Page 67 of Dream Chaser

She shrugged. “I’ve got tons of boards, even for the apartment I don’t have yet. In college, my friend Scarlett and I were big on visualizing and manifesting. Like pinning something magically made it real. See?” She went to her profile. A younger Nova grinned from the tiny profile picture. “Fifty boards. I need to get a life.”

“Have you looked at apartments yet?” I asked as she locked the phone.

“Not yet. I didn’t think I’d be able to afford one so soon.”

“I could put you in touch with my realtor.”

“That’d be great! If that’s not a bother.”

“It’s not.” Nothing was.

We stood side by side, quiet, but words weren’t needed when silence felt so good. Nova’s arm brushed mine. She looked up, and there it was again—the blue of her eyes searing into mine, the buzz under my skin I trained myself to ignore.

Closeness.

Danger.

The wind pulled at her hair. My fingers itched with the urge to tuck it behind her ear. Bad fucking idea.

She did it herself, saving me from a huge mistake.

A wave crashed closer than the others. Nova shivered, and this time my hand lifted before I could stop it. I didn’t touch her, just hovered near her elbow. “Cold?”

She glanced at me. “A little.”

I rested my hand against her arm—brief, light, professional. Enough to steady her. Enough to feel the heat of her through her sleeve.

For a moment, the space between us became unbearable. I felt her presence like a pull in my chest, like gravity bending in the wrong direction. One step. One inch.

That was all it would take to ruin everything.

My hands in her hair.

My mouth on hers.

Self loathing flooded my veins. I’d been telling myself I wasn’t like my ex-boss for years, so what the fuck was I thinking? “I should take you home, Nova.”

She smiled—soft, understanding. “Thank you for tonight. For all of it.”

I nodded. “Happy birthday.”

We walked back to the car side by side, close but not touching. I opened her door, and when our eyes met, the moment lingered too long.

I forced myself to step back and gently shut the door before getting behind the wheel and starting the engine.

The beach disappeared in the rearview mirror.

My grip on the wheel turned steely.

I was good at lying to myself. But not even I could pretend tonight had meant nothing.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Nova

October

A week later