I spent all of dinner a little uncomfortable and overwhelmed by all the business talk around me.

Not to mention that Holden couldn't stop staring at me the whole meal, which didn't help at all.

I tried to feel flattered by it, but I knew I was lying to myself by the way I found myself leaning against Bryce the whole time. He sensed how tense I was, keeping his arm on the top of my thigh to reassure me that he was there for me.

We ate quickly, then excusing ourselves from the table to drop out dishes in the dishwasher.

Afterwards, we headed straight for the living room, taking a seat down on one of the couches together.

"Are you all right, darling?" Bryce asks from beside me, and I can't think of the right words.

Instead, I crawl into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck as I enjoy his bodily warmth. He gently begins to trace his fingertips up and down against my back, and I let out a small whimper.

"I'm sorry. I just really don't belong in this setting, and we both know that. Please don't bother trying to convince me otherwise; I'm fine with it. It's all just a little strange," I tell

him anxiously.

Sure, my parents have company over for dinner all the time. But the atmosphere of this gathering is just so different that it's completely unsettling me.

Thankfully, Bryce understands where I'm coming from, and so after biting down on his lip for a moment with a worried look in his eyes, he bends down to press a kiss to my cheek.

"So how long have you two been together for?" a female voice pipes in all of a sudden.

When I turn to my left, the really pretty blonde woman who I believe is named 'Caroline' is sitting down on one of the other sofas. Holden sits down beside her, taking a sip from the glass in his hand, and I notice that a few other people are filing into the room.

I make a move to climb out of Bryce's lap, thinking that it's probably not appropriate with all these other people around us, but Bryce spins me around so that my back is pressed against his chest.

His arms are tight around my waist, and I turn my head a little to look at him to find a cocky grin on his face.

"We've been together for a month now, I suppose," Bryce answers, his hand drifting down to my hips and then my thigh.

A shiver rakes through my body, and I force myself to look away from Bryce.

"How interesting. You two seem very content for only being in a relationship for that short of a period of time," Caroline then comments, before who I can only assume is her husband beckons for her to join him back in the kitchen.

She stands up, leaving, Bryce, Holden and I to sit in uncomfortable silence.

"So, Lexi, what sort of things are you into?" Holden asks me out of the blue, and I feel Bryce press his face against my shoulder as if he's trying to stifle a laugh.

It takes me a moment to realize what he finds so hilarious, but then I eventually catch on to the sexual innuendo.

"Bryce!" I hiss quietly, and he chuckles as he presses a gentle kiss to the base of my neck.

Ignoring him, I turn back to Holden.

"I do musical theatre, actually," I answer, and Bryce finally pulls his face away from me, giving my inner thigh a quick squeeze that almost makes me gasp.

This is not happening here. The first time in the cafeteria was bad enough.

"So you sing, I assume? Are you any good?" he attempts to joke, and although I can appreciate the humour, Bryce immediately gets very offended by his comment about me.

I feel him tense behind me, and I try to reach his hand in reassurance.

He lets out an annoyed breath, and I find myself praying that he's not about to freak out and cause a scene.

"What are you implying, Holden? Of course she's good. She's one of the most talented people that I've ever even met. She has the voice of an angel," Bryce says coldly, and Holden tenses in his seat.

Holden is definitely intimidated by Bryce, whether Bryce realizes it or not, but I don't blame him; Bryce is scarily attractive, super intelligent, very confident, and nearly six and a half feet tall.

He doesn't even seem real sometimes, and I still can't believe that I'm lucky enough to call him mine.

"Chill, Bryce. I was only kidding. I'm sure she's excellent. Will you be attending university next year, Lexi?" Holden says smoothly, and Bryce looks as if he's about to lose his mind once again.

"Yeah, I will. I'm not really sure where yet, but I'll figure it out," I respond cautiously, and I feel Bryce running his fingers through my ponytail as if he's trying to distract himself.

"Why are you asking? Is it that hard to believe that she can be successful?" Bryce mutters, and unfortunately, he was still loud enough for Holden to hear.

"I never recall you being this defensive, Bryce. I was just wondering if you like her for things other than her looks," Holden says, now looking straight away from us and out the window.

"Shut the fuck up," Bryce snaps, and Holden gets a smug smile on his face.

It's funny how fast Bryce's language seems to switch. He talks in a very sophisticated manner to all of the other dinner guests that are his dad's age, but he seems to forget all of those mannerisms when he's speaking to Holden.

"Thank you," I say softly, and Bryce shakes his head at me before holding me even tighter to his chest.

"I love you," he reminds me, and I feel a smile tug at the corners of my lips.

"I love you too."

🌸🌸🌸

"Now you understand why I hate that kid so much, right?" Bryce questions, and I nod, before rolling over onto my stomach.

I let my palms rest against Bryce's chest, then dropping my chin down on top of them to stare up at him. I also instinctually bend my legs back at the knee, swinging them back and forth as Bryce watches me, chuckling.

Somehow we ended up on the living room floor. I'm really not sure how, but all the guests have been gone for just over ten minutes now, and since Leo kept refusing our help with dishes, we've been laying here and laughing like idiots the whole time.

"Yes. I see why," I say, and he brushes the strand of hair that's fallen loose from my ponytail back behind my ears.

He then grabs my shoulders, pulling me up so that I'm laying directly on top of him as he props himself up with his elbows.

It makes me sad to know that we may not have these moments again. We might only get to see each other on holidays and school breaks after this summer, and the thought destroys me.

"I hear from Juilliard in three days. What happens if things don't work out?" I think aloud, and Bryce suddenly catches my lips with his, distracting me with a kiss.

I thread my fingers through the hair at the base of his neck as he cups my jaw carefully, tilting my face up to meet his.

"It's going to be okay. We'll work it out," he says, only pulling his lips a fraction of an inch away to get his words across.

I don't answer before I kiss him again, harder, and his hands are suddenly on my hips, encouraging me to move.

I pull farther away to look him in the eye, confused. He presses a finger across my lips, and I feel my eyes go wide at what he wants right now.

He can't get me worked up like this while his dad is in the next room. I really don't want Leo to have a bad opinion about our relationship at all.

Our moment is interrupted when the overhead lights suddenly switch off, a lamp being turned on instead.

I'm acutely aware that Leo is in the room now, confirmed as the television switches on even as I continue to stare at Bryce.

"May I give you two my input of this conversation?" Leo asks us, and we both turn towards him.

He's kicked his feet up on the coffee table as Bryce always does, and he's unbuttoned the top three or four buttons of his shirt since last time I saw him, much like his son does as well.

Bryce was already dressed when he had came to pick me up from my house earlier, and his shirt was unbuttoned far too low. I buttoned another two up, making Bryce stick his tongue out at me and ask if there was anything wrong with him showing off his body, to which I told

him no.

But, to prove my point, I pulled down the front of my dress farther to expose some more cleavage, asking if he'd let me walk around like that.

After that, he answered, "I'd rather the dress totally off your body," then attempting to tug the neckline down even more.

I had to bat his hands away, making him laugh, but all I could do was grin at how cute he is.

"Sure. Go for it," Bryce answers, and Leo lets out a long sigh, leaning back in his seat even more.

"I think that you two have liked each other for far too long to let anything else get in the way of your relationship. I can't speak for you, Lexi, but my son has been infatuated with you for as long as I can remember. Hell, he wouldn't shut up about you even when we lived in Orlando. I have no doubt in my mind that everything will work out for you kids. You both deserve it," Leo says calmly.

When I look directly in front of me, I find that Bryce is blushing.

"Thank you, Leo," I say calmly, taking Bryce's jaw between my hands.

Leo nods to me, but Bryce isn't reacting, instead staring blankly down at the floor beside him. He looks flustered, and for a moment I'm concerned that he's going to say something stupid in the moment.

"I guess I should get you home," Bryce says quietly, suddenly standing up. He lifts me to my feet as he does this, taking my hand before turning towards his dad.

"I'll be back," he says to him, and Leo nods, his eyes still glued to the television.

We walk through the kitchen and down the hallway until we reach the foyer, where Bryce grabs his keys. He slips on a pair of shoes, reaching into the coat closet to retrieve my jacket for me.

I'm about to take it from him before he unfurls and holds the jacket out for me in a way that would allow me to slip my arms through as he holds it.

I do as he suggests, and once my arms are through, he helps me shrug the coat over my shoulders. I give him a gracious smile, but he doesn't seem to be thinking straight as he takes my hand again, guiding me through the doorway and out out of the house.

We walk towards Bryce's truck in complete silence, and when he unlocks the doors with a press of a button, I reach for the handle.

He stops me, grabbing my wrist instead as he pulls me towards him, spinning me around so that my face and his are a few inches apart.

"I'm not a stalker, okay? I hope what my dad said didn't scare you off. I just . . . I just have always really, really liked you. A little too much, if you ask me. I promise that I never said anything bad about you; I just can't help talking about you. I'm sorry. I'm a creep," he says, his head hanging low as he avoids making eye contact with me.

All I can do is grin at him. I still can't believe how darn adorable he is around me.

"I don't think you could ever do or say anything to me that would manage to scare me off," I laugh, nudging Bryce in the arm.

A look of relief washes over his face as he nods to me, beaming. "Thank you. I love you so much," he says, before reaching past me and opening my door for me.

I take a seat inside his truck, closing the door after myself as he sits down in the driver's seat, starting up the engine.

"Apart from Holden being a jerk, which I'm super sorry about, how was your night?" Bryce asks me as he pulls his truck out of the driveway and onto the street.

After he does this, he rests his right hand on my thigh.

"Don't you need that hand to drive?" I ask him, raising an eyebrow at him, and all he does is chuckle.

"I'm pretty ambidextrous. Don't stress about it, baby," he tells me, and I lean to the side, pressing my cheek to his bicep.

I see a small smile on his face as he keeps his eyes on the road, driving down the highway in the direction of my neighbourhood.

We don't talk at all on the drive, listening to the quiet music flooding from the car radio. He keeps his hand on my leg as much as he can, and it keeps me quite content the whole time.

When we pull up outside my house, I'm bitter about leaving Bryce as I always am. I stick out my lower lip, pouting per usual, and Bryce grins at me as he always does, leaning forward to just kiss my bottom lip.

When he pulls away, I give him a small smile, grabbing his face to peck him quickly on the cheek.

"Okay, Blossom. You really got to go inside. I'll text you tonight," Bryce says, reaching to unlock the car.

A clicking noise sounds, and with a final sigh, I unbuckle my seatbelt, pushing open the car door and stepping out onto the curb.

"Bye Bryce," I say, waving to him. "You'll pick me up for school on Monday, right?" I then ask him, to which he nods.

"I'll see you then. Bye," he tells me, blowing me a kiss just as I close the door to the car.

I have an extra pep in my step as I walk up the driveway, knocking on the front door in hopes of someone answering.

The door opens a few moments later, and I find my dad standing there, a small smile on his face.

"Hi, dear. How was your night?" he asks me, and I can't help but to smile as I enter the house, letting him close and lock the door behind me.

"It was good," I answer, trying to keep my calm as I play with the hem of my dress.

I got to spend the night with my boyfriend. What wouldn't be good about that? is what I'm thinking internally, but I obviously can't say any of that out loud yet.

I need to figure out how to tell him and my mom sometime soon. I feel more and more guilty about it everyday.

They're fine with all the girls that my brother sleeps with, or at least they pretend to be, so I should be fine. Yet, at the same time, I'm worried that in their eyes, a relationship is far more distracting than a bunch off hookups.

All of a sudden, my brother comes running down the stairs, two steps at a time.

"Did he get in?" Charlie asks me as he reaches the foyer, and all I do is nod.

He grins. "Good for him. I'm glad. He's been working his ass off, huh?" he then asks me, and I can only nod some more as I'm suddenly beaming all over again.

My mom walks into the room as well, currently braiding her hair down her back. She secures the hairstyle with an elastic as she stands beside my dad, who pulls her close to his side.

"Got in where, Lexi?" she asks me, wrapping her arm around my dad's waist. He gives her shoulder a squeeze as they both stare at me, anticipating an answer.

"Columbia University," I tell them, and their eyes both go wide.

"Wow. Good for him. I'm sure Leo is very proud, and Sierra probably will be too when she finds out," my mom starts, and I'm instantly a little uncomfortable at the mention of Bryce's mother.

I still pity him and his family's situation. I know that him and Leo are happy living alone with just the two of them now, but I also feel sorry for Leo seeing as Bryce'll he in New York by September, leaving Leo totally alone in that big house.

"If you get into Juilliard, you two will be moving to the same city, won't you? That's interesting. I'm sure it would be good for you two to already know someone there before your move," my mom then continues, and my brother nearly chokes on absolutely nothing.

My dad's eyes dart to Charlie, and then to my mom, as if they're all sharing some sort of joke that I'm not aware of.

The three of them smile as they all turn back to me in unison like robots.

Are they hiding something from me?

"Yeah," I finally answer, cautiously. "That would be really great."

They all still smile.