CARLA

The air in the kitchen was thick enough to choke on. I knew the risk. My mom could burst through that door at any second—she was always forgetting something —but the danger only made the blood rush faster through my veins. It only made me all the more excited.

It was thrilling. It was the most alive I’d felt since the day he moved in.

I closed my eyes for a second, letting the tension peak, and then I leaned in. I pressed my lips against his. They were soft, yet firm, tasting faintly of the coffee he’d probably had earlier.

For a heartbeat, Blake remained perfectly still. He...