Dark Covenant (Living Covenant Trilogy Book 2) by Amanda M. Lee Page A

you,” Kelsey shot back.
    I smirked as I watched them go and then ambled over to the cooler in the aisle where I met Aric. I wasn’t surprised when I felt him move in behind me.
    “This is where I invaded your personal space for the first time and you thought I was creepy,” Aric whispered, kissing my cheek. “Do you want to reenact our first meeting so you can be really schmaltzy?”
    I made a face as I swiveled. “I didn’t think you were creepy,” I clarified. “I thought you were a player. There’s a difference.”
    “Oh, see, I was a player back then,” Aric said. “I took one look at you, though, and I realized my player days were behind me.”
    “Even though I had a boyfriend and we didn’t hook up for almost a year and a half?” I couldn’t help but be dubious.
    “I knew,” Aric said, brushing my hair from my face. “I knew you were a pain in the ass and that you were going to change my life. I didn’t foresee this, but I wouldn’t change one thing about that meeting.”
    “Not even the fact that I had a boyfriend?”
    Aric scowled. “You really know how to ruin a moment, don’t you?”
    “I love you, Aric. I hope you know that.” I was surprised by the emotion as it washed over me. “I don’t regret one moment of our life together either … not even the bad ones.”
    “Oh, geez, come here,” Aric said, pulling me in for a hug. “You still manage to surprise me sometimes. I love you, too.”
    “Oh, you guys are so cute!” I turned to find a blond girl – she couldn’t be more than eighteen, and that was being generous – staring at us. “Are you guys here to visit your son or daughter?”
    I frowned as Aric’s shoulders shook with silent laughter. “Do we look old enough to have a kid in a college?”
    The girl shrugged. “I don’t know. Everyone looks old to me.”
    “Whatever,” I muttered, pulling away from Aric and giving the girl a dirty look. “Come on.” I tugged on Aric’s arm. “I don’t want you to trade me in on a younger model.”
    “Oh, that can never happen,” Aric said, although I didn’t miss the wink he gave the girl as we moved past her. “I’m addicted to you. I don’t care how old you look.”
    “You’re really starting to bug me,” I muttered.
    “Let’s buy a few things and get out of here,” Aric suggested, sobering. “I want to make sure we have a good vantage point when Mark leaves the building. I want to see him, but I don’t want him to see us.”
    “When do you want him to know we’re here?”
    “I haven’t decided yet,” Aric answered, walking over to a table and grabbing two sweatshirts. “We need to blend in as much as possible. I think Kelsey was right about wearing sweatshirts. As it stands now, as much as I hate to admit it, we look old compared to the student body.”
    “I’m still in my prime.”
    Aric snickered. “I’ll give you and your prime a workout when we get back to the apartment tonight,” he said. “I forgot how small that bathtub was. We’re used to being able to stretch out in our tub at home. I think it will be fun to climb on top of each other in there like we used to.”
    “I want to drive by our old house, too,” I said.
    “Which one?”
    “Not the one where we were broken up,” I said, swallowing my laugh when he scowled. He didn’t like being reminded of our year apart, and I couldn’t help poking him about it when the mood struck. I usually got a sentimental gift shortly after. “I want to see the one we lived in my senior year. I loved that house, and I have very fond memories of our time there together.”
    “Yes, I especially liked it when you were a murder suspect and Paris was kidnapped,” Aric deadpanned.
    “Now who’s ruining the mood?”
    “Fine. I promise to stop ruining the mood,” Aric said. “I like it when you’re schmaltzy. I’m going to romance your socks off while we stalk Mark over the next few days.”
    “Oh, that could be the sweetest thing you’ve ever