Page 70 of Siren's Heart

"We watched your video," Kayla says, and I can see her try to fight a grin unsuccessfully. "That was sweet."

"That was really sweet," Millie adds and jumps up, just to throw her arms around my neck and press a kiss to my lips before capturing my gaze with teary eyes. "Thank you. You didn't have to, but thank you."

"It's seriously the least I could do," I grumble as I put my arms around her, meaning every word. I'm pretty mad that I didn't get that idea myself, actually.

"Now, how about the two of you fuck off while we call a few more people?" Asher's pointed gaze at me signals me to distract her from what's happening and keep her offline.

"Thank you," Millie tells him, her gratefulness written all over her face. "I really appreciate it."

"You're very welcome," Asher answers her and holds his hand out for a fist bump. She shakes her head but quickly presses her knuckles against his, then waves at Kayla on her way out. I say my quick goodbyes as well as I follow her.

Millie

Luca and I step into my apartment and immediately change into jogging pants and shirts before we make ourselves comfortable on the couch and watch TV. Or, pretend to. Truthfully, I couldn't even tell what we are watching. My thoughts continue to circle back to what happened today, rubbing my aching wrist with the fingers of my other hand.

At least it doesn’t seem to be broken. When Luca realizes I’m rubbing it like a dog would a wounded paw, he jumps up to walk into my kitchen, returning with something frozen wrapped up in a towel.

Worry lays heavy in my stomach. If today showed me how individual people react to seeing me, do I need to be scared of what might happen at the match when there is a bunch of them? I know there's going to be more security, but I had security with me both times today, too.

There have always been people who don't like me, people who let the whole world know about how they want me to disappear while hiding behind the curtain of anonymity that the internet provides. But this is taking everything to a whole new level, a very scary one.

"Hey," Luca whispers against my temple, tightening his arms around me. "What's going through that pretty head of yours?"

"Worries," I admit, tracing a path over his forearm with my fingertip. "Annoyance. Do you think Asher's plan will work?" A glimmer of hope has sparked inside me, but it doesn't lift the weight on my shoulders.

"Honestly, I don't know," he admits. "It makes sense to me, but from what I know, social media is a beast that's hard to tame. Even if it doesn't, we'll think of something new."

I give him a low hum and snuggle deeper into his arms. This is where I feel safe. Like we're the only ones in the world; like all my problems don't exist. Nobody can touch me here. I'm safe. And before I know it, the day catches up with me, and I fall asleep in his arms.

I wake up with a start. Fuck. I didn't mean to fall asleep. But judging by the sunlight streaming into my room, I've slept through the night. And judging by the messy covers on the other side of my bed, Luca spent the night here with me.

What did I do to deserve him? I'm sure that when we started dating, he didn't think that it'd be this much of a mess. But he's taking it in stride, not only tolerating the whole circus, but making sure I'm okay, doing his best to show his support and help out. Like the super sweet livestream yesterday that I’m hoping someone uploaded to YouTube so I can watch it again when I’m in a better frame of mind. And then he even carried me to bed! I wish I'd been awake for that. He even took off my pants, knowing I hate sleeping in them. What a gem.

I reach for my phone to check the time. Fuck. It's so late already. I need to hurry if I want to get to the stadium on time. But before I can get up, the notification for a message from Kayla pops up, and I hurry to open it.

Kayla: Told Naroa to pound sand and let Mike know. We have the day off. Dress rehearsal is tomorrow, and then we're ready to go.

I stare at the message, relief washing over me in a bone-breaking wave.

Millie: You're the best. Thank you.

Kayla: Good morning. Sleep okay?

Millie: Like a baby. Anything exciting happen?

Kayla: Go have breakfast and then check your socials.

I sigh. Breakfast sounds like a wonderful idea, but that means I'll have to leave this perfectly warm bed and leave these cozy covers behind. I pull the blanket up to my chin. Not happening yet.

The door to the bedroom opens, and I glance toward it. My face breaks into a smile when I see Luca entering the room. It stretches even wider when I realize he's only wearing his shorts and holding two steaming mugs in his hands.

"Good morning, Sunshine," he says with a cheeky grin and sits down on the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"A lot better." I stretch my arms over my head before I sit up and take the mug he offers me. Even my wrist doesn’t really hurt anymore. There’s a numb, pulsing sensation going on, but I just take that as a sign of healing. "Thank you."

"Anytime." He waits until I take my first sip and release a happy sigh. When I lift my chin and purse my lips for a kiss, he complies, and I smile at the taste of coffee creamer on his lips. He hands me his mug, then climbs behind me, until I'm sitting between his legs and lean my back against his chest.

"Did you get today off, too?" I ask him and sigh happily when his arm sneaks around my middle, while he takes his mug back with the other one.

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