Extraits

“It is not, there’s a shelf here. Stand up.”

I try to put my feet down, and my head goes under again. Percy pulls me back up to the surface, laughing harder. “Fine, you’re too short.”

“No, it’s hot, and I want to swim, and I like seeing you squirm.” He wiggles his fingers. “It’s adorable.”

And then he smiles. That full, bright smile that crinkles his nose just a bit. And what the hell am I supposed to do with that?

I take his hand.

It is . . . a lot. More than I expected it to be. Felicity had told me she would get some flowers and lay them out clandestinely after Percy and I went down to the beach. But this is quite a bit more than we discussed. Or perhaps she had discussed it and I hadn’t been listening. My stomach drops.

“Do you mean to tell me that you have not actually fornicated yet?”

“Dear God, Felicity.” I didn’t realize how much space was between us until I lunge across the beach in an attempt to clap a hand over her mouth and miss entirely.