On the walk back to Liam's car after dinner, he hesitates before unlocking the doors. He looks to me and I immediately notice a twinkle in his eye.

"Uh oh," I joke and a grin spreads across his face.

"There's one more thing I wanna do before I take you home." I hear the doors unlock and he winks to me before disappearing into the car. My stomach somersaults and I'm eager to see what he has up his sleeve. I drop into the car and a few moments later, I recognize one of the small dirt roads Liam turns down off the main street. The trail leads us parallel to a small river that runs through the outskirts of town. I used to come here to tube down the river during the summers but I haven't been back in a few years.

The car bumbles over the dirt and gravel road and I watch Liam pull into the state park entrance. I glance at him and still wonder what he's up to.

"You are taking me to a woodsy area right before the sun is about to set. Should I be worried?" I ask him and while glancing around the parking area he replies, "Oh you saw my rope and shovel in the trunk did ya?" I flick my eyes over to him with my jaw slightly open and he stifles a light laugh. I swing my door open and regret my choice of sandals as we walk over the dusty dirt road. I grab Liam's arm to balance myself as I shake my foot to free my shoes from some pebbles as soon as we hit the grassy area. I meet his blue eyes when I'm done and immediately drop my hand from his arm, knowing I need to keep some boundaries.

That becomes harder when I'm walking next to him down to the dock and notice the impulse to grab his swinging hand. I have to refrain from reaching for it, we are here as friends and nothing more. I let him lead me over to the rentals shack and I notice a few people paddle boating in the calm sparkling lake water. I get the urge to grab my phone and post the view to Instagram, but I remember I am here with Liam and probably shouldn't broadcast it. The sun sits at the top of the canopy of large trees that surrounds the water, so we are shielded by shade and protected from the heat. I look to Liam as he approaches the cashier and he pays for a light blue paddle boat.

"Do you need a life vest?" The cashier asks and Liam immediately grins, "Oh yes, I need one please." I look to Liam surprised and ask, "You can't swim?" He shakes his head and reaches for the hot orange vest the cashier hands him.

"No, this is for you." He starts walking ahead of me but I grab his arm to stop him.

"I'm not wearing that." His million-dollar smile inches across his face and his eyes meet mine.

"Oh yes you are. That way if you get all lippy with me again, I can sleep soundly knowing you made it safely back to the dock." A laugh escapes me.

"You wouldn't push me out of the boat!"

"Get sassy like you did yesterday and find out." He turns away from me and I can't help but laugh knowing he is joking with me- I hope. I don't think he understands that I don't like being put in my place and he is constantly leaving me frazzled.

I jog to catch up to him and when I am beside him again, he says, "I thought we could watch the sunset from the lake." I bite my lip to keep from grinning like an idiot and nod along to his idea.

The light blue paddle boat floats at the end of the dock and it's held to a metal post with a thick white rope. I check the seats and am thankful they aren't wet from the lake water. Liam extends his arms holding the vest out to me and I stubbornly shake my head refusing to put it on.

"Safety first, Ms. Adler," Liam jokes and I cross my arms in defiance in front of me while shaking my head.

"You aren't wearing one so why should I?" I ask and Liam's wicked ornery grin is back.

"I'm a state champion swimmer. And you aren't strong enough to push me out of a boat. So whatever may happen, I am confident in my abilities to swim to shore."

"You're a bullshitter is what you are," I joke to Liam and we are both smiling at each other. He walks toward me and I push my arms through the stupid vest. I can tell I'm not getting on the boat unless I'm wearing the damn thing, so I watch him buckle me into it. Now I am glad he doesn't have Instagram as I do not need this posted anywhere for people to see.

I turn to the boat and Liam holds my hand as I step inside, feeling like a puffy Cheeto with this stupid thing strapped around me. I quickly drop into the plastic bucket seat then watch as Liam gracefully climbs in next to me. We both adjust our feet to the pedals before he unleashes us from the dock and pushes us forward. We both can't help but laugh as it takes us a few moments to get in sync with each other, but once we get the hang of it, it is easy to paddle around the small lake. The light breeze that comes off the water is refreshing and I look back up to the treeline to see the sun has moved further into the trees. There are four other paddleboats out here and they are all filled with couples. I glance at Liam and this does feel a bit romantic for two friends to be enjoying together.

"You know, I've lived here my whole life and have never rented one of these." I tell Liam as we move our feet in circles and he glances to me and says, "You've never had anyone cool enough to rent one with, so that's understandable." I shake my head at him as I laugh and playfully splash some water over to him. A sliver of his playful side pokes through and he grins while splashing me back. I gasp as I feel the cold water on me and he points to my vest.

"See, aren't you glad I made you wear one of those now." I look down at the ugly neon contraption and frown as I look back to Liam.

"I think you just like embarrassing me. Just push all my buttons to see which one will set me off."

"Maybe. Or maybe I am just trying to chisel away at the hard shell you protect yourself with. You know, get to the gooey center I know is there." I look to Liam and his eyes are now to the dark water. I study the side of his face and feel a pang in my chest. I want to push all unwanted feelings aside and accept him as just a friend, but I don't know if it's possible. I suddenly feel very selfish with him, I don't want to share him with anyone.

I look back to the water and then my gaze slowly moves up to the sky. We both watch as the sun gets swallowed by the shadows of the tall trees, while the pink sky quickly turns navy. It's a calm feeling, being out on the lake with Liam with a light blanket of summer heat around us. The impulse to grab his idle hand creeps inside me again but I leave it resting on the plastic seat handle. We sit in silence, just enjoying the scenery and I wonder if it's silent for him too. I wonder if he is staying out of my head, but I don't think he'd tell me if he wasn't.

"Ready to paddle back in?" Liam asks as the cashier flashes a light out to the boaters on the water. I nod even though I could have stayed out there longer and we move the boat back towards the dock.

◆◆◆

When we pull back up to my house, I realize I am not ready to say goodbye to him. He quickly opens my car door and walks me to the porch with our hands swinging inches away from each other. It's still warm outside and I can hear crickets chirping in the distance, but neither of us says anything.

We are standing in front of my door when he suddenly pulls me in for a hug. Again, I find myself enjoying the cologne he's wearing and the way his chest feels against my cheek. I slowly pull away when he brushes a gentle kiss on my cheek. I surprise myself when I turn my head so our lips meet. He doesn't pull away but instead, he grabs my face with his hands. The butterflies swirl and his plush lips stay planted against mine. I grab his hips and pull him closer to me and his grip on my face tightens. He runs his hands through my hair as I place my hands against his chest. He slowly pulls away and our foreheads touch. I bite my lip to keep my wide smile in check. I grab his hands and pull them back down so they sit by our waists.

"Did you see that in one of your visions?" I ask and he shakes his head slowly.

"No, that caught me by surprise. Not that I didn't have the impulse to do that when we were watching the sunset though," he replies with his bright smile touching his eyes. He gives me one last small kiss before making his way back to his car. He's just about to slide in when he says, "Oh yeah Ellie, just to let you know, I didn't feel your tiny dents from where you chew on your lip. I know you had wondered." He winks at me and I can't help but laugh as I run my fingers over my lower lip. I can't believe he's been in my head for that long and has heard me obsess over his perfect facial features and the insecurities about mine. I wonder if he always has a smirk playing on his lips because he's refraining from laughing at my thoughts.  I wave to him as I push my front door open and I watch him roll down my driveway. I float all the way to my room and onto my bed. I lay there memorizing our moment outside and never once, does Derek cross my mind.