Free Celestra Forever After by Addison Moore Page A

her decide when and where. I don’t know what I’ll do if she chooses a long engagement. At least that way I’ll know she was nowhere near ready. But, God, I hope she is. I’m dying to melt my mouth over her body, love her until the two of us can’t see straight anymore.
    Skyla lets out a guttural moan. She bounces her tongue over my teeth before outlining my lips, licking a line up to my ear.
    “You’re my everything, Gage Oliver. You’re my forever—and don’t you ever forget it.”
    She picks up a stick and traces out a heart over the damp sand. Skyla + Gage she writes inside. I take the gnarled branch from her and write Forever just below that.
    “It’s just like that first unofficial date we had”—she gives a shy smile—“the summer I first moved to Paragon.” She slips into my lap, and I scoop her in close.
    I remember that day. We went for a drive getting to know one another. It was just after Logan devised a plan for Skyla and I to have a fake relationship so they could keep seeing one another without tipping off the Counts.
    “But this is the real deal,” she whispers warm over my lips.
    Skyla knew I needed to hear those words.
    Skyla always knows what I need to hear.
     

     
    I drop Skyla off and make my way home. The lights are all on downstairs, a pretty good sign my parents are still up.
    I park the truck high on the driveway and head in.
    Mom, Dad, and Giselle are all standing in the living room, drowning in tension.
    “What’s going on?” I toss down my keys and drop my backpack to the floor.
    “Giselle, here, thinks Ellis is husband material.” Mom chokes the words out as if she were about to vomit.
    “Ellis?” I blink back. What the hell is Harrison up to now? “Did he ask you to marry him?” I head over to my sister. Her dark hair is pulled high into a ponytail. Her bright denim eyes are watery as if she’s about to have a good cry.
    “No. I was simply telling our parents that it might be a good idea because that way I could get out of the clutches of the Kraggers. Arson still thinks I’m his long-dead daughter, remember?” She snaps at Mom, and I try to hold back a smile. As much as I hate that they’re fighting, it sort of warms my heart that they can. It wasn’t too long ago that Giselle was dead herself. I suppose that’s one thing I can thank Dudley and Candace for.
    “As much as I hate to miss the party, I’m wiped out.” I head for the stairs. “Goodnight.”
    “Gage?” Dad calls as I’m half way up. “Did you happen to notice anything different in the driveway?”
    “Driveway?” I turn around to find him at the base of the stairs. “No, what’s up? Someone syphon gas from your car again?” It happened twice last month to Mom’s sedan, and it pissed the fuck out of me. Swear to God, if I catch the bastard, I’ll be wanted for a felony myself.
    Dad glances back at Mom and Giselle who are still going at it. “His truck is missing.” He gives a brief nod. “I thought perhaps you knew something of it.”
    I jump down the steps until we’re face to face. “You think someone took it?” My heart pounds against my chest like a jackhammer. Shit. I was so hopped up on that heated exchange with Skyla, I didn’t even notice Logan’s truck was gone.
    “No. He and Liam were here while Emma and I were at work. He sent a text earlier this morning. He said they’d see me soon.”
    My heart jumps to my throat.
    Logan is back, and he’s brought Liam with him. A swell of relief fills me and yet an undercurrent of anxiety is right there with it.
    “That’s great.” It comes from me weak. “I’ll text him and see what’s going on.”
    “Everything okay?” Dad drills into me because, for one, he’s always had the uncanny ability to know exactly what I’m thinking.
    “Everything is great. First game is in a week. You going to be there?”
    “You bet.”
    “You’d better.” I climb the stairs without looking back. “Goodnight.”
    Logan is back. I