Page 93 of Always Be an Us

"Give me a minute, Amelia. I’m coming out."

His voice is gruff, but it sounds normal enough. Convincing enough to have Amelia step away and give her father a second to arrange himself and come up with a reason why he’s in the bathroom with me. Or maybe he can step out and pull her aside, while I sneak off and pretend that I was just in my bedroom or something.

Yeah not the best plan, but I’m not working with a full set of screws right now.

And then Amelia dashes all my hopes of mescape when she says, "Emma is in there with you, isn't she?"

It’s like someone blasted a cannon of extra-strength awkwardness into the silence. Declan’s shoulders visibly tense and his eyes meet mine. Double shit.

I know he never wanted his daughter to find out anything that was going on between us. I didn’t want it either. I don't want to hurt Amelia and I also value her friendship so much that this almost feels like I'm betraying her in some way.

Isn’t it?

I'm hooking up with her dad behind her back and now she just caught me. It’s ridiculous to feel called out by a teenager but that’s how I feel right now.

"I know what you two are doing in there," Amelia says. "I’m not stupid."

Declan’s eyes slide closed and the expression on his face clearly spells out his regret. The sentiment echoes inside me. Even if we were going to tell Amelia about the relationship, this isn’t how I wanted her to find out.

"Amelia, just give me a moment."

"Don't you mean 'giveusa moment'?" she asks. "There’s no use denying it. I know you and Emma were in there making out."

"Amelia…" Declan’s voice lingers and he looks like he's at the end of his ropes. "Just...please."

Amelia taps her foot on the floorboard several times before she answers. "Fine." Her footsteps get farther and farther away until we hear a door close. I assume she’s gone to her room.

Only then does Declan’s shoulders sag and his head drops to my shoulders. "Shit."

"Sorry," I say.

His eyes meet mine again. "Why? This isn’t your fault."

I shrug. "It kinda feels like it is. I shouldn't have been in here kissing you."

"I kissed you. I was the careless one. I completely forgot she was supposed to be home soon. I lost my mind when I–"

He doesn’t complete the sentence, but I know what he’s talking about. I kind of lost my mind when he kissed me too. But that’s normal for us, I guess.

It might not be love, but whatever we feel for each other is certainly stronger than our self-control.

We stare into each other’s eyes for a few seconds, and I ask, "Then what do we do now?"

He runs a hand roughly through his hair. "I’m going to talk to her."

He retreats and my body instantly protests the loss of body heat as he turns around and leaves abruptly. I take a deep breath and right my clothes, before I follow him in time to see him knocking on Amelia’s door.

"I’m coming in," he says and opens the door. I stand behind at the edge of the living room...not wanting to intrude...but still wanting to be close in case he needs my support to corroborate a lie.

He glances at me briefly but says nothing and leaves the door open.

Amelia is on her bed eyeing us with an uncomfortable expression.

"What is going on between you two?" she asks. "Are you dating or something?"

I share a look with Declan. Now comes the complicated part. Because what we’re doing isn’t exactly dating. But there’s no way to tell his teenage daughter that we have a completely sexual relationship either.

"Or something," Declan finally answers. "We’re still getting to know each other."

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