Chapter 43
Daniela
A concert at the beach. That’s where Dex is taking me for our date night. I get ready at his place, and strangely, I feel a little nervous about coming back here afterward. I’m staying with him for a few days, since we wanted to spend more time together before I go back home.
Do I want him to rip my clothes off every time he looks at me with that hunger in his eyes? Yes. Absolutely. But I’m also nervous, since the last time we hooked up ended up with some devastating aftereffects.
The concert starts early in the afternoon, so we head there first, with plans to go to dinner after. The band is a small one I’ve never heard of, but I can always appreciate a good live show. It’s a beautiful day, and I have the most beautiful man sitting beside me. The day couldn’t be any better.
He parks and runs around to open my door, and I take his hand as I climb out.
I picked a simple tank top, shorts, and sandals for the occasion—something easy and light for an outdoor show on a warm day by the water.
Dex wears gray shorts, a plain black T-shirt, and slip-ons.
He doesn’t need anything elaborate to stand out. He just does.
We stroll toward the beach as the crowd grows, eventually finding a spot way in the back where it’s more scattered. The water laps gently on the shore, and sunlight sparkles across the lake. Dex takes my hand in his, and I squeeze his back.
“This is weird,” I comment, smiling.
“What?”
“Us. Just…being peaceful and not arguing for once.”
He smirks. “The night is young, Dani.”
“True.”
We spend the afternoon walking along the shore, the distant sounds of music growing more faint. It feels like a perfect summer evening, the perfect way to say goodbye to Lake Tahoe. I splash around in my sandals while Dex slips his shoes off and carries them, laughing as he follows me.
We talk about the little things. The ones that I’m realizing—when added together—are just as important as the big, scary stuff. Like the fact that Dex is afraid of heights, or that he refuses to keep mayonnaise in his house because he despises it that much.
I want to know all of it.
That way, if I’m lucky enough in the future to be the person getting him food when he’s feeling sick, I’ll know to order his burger with no mayo. If I ever plan a surprise date, I’ll know not to do anything extreme, like make him jump out of a plane.
I’ve never let myself get close enough to a man before to learn these things. But I think I want to now. He makes it feel right somehow.
The afternoon flies by way too fast. The sun starts to set, and the sky turns into one of those impossible colors that can’t quite be captured accurately by a photo. You just have to see it and experience it.
When the music dies out, Dex turns to face me. I look at him bathed in the golden rays of the setting sun, and my heart jumps in my chest as he stares back at me.
He pulls me in slowly, and when our lips meet, that’s it for me.
There’s no going back.
Because it’s the kind of all-consuming, passionate kiss you dream about. And in that moment, I realize I’m falling—hard—for this man.
Maybe I have been all summer.
But I couldn’t admit it to myself until I finally let go of that heavy weight I’d been carrying.