Page 129 of Love Unwritten

“I spy…”

Nico beams. “What?”

I look around the yacht. “Something red.”

Nico drops the binoculars and scans the deck. “Um…the towel?” He points at the pink-and-white striped one beneath me.

My chest, which was already uncomfortably tight after my conversation with Ellie, aches.

“Nope.”

He frowns. “Hm.”

I readjust my position on purpose, drawing Nico’s attention to the lobsters on my swim trunks.

“Your bathing suit!”

“You got it.” My small smile doesn’t reach my eyes.

His roll. “Only because you gave me a hint.” He taps his chin. “I spy…something white!”

“The clouds?”

“Nope.”

“The fiberglass on the boat?”

He shakes his head, and I spend the next few minutes looking around for something white before choosing something that is pale yellow.

“The deck chairs?”

“Yes! Finally!”

My chest twinges again. I’m not sure how to continue our game, especially given Nico struggling to differentiate between similar-looking colors. If Ellie were here, she would say something to lighten the mood and make me feel better.

Too bad you pushed her away yet again.

Nico frowns. “What’s wrong?”

I break eye contact and stare out at the ocean. “I made a mistake.”

“Oh.” He frowns. “What happened?”

“I hurt someone’s feelings.”

“Did you say sorry?”

“No.”

He laughs to himself. “But you’ve got to say sorry first! You taught me that.”

“I don’t know if sorry is going to work this time.” I seriously doubt Ellie would accept any apology from me that doesn’t come with a personality shift.

He cuddles up to my side. I prop my chin on the top of his head and wrap my arms around him, and together, we stare out at the ocean for a few minutes before he loses patience.

“Why did you hurt the other person’s feelings?”

I’m so caught off guard by his question, I ask him to repeat it.