“Lila,” he whispered.
She smiled, loving that he’d started calling her by her first name again. She closed the remaining space to press her lips to his. His mouth parted as his fingers drifted higher. Breathing him in, she was acutely aware of every place their bodies touched. She knew it would be all too easy to lie in that bed forever with him.
Pushing herself up, she looked down into his eyes darkened with desire. She felt the want deep in her core and smiled. Quick as lightning, she kissed his cheek and climbed off him. He groaned while she moved to turn on the light.
“That was really rude,” he said as she pulled out some new clothes from the dresser.
“Maybe you should learn to stop keeping secrets.” Over her shoulder, she winked. “I’ll be back. I’m going to change.”
Before she could open the bathroom door, he was there. His hands wrapped around her front, pulling her back against him. Her breath caught in her throat. He brushed her hair to the side and kissed the sensitive area between her neck and shoulder.
She’d waited so long to feel that kind of connection with anyone. The thought of losing it brought tears to her eyes. As if he could sense the moment the mood changed, Gavin let go. She didn’t turn back to see him. Instead, she went into the bathroom and closed the door to hide the heartache forming.
When she walked back out after changing and getting control of her emotions, Gavin stood from the edge of her bed. She looked down at her simple outfit, realizing she didn’t know if the leggings and cardigan-covered tank top were all right. “Is this okay? Do I need something nicer or something that can get covered in paint?”
He shook his head and picked up her phone from the bedside table. Putting it in his hoodie’s pocket, he walked over to grab her hand. “It’s perfect.”
She laced her fingers through his and followed him downstairs. In the living room, her dad stood from his recliner at the sight of them, glancing down at their clasped hands. Her mom got to her feet a bit slower. She pulled Lila into a hug, asking if the headache was gone.
It felt good to not lie for once. “Yes, I feel totally fine. Better than I have in a while actually.”
When her mom moved back, Lila’s dad stared at them with crossed arms. Her mom nudged him in the ribs, and he swept a hand across his dark beard before dropping it to his side with a sigh. “Have fun, but please be safe. If you start feeling bad, come home.”
Lila stepped forward to wrap her arms around him. “Thanks, Dad.”
They broke, and she took Gavin’s hand once more as they headed toward the door.
“Gavin,” her dad said behind them, and they turned back. “Take care of her.”
“Always.” Gavin squeezed her hand.
Her dad nodded. “Be back by midnight.”
“Dad,” Lila started, “that’s in less than three hours. I’m almost eighteen.”
To her surprise, with another sigh, he said, “Fine. One.”
Suppressing an eye roll, Lila agreed and dragged Gavin from the house. At his car, he opened the passenger door for her. “You know,” he said, hanging on to the roof of the car as she pulled her seatbelt on, “we don’t need four hours for where we’re going.”
“I’m sure we can figure out something to pass the extra time.” She grinned at his surprised look.
He cleared his throat and closed her door. She chuckled as he moved around to get in on his side. In the faint moonlight, she thought she could see a blush on his cheeks, and she bit her lip to keep from laughing harder.
As they pulled into the high school parking lot, she finally let it out. That was not what she thought they were checking off. Gavin parked near a small gathering of cars, and she looked over in confusion.
“I called in some backup,” was the only explanation she got before he jumped out.
As she unclicked her belt, Dylan opened her door. He held out a hand to help her up. “My lady.”
She shook her head. “Hi, Dylan.”
Before she could say anything else, he pulled her into a hug. Not a fun, joking hug like he was known to do. It was genuine. He held her close, not letting go.
He knew.
“Dylan, I’m fine,” she whispered, squeezing him tight. “It’s going to be okay.”
“Of course, it is,” he said, leaning back a little. “You’re not mad he told me?”
She knew she should be upset. After all, she’d kept the tumor a secret for a reason. But she couldn’t bring herself to be mad. Gavin was struggling with everything, and if talking to Dylan helped, she’d take it. “No.”
She glanced over to see Gavin watching them from his place near another car. Some of his teammates surrounded him, as did Kaley, Cass, and May. The latter three smiled and waved when they saw her. Dylan put an arm around her shoulders and led her to the group. Cass and May had returned from their vacation that morning, according to him. They’d go back to working at the Scoop the following week.
When they got close, Gavin reached out to pull her to him. “All right, enough. Give me back my girlfriend.”
She looked at him with raised brows. “Girlfriend, huh?”
“Yep.” He kissed her before twisting her around to face the group as he wrapped his arms across her stomach. Against her ear, he whispered, “If we’ve only got a few more days, I’m not wasting time.”
Lila stilled.
“Shit, I’m sorry.” He tried to turn her back toward him.
She only moved enough to kiss him and then lay her head against his shoulder. The people around them continued laughing and talking, oblivious. But Kaley met her eyes with a smile.
“All right.” Dylan clapped his hands together to get everyone’s attention. He held up a set of keys. “Are we doing this or what?”
“Dylan, how did you
