Page 61 of Them Bones

Shane was still staring at her thighs and she fought to keep herself from pressing them together.

“Will you read some of it to me?” he asked.

She blinked, completely taken aback. He ran his eyes slowly up over her body, the same path she’d trailed with her hand, his gaze getting stuck on her collar bone.

“Why?” she blurted.

A strange expression crossed over his face, like he was embarrassed. He stayed quiet for a few minutes, just looking at her, seemingly searching her face for something.

“I can’t read,” he finally said.

She sat up slowly, shocked not only at what he was saying but that he was sharing something so personal. Shanenevershared,nevertalked about himself. Sometimes getting him to talk at all was like pulling teeth.

He grimaced a little and looked down at the floor.

“I mean… Icanread. I’m not a moron. I just can’trememberwhat I read. The words just… vanish. I remember seeing that book, on your nightstand, the first day I was here.Harry Potter and... something.I tried to read the back, see what kind of stories you like. But it just wouldn’t stick.” He looked back up at her. “It’s why I hated school. Dropping out was…” his face darkened but he shook it off “…a relief.”

Laney’s heart squeezed. She’d always assumed he’d gotten kicked out of school for fighting, or something. It had never occurred to her that he’d dropped out by choice, especially because he was so smart… Sometimes he helped her with her math and science homework and it was almost intimidating, how easily he understood it and how well he could explain it. He was always working it out in his head, and then backtracking to show her the steps.

“Well okay then,” she said, curling her legs under herself and propping the book open on the arm of the couch. He was looking at her intently. “But don’t like, stare at me while I read. And I’m not doingvoicesand shit.”

“Well it’s no good if you don’t do the voices,” he said wryly.

She stuck her tongue out at him and cleared her throat. “Chapter One: The Boy Who Lived…”

She could feel Shane smile, shifting his weight as he settled in, ignoring her request not to stare. There was a look of boyish delight on his face.

He seemed… happy.

She’d planned to dress indecently and flirt audaciously and if she was lucky, fenagle herself into his personal space for more than a fraction of a second.Make him sweat.She hadn’t planned onhappy.That word was such an oxymoron, when itcame to Shane. But as he watched her read, with a kind of youthful and unrestrained enthusiasm that was so unlike him, she found herself thinking that maybemaking him happywas suddenly the only thing she’d ever wanted to do. She just wished that he wanted to do it back.

Fucking Cary.

Her stomach squirmed uncomfortably like it always did whenever she thought about Cary. Shedefinitelydidn’t want Shane to be like her brother. But sometimes, when she smoked a joint and let her mind wander, she found herself wishing that Shane would treat her a little more like Cary did. Like she washis.

The squirming feeling amplified as she realized she was hoping that the guy she liked,reallyliked, would act more like herbrother.

Laney tried to tune out her brain, and her heart, but couldn’t help but wonder if maybe the reason why Shane wasn’t like that with her,wouldn’tbe like that with her, was that she was just too damn messed up. Like the Dursleys of Number Four Privet Drive, who didn’t want their no-good nephew mixing with their son.

KIM

Kim was exhausted. She’d just come off an 18-hour shift, and they’d had three ODs.

Funnily enough, from what she understood, there wasn’t much circulation of tainted powder going around. It was the opposite, in fact. Either there was a new outfit in town, or someone had stepped up their game because the powder was so good everyone kept going back for more, more, more and ending up in the back of her ambulance.

She dragged her tired body into the grocery store, hoping for a pre-made sandwich to eat in the car on the way home before she planned to pass out for at least ten hours.

When she got to the ready-made counter it was bare, only some wilted salads andonesandwich left. She reached for it at the same time as a tall man picked it up.

“Oh,” he said, “sorry. You want this?” He held it out for her.

“Uuuuuum…”

She was pretty sure that even if she wasn’t just coming off an emotionally draining double shift, she’d have had a hard time forming words around this guy. He was over six feet tall, towering over her, with dazzling green eyes and a jaw that plasticsurgeons could only ever hope to replicate. He wore a lazy, rakish grin that made her feel instantly aroused.

He was rumpled, like he’d just gotten out of bed despite being 9:00 at night. His blonde hair was a mess, and he was wearing a t-shirt that saidI Shaved My Balls For This.

Everything about him screamed ‘I just got laid.’

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