For one long moment, I could only stare at him in disbelief. “It’s a good thing I’m not going to live long enough to go out with you, because you’d drive me crazy.”

“There’s a good kind of crazy, Kaylee,” he insisted softly, reaching out to wrap his warm hand around mine. “It’s the kind that makes you think about things that make your head hurt, because not thinking about them is the coward’s way out. The kind that makes you touch people who bruise your soul, just because they need to be touched. This is the kind of crazy that lets you stare out into the darkness and rage at eternity, while it stares back at you, ready to swallow you whole.”

Tod leaned closer, staring into my eyes so intently I was sure he could see everything I was thinking, but too afraid to say. “I’ve seen you fight, Kaylee. I’ve seen you step into that darkness for someone else, then claw your way out, bruised, but still standing. You’re that kind of crazy, and I live in that darkness. Together, we’d take crazy to a whole new level.”

My pulse whooshed in my ears so fast I could barely hear myself speak. “I only have—”

“Two days.” He squeezed my hand. “So what? You can spend them feeling sorry for yourself, or you can let me help make them the best two days of your life, and my afterlife. So what’s it gonna be?”

I stared into his eyes, like I’d never seen him before. And I hadn’t—not like this. But he’d obviously seen me, better than anyone else ever had.

“Well?” Tod watched me, his hand still warm in mine.

In answer, I leaned forward and kissed him again.

17

“Hey, Kaylee,” my dad called, as his door squealed open at the end of the hall.

I jerked away from Tod so fast the whole room seemed to spin around us, and when I looked up, I found my dad watching us from my doorway, surprised into a rare moment of total speechlessness.

“Hey, Mr. Cavanaugh.” Tod swiveled to face him in my desk chair, and I could see my father struggling for a response.

“Tod, could you excuse us for a minute?” he said at last.

Tod gave me an amused look no one else could have interpreted. “I’ll be in the living room.” Then he disappeared, and the chair spun without him.

My father sighed and stepped into my room, closing the door behind him. “Could you please ask him to walk like a normal person when he’s here?”

I shrugged. “He’s not a normal person.”

“Is this going to be a regular thing now?”

“I don’t know how regular it could be, considering how little time I have left.”

My dad sank onto the end of my bed and picked at one thumbnail before meeting my gaze again. “This is going to sound stupid, considering the circumstances, but don’t you think this ishappening kind of fast, Kaylee?”

Another shrug. “I guess that depends on your perspective. From Tod’s, it’s been a long time coming.”

He seemed to think about that for a minute, then stared at his hands again and nodded. “Yeah, I guess it has.”

I frowned at him in surprise. “You knew?”

“How he felt about you? It was pretty obvious, Kaylee.”

To everyone but me, evidently. “Is that why you were always mean to him?”

“I wasn’t mean to him. And I have to admit he’s certainly grown on me this week, with everything he’s tried to do for you. But yes. If things were different now—” meaning, if I were going to live “—I don’t think he’d be a very good choice for you.”

I laughed. “In all fairness, you should know that parental seal of approval is not a requirement for a boyfriend. In fact, it’s usually a deal-breaker.”

“Noted.” He sighed. “Seriously, though, what kind of future can you possibly have with a dead boy?”

“I’m sixteen. Even if I were going to live, college is as far into the future as I’ve really thought so far, and it’s not like the distance would be a problem for him.” One of the advantages of the reaper mode of travel…

“Kay, you may not be thinking about the future—you might not be even if yours were going to be…longer—but he is. Tod is eternal, Kaylee. His future is probably all he ever thinks about.”

“I don’t know, Dad. I think he’d rather live in the moment, because he knows how much future he’ll have. It must be overwhelming, facing forever. Don’t you think?” Not that I’d ever know…

“I guess.” He lapsed into a heavy pause, just watching me. “But my point is that none of that matters now. Tod isn’t my top choice for you, and if this were going to be a long-term thing, I’d insist that he follow all the normal social standards—no popping in anytime he wants, no popping into your room ever, and no visits after eleven. But this isn’t a normal situation, and I want you to be happy.”

“What does all that mean?”

My dad sighed and twisted to fully face me. “It means that Tod’s welcome here. Well, not here specifically,” he amended, glancing at the bed we both sat on for emphasis. “But he’s welcome in our home.”

“Thank you.” And suddenly I wanted to cry again. “You know, for a dad, you’re kinda awesome.”

The sudden mixture of pain and regret twisting through his irises was too much for both of us, so he squeezed my hand, then changed the subject. “So…how’s Nash taking all this, with you and Tod? Have you talked to him?”