Page 29 of Honest With You

I make quotation marks, rolling my eyes at the word clients.

Her grip tightens on my hand as her brows meet.

“Wait… You think he’s still cheating on your mom?”

I shrug. I try not to think about it. Dad doesn’t go on business trips anymore and when he does it’s usually only for a night or two, so either he got good at hiding it or isn’t doing it anymore. Either way, I know he’s blaming me for getting caught.

Taking a long sip of my drink, I stare out into the city view.

A blanket of lights in the dark of the night. It’s my favorite thing about the places I escape to. Even in the dark, light cuts through. A sign that everything will work itself out.

Now that I’m sitting with her, I realize it’s a lot like Ava. These places I escape to remind me of her. We got to know each other in the darkest of moments, but even then her light had shined through.

And the funny thing is, I doubt she even knows just how special she really is.

“I’m so sorry, Jesse. I feel like I killed the mood you were trying to set here.”

I raise my knee, dragging her hand onto it and smiling at the feel of our hands clasped together. I lock eyes with her, the smile pulling up higher on my face.

I feel lighter somehow.

“And what mood was that?”

It’s her turn to roll her eyes, a small laugh escaping those kissable lips of hers I’ve been thinking about nonstop for weeks.

“Come on, Jesse. A perfect view. A picnic with my favorite snacks.” She looks out at the view, tipping her head up to stare at the stars then at me.

“It's… you know…romantic.”

She cups her free hand around her mouth and mock whispers the word like it’s a secret and I can’t help but laugh. The tightness in my chest from our conversation eases and all other thoughts dissipate as I zero in on her.

“Romantic, huh? I was going for friendly but hey, I’ll take it.Friend.”

Ava pulls her hand back, playfully shoving my knee away as she once again rolls those gorgeous browns while happily munching on her third bag ofchoco knots.

Wait.

I look down at my lap and realize the little thief stole my snack.

Realizing she’s caught, she bites her lip as she turns away, hurriedly shoving the last piece in her mouth. Then, this audacious beauty looks over her shoulder at me, her cheeks like a squirrel as she chews her stolen goods with a grin.

I sit gaping at her, not knowing whether to kiss those chocolate covered lips or tickle her for stealing the last bag of chocolate pretzels.

I can tell she’s trying to relieve the tension our conversation has created and make me smile again. She winks at me, mischief dancing on her face before she peeks into the backpack again.

What she sees has her looking at me in confusion and I grin. I take out the pop-up pirate game I bought on a whim. After seeing it on one of the K-dramas Mom and I binge every Sunday, I knew I had to have it. I set it on the blanket between us then take out the ziploc bags and divide the swords between us.

Ava grabs her stack of swords, looking the pirate over. Not even a minute later, it clicks for her and she grins up at me, shaking her head in amusement, excitement marking her features as she gestures for me to go first.

“Nah, ladies first.”

Biting her lip in concentration, she pokes the pirate. Almost instantly, the pirate’s head jumps out, startling her and causing her to scream in shock. It’s so loud, the other couple turns to look at us as they make their way back to their car, shaking their heads in annoyance.

I bark out a laugh, leaning over her to grab the pirate that fell behind her. She stills at our sudden proximity, waiting for me to sit back down. Her eyes trail my face, like they’re tracing every feature. When our eyes meet, she abruptly looks away. Redness creeps up her neck and cheeks. I grin like a fool because damn, she’s cute when she’s nervous.

Our second round of the game takes longer. We take turns poking the pirate. I start to wonder if we broke the pirate because I’m down to two swords when it pops up on Ava’s turn again. This time she’s prepared and catches the head before it lands on the grass. She grumbles about the game being rigged and I simply laugh, committing her every mannerism to memory.

I really like this girl.

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