“I deem you a sophomore now.” Undeterred, I caught another strand and trailed it across her cheek. “What I say goes.”

“Then how does it feel finally being a senior? Next year is your last.”

“Amazing.” I traced her lower lip. “It feels amazing.”

Shortcake rolled onto her side, wrapping her fingers around the collar of my shirt. “It feels pretty damn good to be a sophomore.”

“Would be better if you didn’t sign up for summer classes.”

“True,” she agreed.

But it would work out. I was doing the summer soccer camp with the kiddos, so I’d be here anyway.

She wiggled closer, resting her head on my shoulder as she threw a leg over me.

“Close enough?” I asked.

“No.”

I laughed as I ran my fingers up and down her spine in a slow, idle line as I turned my head, kissing her forehead. These quiet moments were the best. I’d almost dozed off when she rolled suddenly, straddling my hips.

“Hey,” she said.

I liked where this was heading. I skimmed my hands over her waist. “Hey there.”

“So I’ve been doing some thinking.”

“Oh God.”

“Shut up.” She bent down, kissing me softly. “Actually, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. There’s something I want to do.”

“What?” I slid my hands down over her shorts, resting them on her thighs.

She sucked her bottom lip between her teeth. “I want to go home.”

Was not expecting that, nor did I like that. “Like back to Texas?”

“Yes.”

“For how long?”

She placed her hands on my stomach and rocked back, pressing down on me. I tensed, eyes narrowing on her. I had a feeling that was totally on purpose.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easy,” she said. “For just a day or two.”

“Damn. There goes my master plan of spending the summer like a sex-crazed bachelor.”

Shortcake rolled her eyes.

“What do you want to do if you go back there?”

“I want to see my parents. I need to talk to them.”

I patted her thighs. “About what happened?”

“I’ve never talked to them about what happened, not since that night.” She matched my movements with her fingers along my chest. “I need to talk to them. I know this sounds like a bitch fest, but I need to tell them that what they did was wrong.”

“It doesn’t sound like a bitch fest, but do you think it’s wise?” I placed my hands over hers. “I mean, do you think it’s going to help you and not . . .”

“Hurt me?” She smiled. “There’s really nothing more my parents can do that will hurt me, but I feel like I need to confront them. Does that make me a bad person?”

“No.” I didn’t like the sound of this. They could still hurt her.

“I need to do this. I also need to talk to Molly.”