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“Why not? There’s nothing wrong with two friends taking a trip together.”
“Have you always been this obsessed with asking questions?”
I smile wickedly, tipping my head toward her. We’re inches from touching. A gust of wind would cause her to tumble into me—if the elements decided to play favorites. “It’s kind of my thing.”
“I guess memory isn’t.”
I clear my throat and do my best to imitate Lily’s serious tone. “Job. School. Responsibilities.”
One of her fingers rams between my ribs. “Shut up.”
“Alright!” I raise my palms in surrender. “But you should take some kind of break. If I remember correctly, summer looks really good on you.”
“Only summer?”
I chuckle. “You, Lily, are the muse behind every season.”
“Do you keep a list of pickup lines tucked away in your pocket?” She aims for my side again, but I break right, dodging the playful nudge.
“Are you always this aggressive?”
“Maybe when someone’s misbehaving—or sometimes in bed.”
That’s unexpected. “Now, I’d love—”
“Don’t even think about it.” She waves her hands around in frustration. “The champagne and tequila shots have completely gone to my head. I wasobviouslykidding.”
The moon gleams around us, and the lights from the dance hall glimmer in the corner of my eye. My eyebrows shoot up, and I eye her suspiciously. “Sure.”
“Back to what I was saying earlier, before yourudelyinterrupted me—I can’t travel right now. I’ve got about a month’s rent in my bank account.”
“Well, everything’s already paid for, so technically it would be a crime for you not to go.”
“Not all of us can drop everything to travel, Nico. It’s a nice life—don’t think I feel otherwise—but it’s not for me.”
“Why?” There’s no way her plans could bring an ounce of happiness. Now, a summer with me would bring her all sorts of fun. I have a beautiful suite awaiting me in Rio, only a short walk from the beach. We’ve been to enough parties together for her to know that we can have a really good time. There’s also the undiscovered possibility of what such close proximity could lead us to discover about each other.
“You’re annoying, did you know?”
I pat my trousers, search for my phone, and pull it out of my back pocket. “It’s because I’m right.”
“What are you doing?”
“Hold on.” It takes a few minutes to email her the plane ticket.
A barely audible chime echoes from her small purse on the ground. Lily bends at the knees to retrieve it. “No, Nico. No. I can’t go with you. Take it back.” She shoots up, shoving her phone a few inches from my face.
I swat her hand away gently. “Cut loose,princesa. You don’t always need a plan for everything.”
Lily tosses her phone back into her purse and keeps her eyes focused on the endless horizon. “Maybe not, but I definitely don’t need any distractions.”
“You sure?” I take a step toward her.
She takes a step back. “Yes.”
“Am I distracting you now?”
“Absolutely not.” The way her gaze slips off the obsidian sky and down my bare torso tells an entirely different story. Watching her fight wanting me has never felt so sweet.
