Tide Changer

Seven

"A favor?"

"A big one."

My insides buzzed with a mix of excitement and curiosity. Rys stretched out his long legs and pinned his folded arms over his chest. "So, I have a friend."

"Just the one?"

Amusement tinted his eyes. He rubbed his chin, smiling with one side of his mouth. "One of them. We don't see each other often because he travels as much as I do, if not more. Anyway, Asher and his girlfriend Kaia are coming to spend a week in Marfolk. I invited them to dinner, but I don't feel like being a third wheel. Would you join us tomorrow?"

"At your place?"

"Yeah. Ash likes his privacy, so we'll cook or order something if we're lazy."

It'd be our second time dining together, but this time, nobody needed to apologize. We'd hang out with another couple and tell them we were...friends?

Rys shifted forward in his chair. "Come on, say yes."

His unusual insistence brought a smile to my lips. "Okay. But what are you going to tell them? They'll think we're..."

"They'll think nothing," he said. "And we don't need to explain a thing."

Not needing to give excuses was freeing. "Fine."

"Thank you." Rys lifted himself out of his seat and rounded the table, stopping by my side. He leaned down. The woodsy notes of his cologne invaded my personal space, but I didn't mind. I wanted to breathe him in. He placed his warm palms on my shoulders and brushed his lips across my cheek. "Good night, Lyra."

Then he left. And my heartbeat took a while to return to normal.

***

The following morning, Rys left another brown bag with a muffin and a post-it note on my porch. The message informed me he'd be waiting for me at his place at seven. I spent my free day sunbathing, getting acquainted with the town, and sampling lemon sorbet from an ice cream truck.

After an afternoon power nap, I chose an outfit for tonight — a backless, red sundress. The plunging neckline almost made me doubt my choice, but the color looked good on me, and I never got a chance to wear it back home.

When I rang Rys's doorbell later, I was calmer than the day before. The new familiarity between us eased my nerves, even though I replayed the barely-there kiss on the cheek he gave me so many times one would think I was an inexperienced virgin.

Rys opened the door and wordlessly stared at me.

"Is it too much?" I asked, looking down at my chest. Maybe the dress was too revealing. "I had no idea what to wear."

The lines of his neck moved as he swallowed. "No. It's perfect. Come with me."

I crossed the familiar foyer, and Rys led me to what must've been a dining room, where a rectangular, already set glass table stood by the window facing the patio.

"Are we going to eat here?"

"I thought it was better than the kitchen, and it's too hot outside. We'll have some cold drinks on the patio after. Ash said he'll help me cook, and he's also bringing something."

"Speaking of, I brought some wine." I patted my raffia bag.

"You didn't have to, but thanks. We can leave it in the kitchen."

I handed him the bottle of Merlot. As Rys turned to leave, an engine roared outside.

Nerves tied my stomach in knots, but a smile sprang onto his lips. He left the wine on the dining table and grabbed my hand, steering me toward the foyer.