As if he hadn’t just restored Blair’s entire faith in humanity with one sentence, he rolled onto his side and immediately began to snore.

Blair slowly and carefully extracted herself from the bed. Her body jolted in surprise when she pushed open the door and found someone standing on the other side. She put her hand on her chest to try to calm her beating heart. “Shit, Erin. I didn’t know you were standing there.”

Even though the hallway was dark, Blair could see the slightest hint of red on Erin’s cheeks. “Sorry. It was so adorable, I couldn’t get myself to walk away.”

“Did you, um, hear everything?”

“I did.” Erin looked toward the ground. “You’ve really never been to the zoo?”

Blair shrugged. She was pretty sure her own face was turning red now. “Pretty pathetic, right? I’ve been to the top of the Eiffel Tower, but never to the zoo.”

“As someone who will most likely never even see the Eiffel Tower, I don’t find it pathetic at all. Who needs a zoo when you have Paris, right?”

“Honestly?” Blair pointed a finger at her own chest. “I wasn’t lying when I told Nolan I’ve always wanted to go. There was one about an hour from where I went to college, and last year I asked my friends if they wanted to go. They must have thought I was joking, because they laughed hysterically. I guess a newly twenty-one-year-old being excited about going to see animals isn’t exactly cool. ”

“Well, this might not mean much to you coming from me, but I think you’re super cool.”

Blair let her eyes meet Erin’s for the first time since coming out of Nolan’s room, and the intensity in them nearly knocked her over. She wasn’t imagining it. There was something between them, and the walls surrounding the two of them were slowly closing in on her.

Blair’s heartbeat picked up again as she let her eyes drift to Erin’s lips. They were full and wet as if she had just licked them, and all Blair could think about was what they would taste like on hers. When she caught Erin’s eyes quickly sneaking a peek at her lips as well, she couldn’t take it anymore. She let her body have control and didn’t stop herself as she moved into Erin’s space. The closer she got, the heavier Erin’s breathing became and the more erratic Blair’s heart beat.

This is happening. This is actually happening. It’s not just my imagination. We’re going to kiss.

“Mommy!” Nolan’s voice caused the two of them to jump apart. “Don’t stand outside my room.”

“Sorry, bud,” Erin said, the crack to her voice telling Blair that the last few seconds weren’t just some elaborate dream. “Sleep tight.”