After moving in with the Walters a couple of weeks ago, tension had been brewing between Cole and me. Now there was a party at the bonfire, and Alex had hit Cole out of nowhere. All I could hear was a girl yelling as I came running over the second I saw Cole fall to the ground.

His lip was bleeding, and he looked furious. I had no idea why Alex hit him. I’d just been having a drink with my new friends, trying to avoid Cole—because living with him was already complicated enough. I didn’t need feelings for him on top of that.

Thankfully, everyone else was surrounding them now, so it didn’t look like much, but Cole’s eyes were on mine the second I got there. His cheek was bruised and slightly cut, his lip still bleeding. He looked good—he always looked good. He needed to get cleaned up; he looked like a mess… and I’d never wanted him more.

Focus.

I looked away from him. Alex was staring at me, too—angry, breathing heavy. The girl I thought was dating Cole was storming off in tears, while the girl I thought was her best friend stood nearby with her arms crossed, looking hurt.

I looked back at Cole. His eyes never left mine.

*Danny was trying to get everyone to the car. People started walking away, but Cole and I stayed locked in eye contact, like no one else existed. My heart was racing from that alone.+

“You need to get cleaned up. That could scar,” I said softly.

He nodded, then asked, “Will you do it for me, New York?”

I tried not to smile. I was worried, so it wasn’t too hard. I nodded anyway. He smiled back, and then we headed to the car.