Page 104 of The Facade

A thrill of anxiety flooded my body because if his hand traveled much higher, he would discover that for himself.

His hand moved up another inch and the alarm bells went off in my head. I quickly covered his hand with my own to stop him.

He frowned, as if worried he’d done something wrong, and so I said, “Sorry. I’m not ready for that.”

He stopped and froze, like he hadn’t realized what he’d been doing. “Sorry.” He leaned his forehead against mine, breathing hard as he pinched his eyes shut. “Sorry I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s okay,” I said, sliding his hand down with mine until it rested on my hip. “Just, you know…not yet.”

He swallowed and nodded, and we just stared at each other for a while, studying each other as we let the frenzy of the past few minutes calm. And I appreciated that he wasn’t pushing me to do more. And that he wasn’t running away, either.

He rested his head on my pillow, looking deeply into my eyes. “Sorry I didn’t ask you to come over earlier,” he said.

“It’s okay.” I met his gaze, so he’d know that I understood. “Carter and Nash are your friends, too. I get it.”

“I know,” he said, looking past me to the other pillows on the bed. “I just…” He sighed, meeting my gaze again. “I just didn’t want you to see me that way. I wasn’t exactly my best self earlier tonight.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to be your best self right now.”

“I know,” he said, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “I just wish I could be.”

We were quiet for another long moment, and I could tell he was thinking about his mom again because his eyes suddenly filled with tears. He wiped them away with the back of his hand.

I scooted closer, slipping my arms around him to hug him. “I’m sorry about your mom,” I whispered. “Sorry all of this is happening.”

“Me too,” he said, kissing the top of my head before brushing some hair away from my face. “I’m really going to miss her.”

34

Mack

When I wokeon Saturday morning, I was surprised that I actually felt somewhat rested. It had been weeks since I’d slept through the night, and with what happened yesterday, I’d thought it would be a long time before I slept through the night again. But when I opened my eyes and saw where I was, I realized why I’d slept so soundly.

It was because of Cambrielle. Because of the girl who was currently cuddled up beside me, sleeping in my arms.

I bent my head close to breathe in the smell of her shampoo. She always smelled so good, and there was something about the scent and feel of her back pressed against my chest that was comforting.

I’d thought before that it was her room that had the magical sleeping powers. But now that I’d been around Cambrielle a little more and had gotten to know her better, I figured that it was just her and not her bedroom.

I gently combed some hair back that had fallen across her face and watched her sleep. I’d always made fun of girls for thinking it was so romantic when Edward Cullen told Bella that he liked to watch her sleep, but I kind of understood it now. It was peaceful and an intimate moment that not many people got to see.

Her eyelids fluttered and she breathed deeply in a way that told me she was waking up. Since I didn’t want to look like I’d been creepily staring at her for hours, I laid my head back down on the pillow and pretended like I was just waking up, too.

She stretched her legs out and arched her back a little, her butt bumping against me, and after gasping like she hadn’t remembered I was here, she twisted around to face me.

“Hi,” I said, looking down, unable to keep a small smile from my lips when I looked at her.

“Hi,” she said back, a pink flush coloring her cheeks. She studied me for a moment like she wasn’t sure I was really here, and then she asked, “How did you sleep?”

“Better than I expected.”

After I’d come to her room like a hormone-crazed madman, I’d cried for a long time while Cambrielle just held me. I thought I’d never be able to stop crying and that I’d never feel happiness again, but sometime around four in the morning I’d eventually passed out. And while the ache was still hovering around my heart this morning with the knowledge of what was happening at home, I wanted to focus on this quiet moment with Cambrielle and make the most of the good things I still had in my life.

So I’d focus on the fact that I’d slept through the night and that Cambrielle was still with me when she could have turned me away.

“That’s good.”

“And you?” I asked.

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