Page 56 of Until He Confesses

Amused, he tilted his head slightly to look at my body and it instantly made me squirm and burn in my seat at the same time.

“You can't do that,” I scolded him, suddenly self-conscious as I set the piece down and picked up my cocktail for a sip.

“Why?” he asked, and I answered without thinking.

“Because you’ve already-” I stopped myself in time and lowered my tone.

“You know why.”

“It’s just an innocent assessment,” he tried to be sly, but I scoffed.

“Innocent my ass. How can it be innocent when you’ve already seen me before?”

He smiled in response to this while I returned my attention to my food.

Afterward, I relaxed against the counter and faced the ocean until my eyelids felt heavy, so I shut them and listened to the breeze. It was a serene moment and it made me want to be as free as possible, so I pulled on the hair tie holding half of my hair up, and let my hair completely down.

The wind flowed through it, and it was amazing, however, I couldn’t enjoy it because I could almost feel his stare on me. When I opened my eyes and looked over, I could see that this was the case. It made me blush but when he still didn’t look away it became clear that he wasn’t just admiring me but was processing some deep thoughts within as he watched me.

I wasn’t surprised and was certain that I could probably give a few accurate guesses of what he was thinking about. I would have given anything at that moment to know exactly what it was, however this was impossible.

Neither was I going to ask, so I returned my attention to the ocean and all the people enjoying their swim until eventually he spoke again.

“Let’s hit the road,” he suddenly said and rose to his feet. “If we stay here any longer it will become darker and more difficult for us to return.”

I nodded in agreement with his words, and although getting up with my full stomach was an ordeal, I managed to with all the help I could get from holding onto my chair. I realized then it was extremely wise that I had chosen to wear baggy shorts and a t-shirt because they were very easily able to hide my food baby.

We took the narrow streets rather than the main road, since this was where all the magic happened, however trudging up the stairs was no joke. The steps were abysmal, but I couldn’t stop staring at the view all around, especially as it was nearing late evening and the sun was slowly starting to set. The colors were breathtaking, but it soon came the time when it held my attention so much that I tripped.

It sent me falling into Lucas who luckily for me was more alert and careful. His hands went around my waist, his grip firm and steady as he ensured to stop me from falling on my face. It worked but I was away from him as soon as I could manage it. He kept his hand on me though, until he was certain that I had found my footing.

“Careful,” he said as I looked up. He had now taken off his glasses so I could see his beautiful gray eyes and the warmth the golden hour brought to them.

“We have about two hundred more steps to go at least,” he said.

I turned to look at what he was referring to and almost laughed in pain.

“It's a hundred and eighty steps to my bed and breakfast,” I said. “I guess I shouldn’t be worried now about adding weight at all. I’m sure to lose it with all these steps I have to climb.”

Smiling, he turned, and we resumed our walk.

“It’s just one day so far,” he said. “You might need to exercise a bit more if you end up going to the other villages and towns.”

I went silent for a moment, but just as we arrived at the top, I had a question for him, so I tugged on his shirt, and he stopped at the soft call.

"Hear me out, okay," I said, tilting my head slightly. "I'm just thinking out loud here."

"Go ahead," he said, and I smiled.

"If I came with you... I mean, I'm already on the Amalfi coast, it would be a shame if I only stayed in Positano, and given that I'm already dependent on you, I could attribute it all to me being extremely stupid and careless. If I accept this, then my brain will let me come with you, but platonically of course."

I finished speaking, and he looked at me as though he needed a while to understand all that I had just said.

“So… can I come with you? Platonically, I mean?" I asked.

He considered this and then shook his head.

"No. This has to be a transaction, and so far, all I'm hearing is the hundred and one ways in which this benefits you."