Page 43 of The Legend (Rivers Wilde 2)

“Tomorrow, though, I’m going to take you out, okay?”

I stand on the porch and watch him walk down the path that leads to our gate before he’s gone down the sidewalk and disappears into the dark night.

And only then do I go inside. I call a giddy good night to my mom and run up to my room. This time, there’s no sadness, just excitement, lips that are burning from his touch and a heart that’s so full I know that when this ends, the emptiness will be more than I can bear.

My poor heart.

He’s going to break it so badly.

But, I’m going to do this anyway. He’s offering me a taste of something I’ve never had before.

I know the magic of happy endings only exist in books and sometimes in my mind. So, when it’s over, I’ll remember this summer as the one that brought me close enough to touch mine.

9

CASA

KAL

“Yo, come on, we’re going to be late.” Remi’s voice floats up the stairs to my room and I roll my eyes but pick up my pace. Not because I’m worried about keeping him waiting. But because I don’t want to be late to CASA. This is Remi’s last time before he has to stop for the summer. He has a trip with his grandfather next weekend and then he leaves for school a few days after he gets back.

I worked at Sweet & Lo’s this afternoon and he picked me up from there and walked me home. This is what we’ve done all summer long. Held hands, stolen kisses and recently, a little more. But we only have the weekends. Weekdays are a wash because of his schedule. But we talk on the phone every night until we fall asleep.

Summer’s almost over. And soon, he’ll be gone. Maybe we’ll stay in touch, but I can’t imagine that once he’s in college, living whatever adventure life brings him, that the summer he spent making out with me will regist

er high in his memories.

But, for now, he’s mine.

I teasingly asked him if he misses his harem and he responded by putting a hand around my waist and pulling me hard into his side and pressing a swift kiss to my lips.

“Harem of one now, and everyone’s on notice.” I don’t know if Joni is. She’s still got that smug smile on her face when I see her in the town square.

I run down the stairs and hold the rail in preparation for the moment I lay eyes on Remi. He never fails to make my knees weak. He’s standing there, in jeans and a white button-down shirt with tiny red stripes on it. It should be illegal for someone to look that good in jeans.

He’s frowning at his watch when he hears the creak of the stairs under my footfall. He looks up, and the smile on his face makes my steps falter. “Hey, Will,” he drawls in that sexy voice of his.

“Hey, Carlton. Hope you brought a change of clothes. We’re babysitting a house full of kids, that white shirt will be a casualty of dinner,” I tease and wrap my arms around his trim, muscled waist.

He wraps his arms around me and hugs me back.

“I want to look good for my last night. I’m going to take some pictures and shit.”

I lift up on my toes and press a kiss to his cheek.

He’s so sweet. Really sweet in a way I didn’t expect. Our nights here have definitely been a highlight of this summer. The kids all love Remi and he’s already talking about coming to visit when he’s home on break.

He’s gotten particularly close to one of the kids who’s been there since I was. Carlos is severely disabled—cognitively delayed, deaf, and confined to his wheelchair by a palsy that means he’ll never walk. But he practically radiates with joy whenever he sees Remi.

I’ll be sad for him once Remi’s gone.

Sad for myself, too.

He closes the door he opened for me and walks around to the driver’s side. I admire him as he goes. He’s so handsome, his profile is chiseled perfection, he has cheekbones I would kill for and his skin is the nutty light brown perfection I’ve only ever seen on the inside of the acorns that fall from the trees in the yard of our old house.

He starts the ignition and buckles himself in before he reaches across and buckles me in, too. When he does, I slip my hand around his neck and he growls slightly before he takes my lips in a kiss that we’ve both been needing since he got to the house. Our lips suck and nip at each other before he pulls back, trails kisses up my cheek.

Every time we kiss, I feel weightless. Like if he wasn’t holding onto me, I’d defy gravity and fly away.

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