SAVANNAHOn the South Service Road to Long Island, I fought my sleepiness by listening to the playlist on my phone that I connected to Rafe’s car stereo. But the music alone wasn’t enough. I needed something to keep my head busy.“Tell me more about you. If you like us to appear madly in love in front of your family, don’t you think I should know a bit about you before meeting them?” Honestly, that was just an excuse. We were past the introduction phase of our lives, and he knew most about my life. Rafe, for me, was still a force of mystery. Darkness, I was waiting to come into the light. “We have an hour’s drive. It’s plenty of time to get to know each other more.”“I already know plenty about you.”“No, you don’t. I’ll go first so you don’t think I’m unfair. You still don’t know I’m allergic to peanuts.”He glanced at me. “Wow. That’s a hindrance to your dining experiences. I like peanuts.”“Yes. I get itchy in my mouth, neck, and arms. Once, my lips also got so swollen that Michael

SAVANNAHWhen Rafe brought me to another room without much light illuminating the spacious, quiet space that I couldn’t see much, he cupped my face and pressed his forehead to mine. Electric tingles spread from my stomach throughout the rest of my body. We were sharing this room… The anticipation made me squirm.Rafe’s breathing was hard and heavy. I could tell he was still agitated by his argument with his father. My gut feeling turned right when he whispered, “I didn’t want you to see that.”I touched his hand. “I don’t know what’s going on, but what you did there was brave.”“What I did was wrong. I never defied him. Not directly, at least.”“You respect him. But we’re all humans, Rafe.” I searched for his eyes in the shade of blue light coming from the open balcony. “At some point in our lives, we commit mistakes. It’s acceptable. The beauty of it is what you learn from it. But of course, you already know that. You’re not the same man you were before. I’m sorry I didn’t get to say

SAVANNAH“I’d known Gill since seventh grade. She left letters in my locker, watched me play tennis every practice and official game with her friends, and cheered for me,” Rafe began as he gently stroked my collarbones with the vanilla water. It was as if he knew my favorite scent. But it was more surprising that he played in middle school.“You played tennis?” I suddenly pictured a young Rafael Sebastian holding a racket in a cute tennis uniform. It was a sight I wanted to see. I smiled.“Yes. My father didn’t care if I had extra activities as long as I always won.”“Did you?”“I did.”“Wow. You must be pretty good in class too.”“Never got a B,” he bragged. I felt his smile.I laughed. “My hot nerd boyfriend. And then? Was Gill in your class too?”“Always sat in the back. It was impossible not to notice her as she scribbled about me in her letters.”“I’m more astounded that you actually read them.”“Not all of them. I threw some when I was annoyed.”“And you didn’t speak to her abou

SAVANNAHI woke by the sound of my alarm at six, aware that Rafe’s arm was wrapped around my waist. I was instantly flooded with thoughts that I would meet his family this morning. I wondered about the questions they’d ask me.Still, it was a good day. I felt good for some reason I couldn’t explain. Whatever the status of my relationship with Rafe, it didn’t change the fact that I love him, so I would be by his side, whether he couldn’t return my feelings or he wasn’t ready to admit it. I’d decided to walk this path instead of overthinking.It really was a good day.Determined, I turned to face him to greet him good morning, but he beat me to it.“Good morning, Savannah.” His eyes twinkled, pausing over my almost bare breasts.I smiled. “Good morning.”“Did you sleep well?”I nodded. The truth was, I was short by two hours, as I usually get six to seven hours of sleep, but I felt fine. My body adapted to the schedule.“Good.” He kissed my forehead. “If only they weren’t expecting us;

RAFAELI brought Savannah upstairs, and we strolled from the left wing to the right. While we were on it, I showed her where each hallway and door led.My parents’ bedroom was on the right wing by the end of the passage, the biggest room on the floor. Across from them were Anya and Julian’s bedroom, while in the middle was Carter’s. On the opposite, in the left wing were mine and Adam’s. I had a second spacious bedroom on the floor because I was the first son.The middle had a common room, which my father used as his study. It had an office, a library, and a piano. In that room, Anya was choosing her dress with Mika, my mother’s personal stylist.When we came in, Anya was fitting in a charcoal knee-length maternity dress with a sparkling front gliding over her pregnancy curves. Behind her were racks of clothes, dresses, and suits, picked specifically for tonight’s party.“This is really lovely and comfortable,” she said, pinching the fabric of her dress in front of the body-sized mirr