Page 166 of Revv

“Then I’ve got you.”

Fuck.

I look back down at the little wave, suddenly very interested in it so he doesn’t see what that does to me.

The problem with Revel isn’t that he’s good at grand gestures.

It’s that he pays attention.

I can defend myself against grand gestures.

This shit is harder.

I take the necklace from the box and turn my back to him, lifting my ponytail out of the way. “Put it on me.”

His fingers brush the back of my neck as he fastens it, warm against my skin. When I let my hair fall, the little gold wave settles beside Abuela’s locket.

I look down at both of them resting together against my chest.

Yep, that gets me.

When I turn around, Revel is watching me with that softer look he gets sometimes, the one that never feels like he’s trying to get anything out of me.

So before he can ruin it by opening his mouth, I grab the front of his shirt and kiss him.

Slow. Sweet and just because I want to.

When I pull back, his grin starts.

“Don’t.”

He laughs under his breath and takes my hand again.

Later, we end up walking along the water.

The sun is lower now, turning the buildings behind us gold and scattering light across the ocean. Boats move farther offshore, white against all that blue, while the beach beside us is still crowded with umbrellas, towels, music and people trying to squeeze the last bit out of the afternoon.

A little girl runs through the sand near the walkway, squealing when a wave catches her ankles before racing back toward the blanket where her parents are sitting. Her mom catches her around the waist, laughing, while her dad already has a towel waiting.

I watch them for a second longer than I mean to.

Something about the little girl running back to her parents catches at me in a place I usually keep buried.

Which is ridiculous, considering my dad was gone before I was even born.

He heard ‘pregnant’ and disappeared.

That was it.

I don’t have memories of him walking out because I was never there for the leaving part. What I grew up with was the empty space after it.

My mom doing everything herself.

Me knowing there was a man out there who chased her for years, made her feel like she was the center of his world, then vanished the second that world came with responsibility.

Funny how someone I never knew still managed to leave that big of a mark on me.

Maybe that’s why I’ve never been impressed by men wanting me too loudly.