Page 9 of Wickedly Yours

“Older or younger?” I repeated, still curious.

“He is younger than me, but we didn’t grow up together.” He paused, seeming to hesitate. “There’s quite a few years between us.”

“Oh.” I fiddled with the hem of my dress. “I’m the younger sister,” I offered, even though he hadn’t asked. Our insistence on who asked the next question felt more like playing than it did insistence, anyway. “My sister is three years older than me, but after our parents died, it felt like she kind of took over their role of taking care of me. She helped me open the bakery and runs it with me. Even though I know that’s not really what she wants to do.” A deep sigh escaped me.

Even in the last few years, it felt like she was constantly putting me first when all I wanted was for her to prioritize her own dreams. Maybe now that Damien had come into her life, she would actually do that. If I was being honest, I envied that. The having someone part.

He hummed in response. “But you like it? Your job? Baking?”

I sighed, tracing the constellation of Cassiopeia in the sky with my eyes. “Sometimes.” I looked over at him, and he raised an eyebrow.Go on,I liked to think it meant. And I did. “I love baking. I always will. Making something from scratch—that first bite when everything has paid off, and you’ve made something delicious—it’s my favorite thing. But lately, I feel like I’ve been missing something. Like maybe it’s time for something new.” It was a truth I hadn’t offered to anyone—even Willow.

But with him, with this stranger, it felt easier to admit.

“And you want that?” His fingers brushed against mine, and I wanted him to hold my hand again. The warm tingling feeling had faded, and I missed it.

“Maybe. But I feel guilty, too.”

“Why?”

“Because this was the dream thatIchose. And how selfish is it for me to change my mind? Willow—my sister—she gave up everything for me. Her life. A career of her choosing. And now, I just…” I shook my head.

“I don’t think she’d feel that way.”

“What?” Even though his words rang true, they still felt shocking.

“Your sister. I’m sure she wants you to be happy.” He moved his hand over mine and gave me a reassuring squeeze.

My body instantly relaxed at his touch.

“Maybe.” I still didn’t know how I’d broach the subject with her, but maybe he was right. Of course, she wanted me to be happy. I’d never doubted that. But it was the rest of it I feared. Admitting I wanted something else.

Even if I didn’t know what that something else was.

“Your turn.” Letting go of my hand, he nudged my side.

“What?”

Zain shrugged. “To ask me another question.”

“Oh. Right.” His reminder distracted me from my thoughts. I appreciated the reprieve from my emotional spiral. “If you could do anything with your life, be anyone… What would you do?”Who would you be?

“That is…” He blew out a breath, furrowing his brow. “Difficult.”

I nodded. “Yeah. For me, too.”

“Growing up, I always knew the role I would fulfill when I got older. I resented it—watching all of my so-called friends get to have fun and screw around while I was stuck in lessons to learn what I needed to know. So I guess… Maybe I never thought about what I’d do if I had a choice.”

“And now?”

“Now, I think a normal, simple life is more than I could ever ask for.”

I couldn’t keep the frown off my face. “Doesn’t everyone deserve that?”

He gave a strangled sigh. “If only.”

“You do.” I turned my head so I could look squarely into his eyes.

I’d only just met him, but I knew that was true. He was lying with me in the grass after just meeting me, for goddess’ sake. There were a thousand things we could have been doing besides stargazing on a Friday night, but he was here. Withme.

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