Page 72 of 4-Ever

Iknew the way Faise was pacing in my kitchen that he was all up in his head. I knew my boo. He was worried that I was going to change my mind. That everything that had happened this morning was a mistake, but it was so far from that.

Our timing on stage was always spot on, but here, now, we were out of sync like we never were. Nervous, restless, struggling to find our groove in this brand new world we’d woken up to. A world where he and I were lovers, not just best friends.

And now I just wanted one damn moment alone with him.

When we finally stopped kissing, I turned to look at Holls and Brodie. My band brothers were staring at us like they'd never seen us before. Even though they joked about me and Faise being a couple all the time, ever since we started playing together, I don't think they ever thought that it would happen. It was going to take all of us time to get used to this reality.

Still, I didn't want to go back. I couldn't.

Why had it taken me so long to realize what all the touches, hugs, and cuddles, meant? It was like I’d been wearing foggy glasses for years. When they finally cleared, all I could see was this beautiful man standing right in front of me.

“I can't believe it,” Brodie kept repeating.

“You bugged us about it often enough, why can't you believe it?” I asked.

“You finally managed to grow some balls and go for it.”

I rolled my eyes. “Speaking of which, why don't you guys head off to the studio and me and Faise will meet you there? Later. Much, much later.”

“I think I'd rather head to the studio first. We need our normal routine right now more than ever,” Faise added, slipping out of my arms.

I didn’t like that one bit. His leaving or his answer.

“Ooh, burn,” Holls quipped.

I gave Holloway my best finger, then stared at Faise. What the hell?

“It's been a lot in twenty-four hours, yeah?” Faise nodded and took my hand in his, giving me a reassuring squeeze. “Let's go have some normal. Jam, blow off steam, then we can come back here just the two of us.”

Was he having second thoughts? I didn't like feeling this uncertainty between us. I always knew what he was thinking and vice versa. Didn’t he want to be alone with me in the same desperate way that I wanted to be alone with him?

“If we're going to do this Ronin, we're going to take our time,” Faise continued. “I'm not going to fuck this up. You mean too much to let that happen.”

He was right. I’d been dealing with these feelings for a long time, I just hadn't been ready yet to face them. With other guys I could just fuck and forget. Walk away. But Faise? That wasn't happening. That meant I had to stop thinking with just my cock. Faise needed to know that I was all in with him.

“Awe, did you hear that Holls? They're in love,” Brodie teased.

“Like I said,” I bit out, turning to Brodie. “We’ll meet you over there.”

Brodie and Holls smiled and stood up, reaching over to give us a hug.

“If you guys change your mind, we understand.”

“We’ll meet you at the studio in half an hour.”

Music had always brought us together, and we needed that now more than ever.

We said our goodbyes and then I went in search of my sister. Before I went anywhere or did anything, I needed to make sure that she was okay.

I knocked on her bedroom door and when I didn’t get a response, I opened it slowly. Ciara was fast asleep. It reminded me of when we were kids and I would babysit, checking up on her. Funny how that never goes away. No matter what, she’d always be my baby sister.

Satisfied that she was resting, I was finally ready to contact my mother to tell her exactly what had happened last night. She'd left me a voicemail this morning, when we were talking to Zoe and the police, and I’d texted her back, saying everyone was all right and would call soon. But I couldn't hold off on talking to her any longer.

I headed back out to find Faise still in the kitchen. “I’m going to get changed and call my mom. You know where everything is. Take anything you need. And feel free to wear my clothes.”

“Sounds good,” Faise replied. “I'll meet you by the front door in twenty.”

After giving me another kiss, Faise headed upstairs. I picked up my cell phone and tapped my mom’s number. She answered on the first ring.

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