Page 31 of Breakaway

“No. I just asked if I could bring someone; I didn’t say who.”

“God, you scared me.” Nevaeh shakes her head. “I’m going to talk to Angie tomorrow. Just the thought of her finding out about my breakup with Travis—not to mention what happened in Vegas—from someone else makes me want to faint.”

I watch her silently as she finishes her food. The meaning of her words registers in my brain, and I curse inwardly. If Angie knows, then Drake will know too. I better be ready to have a talk with him; he’s going to have a lot of questions.

These thoughts go into a loop, and the phone call I overheard echoes in my mind. If I’m right, then that means…“Is she pregnant?” I ask.

Nevaeh hiccups and starts coughing, covering her mouth with her palm. When she finally calms down, she downs her juice, glaring at me from under her eyelashes.

“It’s not nice to eavesdrop on people.”

“You were in the living room. That’s the only reason I overheard.”

“Yeah, I was in the living room, and that’s definitely the only reason I saw you half naked, gallivanting around your place.”

“Gallivanting? I was on my way from the bathroom to the bedroom,” I deadpan, noticing her pouting. “I’m sorry for bringing it up, and I’m sorry for the towel thing. I promise to never do that again.”

“Okay,” she replies with a lift of her shoulder.

Standing up, Nevaeh goes to the sink and takes care of our dishes, motioning for me to stay put. I hold my mug between my palms, my eyes following her every move. When she stands on her tiptoes to put a glass away, her crop top rides up, and the bottom of her lacy black bra peeks out from under it. Diverting my attention, I focus on the calendar pinned to my fridge…quickly realizing that was the worst idea ever.

My gaze zeroes in on Friday, the date of my brother’s death, and suddenly, that’s all I’m thinking about.

It’s hard to breathe.My lungs hurt so much, I can’t even think straight. I’m suffocating—an invisible leash closes harder and harder around my neck. The tightness in my chest mixes with my heart, which is going absolutely insane. It feels like it’s missing its beats.

My eyes are wide open, and darkness envelops me. For a second, I really think I’m losing my vision. And yet, after a moment of sheer panic, my gaze adjusts to the dimness of the room, and I finally recognize where I am.

It’s my bedroom.

It was just a dream.

Hiding my face in my trembling hands, I lie still, wanting nothing more than for this fatigue to go away. I’m sweating, and my face is wet from all the tears I cried during my nightmare. I hope I didn’t scream…

When my heartbeat finally calms down, the dizziness also goes away. Slowly, I sit up in bed, push the covers aside, and stand up, checking the time on the clock on my nightstand. Three a.m. A humorless laugh springs from my mouth as I creep to the kitchen. It’s ridiculous to think that lately, the only time I slept through the night was when Nevaeh was next to me.

It’s not like I can ask her to come sleep in my room…Polnyi bred?3.

Pouring myself a glass of cold water, I head to the living room and plop down on the couch. Without giving it much thought, I turn on the TV, check the volume so it’s quiet, findPeaky Blinders, and start the third episode of the first season. I hope it helps like?—

“You and your love for this show.” A quiet voice behind my back sends shivers down my spine. I glance over my shoulder and see a very sleepy Nevaeh in a loose black T-shirt and tiny shorts. She rubs her eyes, yawning. “Why don’t you ever watch it at a reasonable hour?”

“Did I wake you?” I ask as she rounds the couch and sits beside me.

She shrugs. “It doesn’t matter. I woke up, and I’m here.”

“Nevaeh—”

“Shut up, Roman, and let me watch.”

Instead of moving away from her like I usually would, I sling my arm around her shoulder and pull her to my side. She lets me, cuddling close and hiding her legs under her butt. She smells like something really sweet, reminding me of the vanilla marshmallows I used to love so much when I was a kid. Her loose hair flows over her shoulders, tickling my skin whenever she fidgets in her seat. I shouldn’t be so comfortable, but I am.

Only because she’s here.

1 ????. — Shit.

2 ?????? ????????. — Just awesome.

3 ?????? ????. — Complete nonsense.

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