A new chapter and a new dedication today 😁 This one is dedicated to @abvgddjzijkl23 for her constant support on all my stories! So thank you 🥰😘✨ Love you!

'And I wanna drive down to Texas, flip off my exes

Get kind of reckless and have wild, wild, wild sex under the moon

But only if it's with you'

"Today's gonna be a good day."

Would it?

Stirring from the most serene sleep in a long time at the sound of this gravelly voice and the faraway birdsong, I knew that whatever this day would bring, I was ready to face it – or maybe just to stay here forever, under those featherlike kisses in the crook of my neck.

"How 'bout some pancakes to start?"

My eyes snapped open on those words, and not even the flashing dots of black could stop me.

"Yes! Where?" I sat up, feeling around for my surroundings.

There was a lot of naked flesh, but no hint of pancake, as the only smells filling my lungs were pollen, wood, and that intoxicating perfume that had become ours. Before my eyes even adjusted to the morning lighting, I was reminded of where we were, what we had done, and how there was no pancake.

Though it didn't stop me from running my gaze around as soon as I could make out the various shapes around, especially some protruding shapes...

"You'll see after-sex pancakes are the best."

My eyes landed on Blade's impish smile. How could it already hold so many bad intentions so early? Well, my own mind was taking a devious trail, and the tingles awakening weren't only in my stomach as my gaze wandered lower.

The dancing shadows of the leaves above adding to the inks on his satiny skin were mesmerizing and fitted him perfectly. It was as if he'd been made to lay under the trees, in this cargo bed, naked, next to me.

We'd moved from the open field to the back of Pete's old truck in the middle of the night to sleep, or more exactly, he'd carried my half-dozed self, and none of us had cared about putting clothes on, as we were alone, and we had the covers I'd brought. Besides, his skin was incredibly warm; I realized it as a shiver ran along my flushed skin. Though I suspected it wasn't because of the Summer breeze; it was his ardent gaze taking in my bare body like I did with his that drew goosebumps on its way.

Funny how easily I was getting used to watching his naked figure, but I was still shy with my body, even after the way he'd worshipped it last night.

Although more heat was rushing in my veins with the memories, I still reached for the white piece of clothing next to me to cover myself – I didn't try for the blankets that were too tangled in between his legs.

"The penguin suit looks hotter on you," he rasped as I slid my arms in the large sleeves, and his gaze continued to roam as shamelessly over every inch of exposed and covered skin, soon, his hands joining.

"Thank you." I giggled, my skin a little too ticklish under his devilish fingers, though I hadn't forgotten the most important as I strode over him to reach for my large bag. "Now, tell me where are these pancakes?"

I didn't risk a sideways glance as his fingers climbing up my inner thigh before skipping down the other were echoing the word until my insides. 'After-sex pancakes', I wasn't sure what was growling at the thought, but I focused on the mess in my bag, being careful as I pulled out the various items.

"Ah, I always knew you would kill for pancakes."

I jumped at his voice over my shoulder as he'd sat up, having a death wish every time I had a gun in my hand, apparently.

"Don't be idiot!" I rolled my eyes, offering him a grin. "I need you to drive me to these pancakes before."

I put the gun away as he laughed in the crook of my neck, still being too reckless and making all my nerves jittery.

"I was just searching for my change of clothes."

This made him pull away more than the gun.

"You brought a change of clothes? You didn't have to. You can wear mine. They look better on you."

He really had decided to make me melt before breakfast. I was already cooked when he kissed my shoulder, where the loose fabric of his shirt was sliding off, and it wasn't useful to mention my heart.

"I'm not sure it would be a good idea if I came home from 'Rachel's pajama party' in your shirt and without underwear, just when my never-ending grounding got lifted," I pointed out, trying to get out of his warm grip and put my skirt on. "Believe me, I wish I could! They're comfier." As if to prove my point, the bulky fabric of my skirt was already making me sweat as I tried to put it on. 

"But I would gladly keep your shirt to sleep, so it reminds me of you..." I didn't know what boldness had got into me to say those words but also to take off his shirt and change in front of his hungry eyes. Yet the lift of his eyebrow only spurred me.

"Okay, and what do I get in exchange?" His bad intention was clear enough in his blue gaze; however, I ignored it as my hand was sneakily sliding behind me.

"Um, my shawl, my pearl necklace?"

"Deal, I take everything and your panties." He leaned forward, his sly grin taunting my lips as he easily reached behind my back and took the underwear in my hand.

"Are you collecting them?" I narrowed my eyes, not retreating, even though I was losing, especially my breath when he added,

"It's that or I take you."

Was it a threat, a challenge, or a promise? It had the same effect as the three in my insides, and my lips were left hanging as he leaned away.

"Let's get these after-sex pancakes!"

The cheek he had! In every sense of the word as I watched him put his briefs on, and as soon as I was fully dressed, I climbed down the car to avoid his cheeky grin.

"I hope they're better than at the Wel's diner!" I glanced around, trying to distract myself from that chiseled chest he was taking too long to cover, and there was actually a lot to see with the rays of morning sunlight turning golden through the leaves and shadows of the trees.

Yet I was quick to come back to that shine in his eyes, and the second I met them, we both burst out laughing at the memory.

It had been the worst pancakes ever, but it was one of my best memories, and the hearty laughter was probably strange for anyone that could have heard us – even though we surely had already traumatized the whole wildlife around – but it was a precious treasure, shared only between him and me, and like for his morning kisses, I wanted more.

"Speaking of that..." The sparkle in his eyes drowned in intensity as his face turned serious with a sharp contrast, so fast that I wasn't sure I'd heard right over my giggles.

"What?"

He abandoned the buttons of his fly to hop down the truck, and even without the perch, he still looked as imposing and tall, especially with his pants half-open, his white tank top, his disheveled black strands, and my pearl necklace. It was an improbable sight, but the piece of jewelry fitted him better than me, the mother-of-pearl contrasting and highlighting the black of his tattoos, yet not taking anything away from his dark aura.

"Are you free tonight?" The simple question made all my insides leap in excitement – unless it was his fingers playing with my waistband and trying to undo it instead of closing his own pants.

"Yes, why?" I had no hesitation, even if I would still have to find a lie for my parents.

"Wanna take you somewhere." His dimple was already back in an enigmatic smile to tickle my curiosity, yet when I opened my mouth, he added, "It's a surprise."

My lips fell back into a pout, although my puppy eyes had never worked with him. So I could only let my thoughts wander to all the places he could take me, secret or not. He was always unpredictable, but today, he took my breath in a different way.

"It sounds a lot like a plan..." I stepped even closer, my hands absent-mindedly going to his pants to button them up, or maybe just to imitate the fiddling of his own fingers on my stomach.

I wondered if it aroused the same swirls of sparks in his nerves, especially when I continued, "I thought Blade Sayer didn't plan?"

"For you, I do... a lot of plans." In spite of his wicked smile, there was something incredibly transparent in his eyes, at least until he leaned over my ear. "Like all the ways I want to fuck you."

My heart that had taken off in a frenzy ended up echoing lower with the suggestive drop of his voice, and as the sinful curiosity and hunger fluttered in my stomach, I almost forgot the pancakes, the after-sex pancakes.

I understood what made them so special.

The diner Blade had chosen on the road between Carrion and Subrose was indeed better than the Mel's one. Yet the real addicting savor came with the aftertaste of Blade's kisses and the faint bliss still remaining in my veins; it was in the way it had sated one craving, but only tickled the other as we'd shared the fluffy pancakes dripping with syrup and cherry jam.

After-sex pancakes were becoming my favorite.

I giggled at this realization as I rushed through the church backstreet, the sugary still on my lips thanks to Blade's last kiss.

I would have a lot to confess today, yet weren't confessions meant for regrets?

"You're late."

I didn't get to worry about this answer as my thoughts were stopped, along with my heart and all my movements at the corner of the street.

"You scared me!" I gasped as I watched the silhouette coming out from behind a side pillar of the church, and I met the two familiar eyes behind the black frames.

"We were supposed to meet here. Who did you think it would be?" Rachel laughed lightly, surely at my wide eyes or at the fact that the roles were reversed, and for once, she wasn't the one jumpy.

"Um, I don't know." I shrugged, yet the hand still over my heart was hearing another story.

"Catch your breath before we walk there, so we don't look like we just arrived." She grabbed my hand as if sensing the surge to run spreading with the uneven beats of my heart, and the way she had got carried away so seriously in my evil genius plan was half-reassuring, half-worrying.

Was I such a bad influence?

"I peeped discreetly, and both our families are already here, but they haven't crossed paths luckily. Let's hope it stays that way."

"Yes, sorry for being late." I winced as the first ringing of the church bells echoed from above our heads, and I barely heard my friend's voice, though the knowing twinkle in her eyes was obvious enough.

"I imagine you forgot everything again?"

"Yes, it was a beautiful and unforgettable night." I bit down on my sly smile as we stepped into the front street, the contrast of the bright sun with the shadowed back alley reminding us that we were exposed to everyone's eyes too.

We couldn't afford to gush, nor grin too obviously.

"You'll have to tell me everything once we get time," she whispered, nodding to the large doors, where her parents were heading, where mine were standing.

I recognized instantly the perfectly flicked up ginger bob that made my hands subconsciously fly to the bun I'd made with my wild bedhead curls, and even if both my mom's and my dad's back were to me, I could picture their narrowed eyes looking for me.

As Rachel was already rushing to divert her parents and avoid the disaster coming, I resigned myself to walk to mine with one last deep breath and a check of my appearance.

It wasn't written all over me what I'd done; I told myself. Though I still re-adjusted the sleeves on my shoulders and re-tucked my white blouse in my red and white polka-dotted skirt when I caught sight of the pastor shaking hands with my dad.

It was a good thing if they were getting distracted, talking to other people; I tried to convince myself too.

Yet I was proven wrong when I reached the last step by the door.

"She stayed at Rachel's last night for an after-prom pajama party, and–"

"Here, she is!" My dad's attentive eyes spotted me, pulling gently on my mom's elbow and making her turn to me.

But even if all their attention was on me, I didn't feel caught until my eyes landed on the figure behind them: a bouquet of flowers larger than I'd ever seen, full of pale flowers, making the single red rose and purple hyacinth, the flower of regret – I'd put enough at the cemetery to know – stand out, almost as much as the familiar pair of brown eyes that widened under a lifted eyebrow.

"At Rachel's, yeah? Funny because I just saw Gordon..." There was no humor, neither in Spencer's bitter tone nor in all the tensions paralyzing slowly my body until my chest.

I was so crippled that I couldn't even move my eyes as I caught movements in my peripheral vision, probably my parents' confused glances.

My breath halted with everything else, I could only pray that Spencer wouldn't reveal it because he knew. There was no doubt.

Whether Gordon had told him or not, it didn't change anything, as I was like an open book under his brown gaze, reading through my eyes, skimming to my large sleeves, and ending in front of my waistband, where my hands were frozen, my bare hands.

It was the plot twist he hadn't expected, and the shock of my heart against my ribcage was strong enough to pull my hands into motion and make them slide under the bag I was holding.

I didn't have any regret though. So my shoulder shouldn't have been slumping down and my stomach shriveling. Yet it still happened, and it wasn't only because of the impending doom ready to crash on me as his wide gaze shot up to my face.

"To think I was here to apologize for last night."

It was his eyes that weighed on me, and the look in them was heavier than disappointment. I couldn't even hold it.

"But if you like the bad guys so much, then I'm gonna fight for you," he declared, throwing the bouquet on the floor, and in that instant, I didn't recognize him.

Those words weren't his, the violence he used in his gesture even less, but the most unrecognizable were his eyes. For the first time in one month, I really looked in them, and I saw glistening pain, held-back emotions, heartbreak, and something I'd never seen before... a fierce spark. I felt the burn until my guts, even though it was nothing in comparison to the wildfire that must have been brewing inside him.

I knew it as this spark was usually mine. It was the one that had led me so many times to become a rushing mess and crash like a shooting star, and he turned away as fast as I had one month before.

"Spencer!"

Even if I couldn't name a concrete reason to hold him back to me, my hand was already reaching out, and my feet would have followed if it hadn't been for the force pulling me behind.

"Dorothy, quiet! We're at the church."

I turned back to my mom's stiffening expression, suddenly remembering where I was with all the wide eyes on me: my parents', the pastor's, and of all the people already seated in the church that had found greater interest in my popping freckles than in the crucifix statue behind the altar as my shout was probably still echoing there.

"What's all of this?" My mom was careful to hush her yell, although everyone's attention was still on me, even the pastor, whom my father was trying to preach something – surely for a business talk and the upcoming campaign of Mr. Thornton.

It made me realize that all these people were still clueless, including my mom. Spencer hadn't revealed anything, and his voice had kept quiet because we never told on each other. Spencer and Dorothy forever, even in trouble. He was still keeping this promise we'd made when we'd been six, and I'd broken the teacher's seat accidentally on our first day of school.

Thinking about the words he'd just uttered in that same solemn tone, it sent another impulse to run after him, yet with my mom's tight grip still around my arm, it only ended in a restless itch on the tip of my fingers.

"I don't know." I shrugged, trying to pull my arm away and ignoring the slight pain it brought me as my mom's hand slid over the still sore skin of my wrist. "Maybe I should go ask–"

"It's not the time. Spencer can wait. God always comes first," she announced with a nod, directed at me, the pastor, and everyone to remind them why we were all here, and it was almost scary as the organ started instantly.

God may have always come first, but it was my mom everyone followed as the mass started, and it led my fingers to sneak into the back pocket of my bag with one question. Whom was I more afraid to upset: God or my mom?

A severe glance from the latter, and I was sliding the thin ring back on my finger, a shiver of bad feeling running straight to my guts. Though I wasn't sure if it was because of all my sins or just because the cold metal was a contrast from all my boiling emotions and the spark I'd glimpsed in Spencer's eyes.

Trouble in paradise... Spencer wants to become a bad guy and fight for Dorothy. What do you think will happen? 👀

Also, we need to talk about those after-sex pancakes, and Blade planning a date for the first time 😏

Tell me all your thoughts on this chapter! And don't forget to vote ⭐ if you liked it!

Your support on this story means the world to me, and I'm so excited to share what's to come with you 🤭🤫💕

PS: Blade wearing Dorothy's pearl necklace is totally inspired by a photoshoot of Thomas Doherty. I'll try to share the pic on my Insta 😉🌠