บททั้งหมดของ My Arch Nemesis in my Bed: บทที่ 51 - บทที่ 60

We switched , Riley dropped Naomi off and Luca drove us home in his car.“Pull over,” I said to him when we were still three blocks from home.“What?”“I said pull over now.”He turned into the empty parking lot behind the grocery store.“Lily, what are you—”I was already reaching for him, fingers tangling in his hair as I pulled his mouth to mine. He made a sound of surprise that was quickly swallowed back into his throat.“I can’t wait anymore and we might not be able to when we get inside” I whispered against his lips. His hands found my waist, pulling me awkwardly across the center console. “The windows aren’t fully tinted”“I don’t care who sees.”“Come here,” he said, voice rough.I didn’t need to be asked twice. I fumbled with my seatbelt, dress bunching around my thighs as I climbed over the center console. He pushed his seat back, making room for me, and then I was in his lap and his mouth was on mine.This kiss was different from the desperate one in the supply closet.His

I spent the morning tearing through my dresser like a tornado hit it, which was stupid because I owned maybe five dresses total and none of them screamed “perfect first date.” Everything looked too formal or too casual or too much like something I’d wear to church with my grandmother if I had a grandmother who went to church.By the time I gave up and threw on jeans and a tank top to meet Naomi, my room looked like a clothing bomb had gone off.The mall was already crowded even though it was barely noon, which reminded me why I usually avoided this place on weekends. Naomi was waiting by the fountain, scrolling through her phone and looking annoyingly put-together in a pretty sundress.“Finally,” she said when she saw me. “I was starting to think you’d chickened out.”“Sorry, I couldn’t find my wallet.”We hit the department store first for her cousin’s wedding gift, which involved way too much debate over whether crystal stemware or a coffee maker was more appropriate. I kept zoning

Twenty minutes later, we were parked outside a chain-link fence surrounding what looked like an abandoned fairground. Rusty rides poked up through overgrown weeds, and a faded sign hung crookedly from the entrance gate.“Sunset Shores Amusement Park,” I read aloud. “Permanently closed due to… I can’t read the rest.”“Bankruptcy,” Luca supplied. “Happened three years ago. But I know how to get in.”“You want to break into an abandoned amusement park?”“Do you trust me?”I looked at him, sitting there in his fancy first-date clothes with that slightly nervous expression he got when he wasn’t sure if I’d think his ideas were stupid or amazing.“Yeah,” I said. “I trust you.”Getting over the fence was easier than I expected, mostly because Luca boosted me up and then basically flew over it himself with the kind of athletic grace that still caught me off guard sometimes. My dress caught on the chain link, but it didn’t tear, which I decided to take as a good sign.The place was eerily beau

The community pool opened at nine AM, which meant I had to be there by eight-thirty to set up chairs and test the chlorine levels and pretend I knew what I was doing as a lifeguard. The training had been thorough enough, but there’s something different about being responsible for actual people’s lives versus practicing CPR on a plastic dummy named Annie.I was adjusting the umbrella angles when I spotted Luca across the street at the community center, setting up orange cones on the basketball court. Right, I’d forgotten he did summer sports coaching for kids. He’d been doing it for two years now, teaching everything from volleyball basics to soccer drills to whatever sport the parents were willing to pay for. Good money too, apparently, though not enough to explain last night’s restaurant choice.Of course we’d end up working in the same three-block radius. Of course.He looked up, saw me watching, then very deliberately turned his attention back to his cones like I didn’t exist. Fin

But it wasn’t Luca’s pick up. It was my dad’s sedan, and both my parents were getting out, looking tired.“Lily?” Mom called out, sounding surprised. “What are you doing sitting on the steps?”“Oh,” I said, trying to hide my disappointment. “Hi. You’re back early.”“We finished up sooner than expected,” Dad said, pulling suitcases out of the trunk. “The lawyers were more efficient than we thought they’d be.”“That’s great.” I stood up, brushing off my shorts. “How did everything go?”“Better than expected,” Mom said, studying my face with that concerned parent look. “Your great-aunt left me some jewelry and a small inheritance.”“That’s really nice.”“Where’s Luca?” Dad asked, looking around like he expected him to materialize. “I thought you two would be together.”I shrugged, trying to look casual. “He had plans.”“What kind of plans?”“I don’t know. Guy stuff.”Mom raised an eyebrow. “Guy stuff?”“You know. A game or whatever.”They exchanged one of those parent looks that meant th