what he’s doing.
He remembers.
His fingers continue to trail across my leg, forming patterns as I try to decipher our secret language, only for us.
Ditto
I smile, glancing up at him when he pulls his hand back. We came up with this silent code, our secret language, a way tospeak when we are surrounded by people. My heart beats out of my chest at the reminder, loving how everything is still the same between us despite the time and distance apart.
“Yeah?”
His nod is slow, almost hesitant as he smiles. “Every time I went out with the guys in London, I always pulled out my phone wanting to text you.” He pauses, his eyes searching mine, as he swallows. “Wanting you there.”
My heart flutters at the knowledge he felt the same way I did. I’ve lost track of the amount of times I’d zone out, wondering where Chris was, and what he was thinking. And he was thinking ofme.
“And now you’re here,” I say, smiling at the fact that he came all this way because I told him I wanted him here.
He grins, dipping his head in a nod. “I am.”
