Chapter 20 #2
When we finish, the black garlic caramel drizzled over vanilla ice cream actually makes him smile for the first time since his mother left. “This is genius,” he says, taking another bite. “Sweet and savory at the same time. The judges would love this.”
But even his praise feels muted. Distant.
We clean up the dishes together, our usual rhythm slightly off. I’m hyperaware of every time our hands brush, every casual touch that used to feel natural but now makes Victoria’s words echo louder.
Stop fooling yourself.
“River,” I say as we finish loading the dishwasher. “Do you want to watch your favorite Korean drama? The one you told me about—with the mermaid?”
He looks up, surprise flickering across his face. Then something soft and genuine breaks through the exhaustion. “Yeah?”
“Yeah. I think we could both use something fun right now.” I force a smile. “Besides, I’m curious to see what’s so great about this show.”
His smile grows wider—the first real smile I’ve seen from him all evening. “Are you sure? It’s kind of ridiculous. And romantic. And there are a lot of episodes.”
“I’m sure. Maybe we can watch one or two episodes tonight, and the rest later.”
“Okay.” He grabs my hand, threading our fingers together. “Come on.”
He leads me down to the theater room, and I settle onto the sectional couch while he pulls up the show on the massive screen. The opening starts—bright and colorful with scenes of the ocean and the mermaid—and it’s completely at odds with the heaviness sitting in my chest.
River wraps an arm around me, pulling me against his side, and presses a kiss to my forehead. “Thank you. For suggesting this. For being here.”
I snuggle into him, letting myself have this moment even though Victoria’s words are screaming in my head.
He’s warm and solid, and I can hear his heartbeat beneath my ear.
For a few minutes, I try to focus on the show—on the quirky mermaid protagonist and the con-artist love interest, on the bright colors and ridiculous plot.
But it’s impossible to ignore the growing dread in my stomach.
River shifts slightly, tilting my face up toward his. His eyes are soft, searching mine for something I’m not sure I can give right now.
“Kiera,” he murmurs.
Then he’s kissing me, and I forget about everything else for a moment.
His lips are soft and gentle, moving against mine with the kind of tenderness that makes my chest ache.
I kiss him back, letting myself get lost in the sensation—in the way his hand cups my face, in the warmth spreading through my body, in the electric awareness that zings between us.
He deepens the kiss, his hand sliding into my hair, and I press closer. My fingers find the fabric of his shirt, gripping it. This is real. This moment, this connection—it’s real.
But so is Victoria’s voice in my head. Temporary. Beneath him. He’ll get bored.
River pulls back and rests his lips on my forehead, giving it a soft kiss. “I’m really glad you’re here,” he whispers.
The words should make me happy. Should fill me with warmth and hope. Instead, they make the hollow feeling in my chest expand until it feels like it might swallow me whole.
Because I’m falling for him. Really, truly falling. And the more I let myself feel this, the more it’s going to destroy me when it ends.
When, not if. Because Victoria was right about one thing—I’m not in River’s league.
I never will be. I’m the girl who got kicked out by her parents, who slept under a bridge, who works at a bakery and lives in a studio apartment above a bookstore.
And he’s River Stone, former child actor, documentary filmmaker, owner of a house with five bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms.
We’re from different worlds. And eventually, he’s going to realize that.
I settle back against his chest, trying to focus on the show playing on the screen. River’s arm is around me, his fingers tracing absent patterns on my shoulder. On screen, the mermaid is discovering the human world, wide-eyed and innocent, believing in love despite all the reasons she shouldn’t.
How naive.
River presses another kiss to the top of my head, and I close my eyes against the burning sensation behind them.
I’m in love with him.
The realization hits me with the force of a tidal wave, stealing my breath. I’m in love with River Stone. With his kindness and his patience, with the way he plays Barbies with Skyler and stands up to his mother for me and believes in my dreams even when I don’t believe in them myself.
I’m in love with him, and it’s going to break me.
Because I can’t ask him to give up his inheritance for me. Can’t ask him to choose between his family and a girl who cooks for a living. Can’t let him sacrifice his future for something that’s temporary anyway.
Victoria was right. I need to stop fooling myself.
The hollow feeling expands, filling every corner of my chest until there’s no room left for anything else. Not hope. Not happiness. Just this crushing certainty that I’m going to lose him, and when I do, it’s going to hurt worse than anything I’ve ever experienced.
I go quiet, emotionally pulling back even as I physically stay pressed against his side. River doesn’t notice—he’s too caught up in the show, making occasional comments about the plot and the characters, his voice rumbling through his chest beneath my ear.
And I stay silent, watching the mermaid fall in love with the human who can never truly be hers, and trying not to think about how much that story mirrors my own.