Page 98 of Commit
Somehow, in all the chaos, he’s created a bubble for us to exist in. Although I know it won’t last forever, I can’t deny that right now, it’s exactly what I need.
When we take a hard left onto a dirt road, I look at him warily. “This isn’t the part where you murder me and dump my body, is it?”
“If I wanted to murder you, I would have already done it and gotten rid of your body by now.”
I pause. That answer was delivered a little too easily. “You don’t dress up in your dead mom’s clothes, do you?”
He frowns. “What the fuck? Of course not.”
“You’re not planning on asking me to put lotion on my skin?”
“Well, only if it’s really sunny out. I don’t want you to burn.”
“Riiight.”
We pull up to the edge of a cliff. The view is incredible, and below us is a crystal-clear lake.
“Wait, this place isn’t called Camp Crystal Lake, is it?”
“Did you bang your head or something?”
I narrow my eyes but give him the benefit of the doubt… for now.
“You’re a little insane, you know that, right?”
“People keep telling me that, but I only bought the pink sparkly straight jacket because it matched my shoes.”
He shakes his head, smiling, before getting out and walking around to open my door. “Leave your bag under the seat. I’ll run back for it when you want it.”
“Okay.” It saves me from carrying it around.
He helps me out and takes my hand once he closes the door. “Come on. I want to show you something.” He walks me over to a set of man-made steps, which lead down to the lake and the sandy area surrounding it.
“It’s pretty here.”
“I’d say that’s why it’s such a popular make-out spot, but they don’t come here for the view.”
I chuckle. “Here I thought you were going to off me, but it’s you who’s really hoping to get off. It’s all about context, I guess.”
He pauses, looks back at me, and winks.
I almost stumble when I realize we’re flirting with each other. Or, more surprisingly, I’m flirting with him. Did I just walk into the Bermuda Triangle? Maybe I did bang my head. When the hell did I let my guard down enough to start flirting?
I try not to dwell on it. Catching feelings for Hudson was never part of the plan and would make me a bigger idiot than I already am.
Looking around, I see other people enjoying the sun. Some are swimming, others are sunbathing. A few are floating along on giant inflatables.
I imagine what it must be like to do this with a girlfriend, laughing at the boys showing off and getting us wet while secretly loving the attention.
I could easily see Claire and her clique doing just that. Having girlfriends is a huge thing I missed out on. I might not be the most approachable person, but I know my lack of female friends is largely because people are afraid of Claire and her crew. Some people might empathize with me, but no one’s willing to cross her to hang out with me. Most of these people have gone to school together since kindergarten. I’m just the new girl who came in and started dating the hottest guy in school.
If they knew the truth, it would blow their minds.
Hudson takes me around the back of the steps, toward a waterfall that has me sucking in a sharp breath. I never thought I’d see anything as beautiful as this in my lifetime. Then I think of Kate and her mother that day in the ice cream shop and realize that’s not true. I have seen beauty before. It’s just not always easy to recognize, especially when it emerges from darkness.
“I thought you might like it here,” he says, clearly proud of himself.
“I didn’t even know this was here,” I admit, feeling a little awestruck. I swallow the lump in my throat, overwhelmed.