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Paige blew out a sigh. “I know. Sometimes I don’t know why I find it so hard to let myself have fun,” she admitted, surprising herself with her own honesty.
A strand of hair drifted over her almond eyes, and Paige gave a soft start when Olivia tucked it behind her ear for her, her touch gentle, intimate. She couldn’t quite bring herself to meet her friend’s gaze, her cheek burning where Olivia’s fingertips had grazed her skin. “That’s why I’m here. To make sure you do.”
Paige swallowed, her throat going dry. She nodded mutely, hardly able to bring herself to speak.
Olivia cleared her throat and stepped back, a dusting of pink on her cheeks that hadn’t been there before. “So, are you ready for that ice cream now? My treat.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
That night, Paige awoke to darkness, and someone tugging on her arm.
“Paige. Paige, are you awake?” a voice whispered close to her ear, gradually rousing her from her sleep.
“Hmm?” she murmured, blinking open a sleepy eye.
Someone was leaning over her, soft blonde hair tickling her cheek. “Paige, wake up,” Olivia said again, shaking her shoulder.
Drowsiness almost pulled her back under until Olivia switched a light on, and Paige threw up a hand to cover her eyes. “What the hell, Olivia. What time is it?” she muttered, squinting between her fingers as her eyes adjusted to the light.
Olivia was sitting up in bed beside her, her hair all mussed around her face. Cute. “Are you awake?” she said, her voice gentle against the stillness of the night.
“I am now,” Paige mumbled, rubbing her eyes with her fingers and raking her hair back out of her face. “Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing like that,” Olivia said, biting her lower lip and playing with the edge of the duvet cover.
Paige stared at her, trying to figure out if she was missing something. “So… why did you wake me?”
“So, I just had a kind of crazy idea,” she finally said, her gaze flicking up to meet Paige’s before darting away again.
“I don’t think I like the sound of that,” Paige said, still trying to shake the dredges of sleep away. She was not a morning person, and she liked being woken up in the middle of the night even less.
“Just hear me out, okay?” Olivia said, reaching forward to touch Paige’s wrist, her gaze imploring.
If she wasn’t already awake, the soft flutter of Olivia’s fingers brushing her skin was enough to banish all drowsiness from Paige’s mind.
“Alright, I’m listening,” she said, covering up a yawn and trying not to focus on Olivia’s hand still resting against her wrist.
“I know you don’t like swimming in the sea when there’s other people there,” Olivia started, “so I figured that maybe it would be fun to go for a late-night swim. You know, since nobody will see us.”
“Absolutely not,” Paige said without hesitation, tugging her wrist away from Olivia’s hand as she shook her head.
“Paige, please at least think about it,” Olivia said. “Don’t you think it would be fun? Something a little rebellious.”
Paige groaned. “You know I don’t do rebellious,” she said. “And anyway, the water’s going to be freezing, and who knows what kind of creatures might be swimming in the sea at this time of night. Jellyfish, crabs.” She shuddered. “I’d rather not risk it, thanks.”
Olivia pouted. “Do you really not think it’ll be fun?”
“Not at all,” Paige said bluntly, then regretted it the moment Olivia’s face fell.
“Oh, okay then. Sorry to wake you.”
She went to switch off the light, but Paige held her back, resting a hand on her arm. “Wait,” she whispered with a soft sigh. “Do you really want to go out there in the middle of the night?”
Olivia twisted a strand of hair around her finger, shrugging. “I know it’s not exactly recommended to swim in the dark, but just think of the moon reflecting on the waves and having the whole beach to ourselves…”
Paige bit her lower lip. It did sound rather romantic, but she doubted that’s what Olivia had in mind. “Okay,” she said. “I don’t know if I’ll go into the water, but I’m awake now, and a late-night walk on the sand does sound kind of nice.”
Olivia reached over and wrapped her arms around Paige with a soft squeal. “Thank you,” she said, but Paige was too focused on their bare skin pressing together, Olivia’s coconut shampoo filling her senses.
