Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 84203 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84203 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
After I speak to my brother and parents, catching them up on everything, I head upstairs to try to cheer up the two women who have me feeling all sorts of shit I’ve never felt before.
I stop at Ellie’s room first and knock since she’s not in the shower.
“Come in,” she says softly, not sounding at all like her usual sassy self.
When I open the door, I find her sitting on the bed, typing on her laptop. It looks expensive and new, and if I had to guess, it was probably one of the gifts her mom gave her.
“Spa appointment in one hour,” I say, stepping inside.
“Thanks,” she says, smiling half-heartedly. “I was just emailing my teachers so I can take my finals online.”
I glance back to make sure Sienna isn’t near before I say, “I know I can’t replace everything you lost, but if there’s anything in particular that can be replaced, please tell me, and I’ll get it for you and your sister. We both know Sienna won’t say shit, so I need you to speak up, please.”
“Truthfully, we really didn’t have all that much. I think it just sucks realizing it’s possible to have even less.”
“We’ll get this sorted,” I tell her. “I have an appointment with someone on Monday, but until then, I need you and your sister to lay low to ensure your safety.”
The girls spend the morning at the spa—after I have to practically drag Sienna there—and when they return, I have clothes, shoes, undergarments, and toiletries in their respective rooms waiting for them.
“This was so sweet of you,” Sienna says, closing the distance between us. “I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you for your generosity.”
“Well, I can think of one way,” I say with a smirk. When she rolls her eyes, thinking I’m referring to sex, I add, “Wear that dress without complaint.” I jut my chin toward the simple black dress that’s hanging on the corner of the mirror.
“Where in the world would I wear that?”
“To dinner with me...and my family.”
Her eyes widen. “Micah,” she hisses, but I cut her off by pressing my mouth to hers for a quick, chaste kiss. Her lips are soft, and she smells like roses, thanks to the oils the spa uses.
“Okay,” she breathes when I end the kiss.
“Thank you.”
She shakes her head and scoffs.
“What?” I ask, confused.
“You’re thanking me for agreeing to go to dinner with you and your family when I’m the one who should be thanking you for everything you’ve done for me and my sister. You brought Ellie and me into your home after I was almost attacked and then insisted we stay when our apartment was torched, leaving us homeless. On top of that, you paid for a spa day to cheer us up and bought us a shit ton of clothes and other stuff...Oh, and you even offered to pay for my classes.” Tears fill her eyes, and I encircle my arms around her, having a feeling all the pent-up stress is about to boil over.
“This is why I tried to give you an out over and over again,” she chokes out. “You wanted to have sex in a private room and look what you got instead.” She snorts out a humorless laugh, and I lift her chin, needing her to look at me.
“What I wanted...what I want is you. Anyway I can have you. And your mess of a life hasn’t changed that.”
“But don’t you see?” she says. “My shitty circumstances took your choice away. What were you going to do? Leave us to die?”
“Everyone has a choice. I could’ve rented you a hotel room, or hell, I could’ve given you cash to go to a motel. I could’ve said fuck that, they’re not my problem, and turned my back. I’m choosing to have you and your sister here. I want to get to know you, Hellcat, and before all this shit went down you were on board as well.”
“I was,” she admits. “It just feels selfish, putting me and you before Ellie’s safety, or putting you on the back burner…”
“There are no placeholders,” I say, kissing her tear-stained lips. “We’re all in this together. You can have it all if you’d just lower those walls you’ve erected and let me in all the way. I know what’s happening between us is fast, but I can’t deny what I feel...what I know you feel too.”
I sear my gaze into hers, willing her to accept that there’s something between us that’s worth exploring. To stop holding me at a distance and to let me stand by her side. To stop trying to go through this life alone when we can go through it together.
“I do,” she breathes. “I do feel it, and it scares the shit out of me.” She releases a harsh breath, her eyes fluttering closed and then open. “Okay, I’ll let you in. But we need to take things slow.”