Page 27 of Play Pretend

No.

The word nearly came out, but I stopped it. Willow had never come into my place before. Ever. Honestly, I couldn’t remember the last person who’d been in here other than Trinity. I glanced over my shoulder, taking in the bareness of everything, and my grip on the door tightened.

“Uh—”

“It’s just for a minute. I need to talk to you about something. It’s really important.”

My curiosity was piqued. She wasn’t usually like this. Shy, unsure. Nervous.

Scared, almost.

As soon as it hit me that she wasscared, I stepped aside, not caring about the lack of decor in my house anymore.

“Yeah, of course. Come in.”

She made her way inside, her sweet scent whirling around the air as she passed, taunting me. I looked away as she took everything in. I didn’t want to see her judgement.

I locked the door seven times, because if I didn’t, there was no way I could focus on whatever she needed to say. When I turned, she was right there, just inches from me. I jolted back, not expecting her to be so close.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she rushed out, stumbling back a step. She nearly ran into the couch, but I grabbed her arm at the last second, stopping her.

“Sit down. Please.”

Before she hurt herself, dear god.

She sank onto the chair—mychair, and my teeth ground together. I had to keep calm. I couldn’t be a psychopath about her sitting in my chair. I had a perfectly fine couch right there I could use.

But as I sat down, it felt wrong under me. The cushions weren’t right, and the fabric clung to my pants in a weird way.I shot to my feet, startling her. She was still clutching that basket for dear life.

“Can you sit on the couch, please? That’s my chair.”

She blinked and looked down at it like she’d never seen one before. But slowly, she got to her feet and moved to the sofa. My chest loosened as I sat in my rightful spot.

I turned toward her, taking a deep breath. She tightened her grip on the basket. It was almost comical how much bigger it was than her.

I should’ve offered to take it, but I couldn’t do anything but stare at her.

Why was she in my house?

“So,” she breathed, laughing nervously. “I, well, I have baked goods for you.”

“You said that.”

“Right.” Another laugh, and I pushed my brows together.

“Willow, what’s wrong?” I asked softly. “Did someone hurt you? Are you alright?” I scanned her again, but I didn’t see any injuries. That didn’t mean anything, though. Someone could’ve done something to her that wouldn’t be visible.

My mind conjured up a million horrific scenarios, and I clenched my hands into tight fists. I didn’t want to think about any of them, but once they were there, they wouldn’t leave. They played on a loop in my mind, showing me things I desperately hoped weren’t true.

“I wanted to make you a proposition.” Her words caught me completely off guard.

“What?”

“A proposition—actually, it’s more of a favor.” She laughed again, but I didn’t understand what was so funny.

“A favor?” I repeated, and she nodded.

“Yeah. You see, my family is coming to town for my birthday in a few weeks?—”

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