Page 64 of Risking it All

I swear my entire body blushed and my internal temperature reached a million degrees. I nodded.

“There’s a million different answers for that, but the real answer is, whatever you’re comfortable with.”

“I liked moving with you,” I admitted.

“Then, next time, we can do more of that. There’s no pressure, though. We do whatever you’re comfortable with.”

No, I didn’t feel pressure. Just a whole lot of curiosity and wonder. “I’m not ready for you to leave.”

“That’s good,” he answered. “Because I don’t want to go.”

“Will you stay and watch the movie with me?”

“Yes,” he whispered as he kissed my lips again. I snuggled into Relic, laid my eyes on the TV, and loved how Relic watched me.

***

Footsteps upstairs and my eyes snapped open. First thought, I had fallen asleep. Second thought, when had morning become so bright? Third thought, I loved how Relic was cuddled up next to me. Fourth thought, oh my God, we were about to be busted.

“Relic,” I whispered in absolute panic and shook his sleeping form. “Relic, wake up! If my dad finds you here, he will kill you.”

He cracked his eyes open, and in less than a heartbeat he went from smiling at me tenderly to blinking wide with the realization of what had happened—we’d fallen asleep. The basement door opened, the two of us scrambled, and my freaking heart pumped violently in my throat as I had no idea where the hell my tank top went. The footsteps on the stairs moved faster while I seemed to be stuck in slow motion.

Relic moved swiftly off the bed, swiped up his T-shirt, grabbed his boots and the yearbook, but before he could reach the door, my brother Seth emerged.

Seth froze, so did I, and we both stared at Relic.

“Stay or leave?” Relic asked me, and he wore an expression like he hated leaving me behind to handle the fallout. His shoulders rolled back as if he alone could take on any battle.

“You should leave,” Seth said, and I scowled at him.

Ah, there was my tank. I picked it up and pulled it over my head. “Are Mom and Dad home?”

Seth didn’t answer at first, only glared at Relic.

“Are Mom and Dad home?” I pushed.

“No,” Seth snapped. “They’re at work. They heard the TV playing and texted me to check on you when I woke as they figured that meant you had insomnia again last night. They didn’t want to wake you in case you had fallen asleep.”

Thank the heavens above they didn’t check on me themselves.

I went to Relic. “Give me a second with Seth and I’ll take you home.” Actually, to the front of the neighborhood, but he understood my meaning.

Relic gave me the sweetest of kisses that left a tingle in my veins. He rested his forehead to mine and my heart gave a flutter of unfamiliar and awesome emotion. “I’ll stay if you need me,” he said. “I don’t want you facing this alone.”

“I’ll be right out. I promise I’ll be okay.”

Relic caressed my cheek and regarded me as if were the rising sun. I felt all knotted up in my stomach in the best way possible. What were all these emotions? And was I reading Relic wrong that he was feeling them, too?

“I will kick your ass if you don’t get out of here,” Seth said.

Amused, Relic snorted, indicating Seth would never stand a chance against him. Seth, though, was as tall as him, as physically fit, while just a year younger. Thankfully, Relic left without feeling the need to posture against my overreacting brother.

When the door shut, Seth lost his mind. “What the hell, Macie?”

As his tirade continued, I ran up the stairs and reset the alarm. That set Seth off more. “You turned off the alarm to let in aboy?” He said a lot of other things, too, but I ignored him as I slipped on my slides, grabbed my purse and car keys, and headed for the garage.

“Macie!” he shouted as he rushed to stand in my path. “What is going on with you?”

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