Chapter 17

XAVIER'S POV "Do you need me, Kimberly?" I asked again, this time low and deliberate. She swallowed hard, her eyes darted out the window to the fireworks and back to mine again, all that was so transparent what it did to me. "I..." she started to say, not finishing. I leaned back a bit, forcing myself to retreat. If I pushed now, it'd be like she'd go deeper into her shell. I didn't want her to think of me as Daniel, who just wanted to sleep with her. I needed her to trust me, so i had to practice self control. "You look nice in that dress," I said now, changing the subject. "But not because of the dress. You just make everything around you seem. better." Her cheeks colored and her eyes dropped. "You don't have to flatter me, Xavier." "It's not flattery," I said, my voice even. "It's a fact." I let the silence build one beat longer than comfort, before nodding to the half-emptied glass of wine in her hand. "You're drinking too much tonight." Kimberly laughed quietly to herself, apparen