Chapter 9
AGE SIXTEEN
I watch in amazement as Avery finishes the last piece of her pizza, absolutely smashing the entire pie herself. After she takes her last bite, she dabs the corner of her mouth with a napkin and proceeds to throw it at me because I haven’t taken my eyes off her once during the last ten minutes.
“Don’t look at me like that! With all the calories I burn off every day on the ice, I need the carbs. A girl’s gotta eat.”
Taking the cloth napkin off my face, I see Avery with her arms crossed, scowling at me with all the sass in the world.
“I’m not looking at you like anything. I’m impressed!”
Her lips tip up, revealing the faintest hint of that adorable dimple I spotted earlier today when she got off the ice.
“Good. You should be.”
Leaning back in my chair, I mirror her expression and fight the grin that threatens to overtake my face.
“Are you up for a little adventure? Or are you ready to pass out after devouring that pizza like a champ?”
Avery scoots her chair back, the wooden legs scratching against the hard floor. As soon as she stands, she makes her way to the door.
Hurriedly, I wipe my face with the napkin she just assaulted me with and attempt to fish out some cash from my wallet to leave for a tip. I set the money on the table and when I look up, Avery’s standing near the exit with her hands on her hips.
“Well, are you coming? I want to see what the infamous Connor Smith considers an adventure.”
My heartbeat picks up in my chest with each step I take toward her. I don’t know much about love or relationships, but I’ve never had a reaction like this when it comes to a girl. My palms are damp with sweat, my heart pounds in my chest, and I’m excited that I get to spend more time with her.
Avery reaches for the door handle, and I rush in front of her, pulling it open for her.
“After you.”
She pauses for a beat, eyeing me curiously, before walking through. I follow close behind as we make our way onto the sidewalk.
“Your gentleman charm doesn’t fool me, Smith. I’ve heard all about you.”
Most of the time, that type of comment would make me laugh. It’s not really a secret that I like female attention. I’m sixteen years old and I live away from home. But for some reason, when Avery says it, I’m nervous.
“I’m not sure what you heard, but I’m always a gentleman. I know how to treat a lady.”
Avery barks out a loud laugh and the sound breaks through something in my chest. I’ve never wanted more than just a quick make-out session or two with a girl, but that thought isn’t appealing at all when it comes to Avery.
I want to know everything there is to know about this girl from Wisconsin. I want to know her hopes, her dreams, her deepest darkest fears and secrets. A casual hookup would never be enough.
Bumping my shoulder into hers, I act offended. “Are you laughing at me, Aves?”
My question causes her to stop abruptly. I turn so I’m standing in front of her.
“Is everything okay?”
She nibbles on her bottom lip and then shakes her head. “Everything’s good. Just thought I forgot my phone.”
For some reason, I don’t believe her. Normally, I’d let it slide. But when it comes to Avery, I don’t want her to hide anything from me. I don’t know if I deserve the truth yet, but wanting to get to know her, I decide to push.
“That’s not it. Something else made you stop. Come on, tell me.” I put my hands in my pockets and rock back onto my heels.
Her eyes search mine, as if she’s trying to decide if she wants to let me in. I hold my breath, hoping like hell she does.
She puts her hands in the back pockets of her jeans and shrugs. “Besides my teammates calling me by my last name, no one’s ever given me a nickname before.” Her eyes cast down to her feet, as if she’s embarrassed by the confession.
Taking a step closer, I place my index finger under her chin and gently lift her head until her gaze is back on mine.
“Well, now you have one. And it’s mine. Is that okay, Aves?”
The prettiest shade of pink blooms across her cheeks. My eyes trace the color and then drop to her mouth just as her lips part on a sharp exhale.
She quickly nods her head. “Yep. That’s great. Awesome. Totally okay.”
I’ve been an infatuated fool since the moment I laid my eyes on Avery, so to see her affected by me like this gives me a boost of confidence.
I slowly smile at her, letting this moment drag out for as long as the fates will allow.
We stand there unmoving, my finger still pressed gently to the bottom of her chin, eyes searching each other.
The sound of booming laughter breaks the spell, causing Avery to jolt backward. My hand drops to my side, immediately itching to reach back out to her. A group of teenagers wearing our school’s memorabilia approaches, and I step next to Avery to let them by.
Once the group moves past us, Avery’s confident mask is back in place, the vulnerable moment gone in a flash.
“Are you going to take me on this adventure now or what?”
I want more than anything to slip back into that moment, her gorgeous green eyes locked on mine, inches away from claiming her mouth. Instead, we fall into step next to each other again, making our way back toward campus.
After a short ten-minute walk, we’ve finally made it to the front gates of our school.
Old brick buildings cover the campus, long paved pathways leading to each one, with the dorm buildings on the outer edge near the world-class athletic facilities.
The hockey rink could rival any minor league teams’ building, and I still can’t believe I get to go to school here.
But my favorite part of the entire school is just behind us, where a looming clock tower sits, stealing everyone’s attention with its elegance.
The weathered stone looks ancient and ivy creeps up the sides leading to arch windows at the top.
The campus is relatively quiet right now, with not many kids back on campus yet for the year.
The school allows athletes to come back early if one of their coaches agrees to supervise.
I know that both hockey teams are back on campus already as well as a few others, but it’s close to ten o’clock now so most of them are already in their rooms for the night.
“This big adventure you want to take me on is at school? I think we have two very different definitions of the word ‘adventure.’”
I turn to face Avery and begin walking backward.
“Ye of little faith.”
She throws her hands out in front of her. “Well, sorry! But my idea of fun doesn’t happen at school.”
The words on the tip of my tongue are totally inappropriate. She must know exactly what I’m thinking because she reaches out and stabs me in the front of my shoulder with her fingers.
“Ew, not that kind of fun! You know what I meant. Get your mind out of the gutter.”
Raising my hands in front of me, I show her my palms. “You’re the one who said it. Not me.”
My eyes scan the surroundings and I turn so I don’t run into the brick wall I know is getting close. Once we get to the door, I do one more check to make sure no one is around us.
“What are you doing?” Avery whisper-hisses at me.
I bring my finger up to my lips to shush her. “Just wait. Trust me.”
Reaching into my back pocket, I pull out my wallet. In the hidden compartment, I pull out a gold key and insert it into the locked door.
“Connor! Where the hell did you get a key to the clock tower?”
“I know people,” I say, then wink at her before pushing the door open.
Avery hesitates, looking over her shoulder before she sprints through the door into the pitch-black clock tower. I follow her in and gently close the door behind me.
I pull out my phone and turn the flashlight on its dimmest setting. Carefully, I put the key back into my wallet and then position my phone in front of me. Avery’s nervous face illuminates in the dark. Her eyes dart from side to side, taking in the musty old room we stand in.
“What are we doing here?” Her eyes continue to case the room.
“I want to show you something. Come on.” I reach out my hand, and even though she has absolutely no reason to, I hope like hell she trusts me.
Unlike before, Avery doesn’t hesitate. Her hand finds mine and I lace my fingers with hers.
I should ignore what I’m feeling but it’s damn near impossible at this point.
The warmth of her hand is like a soft caress against my callused palm.
Holding her hand feels like stepping onto a fresh sheet of ice.
Unsteady for half a second but then suddenly there’s no place I’d rather be.
I pull her behind me, using the flashlight as a guide to the corner of the room where a spiral staircase made of iron awaits. When I go to take my first step, I’m met with resistance.
I turn and find Avery nibbling on her fingernails, her other hand still gripping mine tightly.
I set my phone down on the step, the light illuminating the small area around us.
Reaching out, I move her hand away from her face before lacing my fingers through hers again.
Gripping both of her hands with mine, I move them up between us.
“Do you trust me?”
Avery’s eyes dart around the space, landing on the staircase behind me. “For some crazy reason, I do. I just…I don’t love heights.”
Without thinking, I bring our adjoined hands to my lips before placing the softest of kisses on the knuckles of her right hand.
“I won’t let go. I promise. You go first and you squeeze this hand as hard as you need to. I’ll follow right behind you and make sure you don’t fall. I won’t let anything happen to you, Aves.”
She takes a deep breath in through her nose before releasing it slowly.
“Promise you won’t let go?”
“I promise.”
Avery releases her left hand from mine and makes her way to the staircase. Her other hand is gripping mine so tight, I won’t be surprised if they’re bruised in the morning. I ignore the twinge of pain there and follow her as she slowly ascends the stairs, grabbing my phone on the way.
We stop twice on our way up to the top of the clock tower, but after a few minutes, we finally reach the platform at the top.
As soon as I take my first step, I’m grabbing Avery and spinning around with her in my arms.
“You did it! I’m so proud of you.”
Setting her back down on her feet, her hands slide down my arms and she grips my biceps.
“Oh my god, I did do it, didn’t I? I couldn’t have done it without you!”
Before I can brace myself, Avery is reaching up onto her tiptoes and kissing my cheek. Warmth blooms in my chest and I have the urge to crush her mouth to mine. But before I can do anything like that, Avery gasps.
“Wow. It’s absolutely gorgeous up here.”
She’s peering around me at the little windows that surround the top of the tower. There’s not much room here, my head nearly skimming the ceiling.
“Just wait. You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Avery’s eyes move back up to mine, that cute little dimple of hers permanently in place now as she smiles wide up at me. I grab her hand and lead her to the opposite side of the platform. She watches me as I reach up and unlatch a small trapdoor from the ceiling of the tower.
“Up you go, Aves.” I clasp my hands in front of me and drop to one knee ready to give her a boost.
“You’re serious?”
I pat my knee twice before putting my hands back together. “As serious as a heart attack.”
With the light of the moon shining through the small windows, I’m able to see her roll her eyes at me. She reaches out and places one hand on my shoulder. But before she steps up, she looks down at me. “That was totally a joke my dad would make.”
I ignore the pang in my heart at the mention of her dad. Not wanting to give her any hints of my daddy issues, I chuckle and plaster on a fake smile. “Your dad sounds cool.”
Avery shakes her head then puts one foot on my knee, the other in my clasped hands, and I give her a boost up. She pushes herself up through the door. Not wanting to miss a second of her reaction, I grip the sides of the opening with both my hands and push myself up after her.
My hand finds hers on instinct, and the moment we touch, her eyes shoot to mine.
“This is incredible,” she says in awe.
The view from up here is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.
Being three stories up, above most of the buildings on campus, you can see for miles.
The lake surrounding our school reflects the moon and stars that glow above us.
Since school isn’t in session yet, there’s not much light pollution, and being so far north in Minnesota, there’s one more thing I want to show her.
I look up to ensure my next surprise is there. Fighting a smile, I pull Avery to me. Her hands grip my upper arms and I rest mine gently, just above her hips.
“Are you ready for the best part?”
She nods enthusiastically, the battle I was fighting to hide my smile lost.
“Look up.”
At the same time, we both tilt our heads back, staring at the green sky above us. It was pure luck when I got the news alert that the Northern Lights would be on display tonight. And boy, am I feeling like the luckiest guy alive right now.
Avery’s hold on my arms tightens, causing my attention to move back down to her. I watch her take in the incredible view, the green of the sky mirroring the beautiful eyes I could so easily get lost in.
Watching her in this moment, something inside me changes. After everything that happened with my parents, I’ve never wanted a relationship or a family. I’ve always been too afraid to follow in their footsteps.
But here, seeing the Northern Lights through the eyes of Avery, I think I might want a relationship after all.
Minutes go by as Avery points out the greens and purples of the sky, never leaving the spot in front of me. Her other hand is still resting comfortably on my arm.
“Isn’t it just so beautiful?”
I know she’s talking about the sky, but I have yet to look away from her.
“Gorgeous.”
My voice is low and raspy, causing Avery to finally look away from the light display above us. When she realizes what I’m actually talking about, she bites her lower lip.
The wind chooses this moment to kick up, causing us both to become unsteady on our feet. My arm wraps around her back and her hand flies up to my chest.
“You okay?”
Her eyes are on my mouth when she nods. “I’m okay.”
I push a loose strand of her hair behind her ear but keep my other arm in place, securing her so that she remains close.
“I know we just met, but I’d really, really like to kiss you right now. If that’s all right with you.” My gaze moves from her eyes down to her lips and then back up again.
Avery’s hand grips the front of my shirt, pulling me even closer so that her mouth is a breath away from mine. The dimple that I’ve come to love so much pops on her left cheek.
“What are you waiting for?”
And then my lips are on hers.