“I’m not worried—he kind of reminds me of my mom.”
“Don’t tell him that,” I giggled.
“I thought you didn’t use makeup,” Xavier said, picking up a stick of eyeliner from the counter.
“I bought it to make Molly happy,” I said, rummaging around for the mouthwash. “She’s turned me into her project.”
“Is that so?” Xavier said. “Well, I happen to like you the way you are.”
“Thanks,” I said. “But I think you could do with a touch-up.”
I grinned and waved the eyeliner at him.
“No, you don’t,” said Xavier ducking out of my reach. “No way.”
“Why not?” I sulked.
“Because I’m a man,” Xavier said. “And men don’t wear makeup unless they’re emo or play in a boy band.”
“Please?” I wheedled.
His brilliant blue almond-shaped eyes seemed to sparkle. “Okay . . .”
“Really?” I brightened.
“No! I’m not that much of a pushover.”
“Fine,” I pouted. “I’ll just have to make you smell like a girl. . . .”
Before he could stop me, I grabbed a bottle of perfume and squirted him in the chest. He sniffed his shirt curiously.
“Fruity,” he concluded, “with a hint of musk.”
I collapsed into laughter. “You’re ridiculous.”
“I think you mean irresistible,” Xavier said.
“Yes,” I agreed, “ridiculously irresistible.”
I leaned forward to kiss him, just as there came a knock at the door. Ivy poked her head into the room and Xavier and I sprang apart.
“Your brother sent me to check on you,” she said with a raised eyebrow. “To make sure you aren’t up to no good.”
“Actually,” I began indignantly, “we were just—”
“Heading outside,” Xavier cut in. I opened my mouth to argue, but he shot me a sharp look. “It’s their house, we play by their rules,” he murmured. As he steered me out of the room, I noticed Ivy looking at him with a new respect.
Outside, we sat on the garden swing with our arms around each other. Xavier disentangled himself long enough to roll up his shirtsleeves and then throw Phantom’s frayed tennis ball across the grass. Phantom always retrieved but then refused to relinquish, so the soggy ball had to be pried from between his teeth. Xavier stretched back to throw the ball again and then rinsed his hands under the garden tap. I breathed in his clean, woody scent. All I could think was that we had survived our first test relatively unscathed. Xavier had been true to his word and had not allowed himself to be intimidated. On the contrary, he had held his ground with unswerving conviction. Not only did I admire him more than ever, but I also relished that he was in my house, this time as a legitimate guest rather than an intruder.
“I could stay here all night,” I murmured into his shirt.
“You know what’s so strange?” he said.
“What?”
“How normal this feels.”
He twisted my hair around his fingers and I saw, reflected in his gesture, our lives entwined.
“Ivy was being dramatic when she said there’s no turning back,” I said.
“It’s okay, Beth. I don’t want my life to go back to the way it was before I met you. I thought I had it all, but really I was missing something. I feel like a completely different person now. This might sound corny, but I feel like I’ve been asleep for a long time, and you’ve just woken me up . . .” He paused. “I can’t believe I just said that. What are you doing to me?”
“Turning you into a poet,” I teased.
“Me?” Xavier growled in mock anger. “Poetry’s for girls.”
“You were great back there. I’m so proud of the way you handled yourself.”
“Thank you. Who knows, maybe a few decades from now your brother and sister might actually like me.”
“I wish we had that long.” I sighed and immediately regretted the words. They had just slipped out. I could have kicked myself for being so stupid; what a perfect way to ruin the mood.
Xavier was so silent, I wondered if he’d even heard me. Then I felt his warm fingers under my chin, and he tilted my face up so we were looking eye to eye. He leaned down and kissed me softly, the sweet taste of his lips lingering after he pulled away. He bent forward and murmured in my ear, “We will find a way. That’s a promise.”
“You can’t know that,” I said. “This is different. . . .”
“Beth.” Xavier put a finger against my lips. “I don’t break my promises.”
“But . . .”
“No buts . . . just trust me.”
When Xavier left, no one wanted to go to bed even though it was already past midnight.
Gabriel we knew was an insomniac. It wasn’t unusual for him or Ivy to stay up till the early hours of the morning. But this time all three of us were restless and alert. Ivy suggested a hot drink and was already pulling milk out of the fridge when Gabriel cut in.
“I have a better idea,” he said. “I think we all deserve to unwind.”
Ivy and I guessed his meaning immediately and didn’t even bother trying to hide our excitement.
“Do you mean right now?” Ivy said, the milk carton almost slipping from her grasp.
“Of course, right now. But we have to hurry; it’ll be light in a few hours.”
Ivy let out a squeal. “Just give us a moment to change! We’ll be right back.”