“And your father?”
He grimaces. “The same. A flash here and there.” He chuckles. “He had red hair.”
“No way.”
“Yeah, his father was Scottish, that’s where my namesake comes from, and his mother was French, so he was a half Scottish, half French mutt, raised in France.”
“You must not look a thing like him.”
“I don’t.”
“How did they meet?”
He takes another tug on the joint and exhales before passing it to me. “Different story for a different day.”
I don’t press my luck and inhale deep. “Do you have pictures of them?”
“A few, but they died before the digital revolution.” He pulls a piece of loose weed from his tongue. “Tatie has some photos locked away in her attic somewhere, but we weren’t much for family photos anyway.”
“Why is that? Because of The Ravenhood?”
He grins over at me, his brow lifting, an incredulous laugh in his question. “The Ravenhood?”
I shrug. “I mean, essentially that’s what you are. Don’t tell me you’ve never thought of it that way. Tyler is nicknamed the Friar.”
“It’s a lot less storybook to me.”
“Because you’re living it.”
“Get dressed. Let’s finish smoking this up top.”
“Up top? Something wrong with your current view?” I glance down and back.
“Yeah,” his eyes slide down my body with clear intent. “I’m out of condoms.”
“Isn’t going topless zee French way?”
His returning look is laced with a hint of possession and has me smiling as I pull on my dress.
Blissed out, I rest in the crook of Dominic’s arm atop his hood as we gaze up at the night sky. I sink into the feel of him, his crisp, sea scent filling my nose. I’m fully lit inside and out with the buzz of the joint we smoked and the feel of his lips, his skin.
Smiling, I turn to him just as he glances down at me, his eyes filled with mirth.
“What?”
“Who the hell are you, and what have you done with my motherfucker?”
He grazes his hand over my nipple before tweaking it painfully. I screech and then burst into laughter.
“There you are.” I settle back in and we bask in the breeze. I swear if there’s a heaven, it’s here with him. “Dom?”
“Yeah?”
“What do you want, you know, for the future?”
He’s silent for long seconds, and I assume he won’t answer.
“It’s not a stupid question.”
Another beat of silence.
“Nothing.”
I sigh. “I guess it’s a good thing you won’t be disappointed.”
His chest bounces. “Am I supposed to ask you what you want now?”
“Not if you don’t care.”
“I’m not future centered. Plans don’t make the man.”
“I know. I know. Live in the now, take each day as it comes. I get it, but isn’t there something you want?”
“No, but it’s obvious there’s something you do.”
More. More of him. More of Sean. More of this endless summer. But I keep my hopes to myself. Because I’m sure this can’t go on forever. That fear is starting to eat at me more and more. And aside from their ambitions, I do have my own and know one day I’ll demand more for myself. One day, maybe, I’ll choose a life or a path that neither will be able to go on with me. The thought of losing either of them, of that sort of progression is crippling. I’ve never been this happy. Not ever. My only saving grace is I’m not leaving Triple Falls anytime soon.
“What?” He gently nudges me from where he rests.
“I don’t like putting a voice to my fears. Because then, I can only expect them to come true.”
“That’s bleak.”
“It’s better than not wanting anything in the future.”
“I already know what happens,” he whispers with surety.
“What do you mean? You can predict the future?”
“I can predict mine because I make shit happen.”
“What is it?”
“Whatever I decide.”
I lift from him, and he lets me. “Just for once, can you give me a straight answer?”
“What’s the question?”
I switch gears. “Do you ever get jealous?”
He keeps my eyes, his voice even. “No.”
“Why?”
“Because he can give you the things I can’t.”