[Complete]
Chloe's world is shattered when her parents' long-standing marriage comes to an abrupt end. Determined to shield herself from the pain of love, she vows to never allow her heart to be entangled, even if it means severing ties with Henry...
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For the last week or so, Henry and I have been... well, we've been having drinks on our balconies together. He on his balcony at his house, and I on mine. There's only about an 8-foot gap between the two, and if we both sit on the corners, we aren't really that far apart. Obviously, it's not planned, so technically, we aren't really hanging out, so it doesn't count.
The same goes for us going to the beach together most days. It doesn't count because I can't change where I sit. And definitely, that dinner we had the other night doesn't count either. It didn't make sense for us to sit separately at different tables in the same restaurant, right?
Shit.
I gaze out at the vast expanse of the ocean from my balcony, my mind swirling with the realization that I've strayed from the path I had set for myself. As I'm lost in my thoughts, the door to Henry's balcony opens, revealing him with a beer in one hand and a bag in the other. His damp dirty blonde hair takes on a brown hue from a recent shower. Shirtless, his sculpted abs are on full display. He wears grey sweat shorts that hang perfectly on his hips, and I almost have to look away because he looks too good. Our eyes meet, and a smile forms on his lips as he takes the seat nearest to me on his balcony.
"Hey," he greets me, and I can't help but feel a rush of warmth all over my body.
"Hi," I reply, my smile betraying my attempt to keep my emotions in check. I quickly avert my gaze, very aware of the conflicting desires within me.
Oh god, what am I doing?
"I brought you something," he says, causing my head to snap back towards him.
"You brought me something?" I ask, genuinely surprised.
Henry places his beer bottle down and reaches for the bag beside him, gently resting it on his lap.
"I stumbled across it at the market down the street. I know it's your favorite," he says, rising from his seat and revealing a bottle of my beloved Prosecco that I haven't been able to find since being here. "I grabbed a few for you since they only had a couple left," he adds.
I'm taken back, lost for words. "Wow, um, Henry. That's incredibly thoughtful of you," I manage to say.
"It was nothing," he says.
"Here, catch," he exclaims after a moment, his arm poised to throw the bottle underhand over to me, catching me completely off guard.
He tosses the bottle of wine across the balcony gap, and I swiftly catch it in my hands. Relief washes over me as I realize I managed to hold onto it without dropping or hurting myself.
"God, Lewis, what if I hadn't caught it?" I exclaim laughing, a mix of relief and amusement coursing through me.
"Oh, sweetheart, there's no way you would have let your favorite bottle of Prosecco fall to the floor. You would have dived right down with it to save that precious thing," he remarks, chuckling. A playful smile dances across his lips, making me want to melt into a puddle.
