Page 81 of Devilry

“Oh, is that what we are?”

“Well, not if you don’t tell me who Elijah is.”

I raise my eyes to hers. “I see you got a good look then.”

“Pffft,” she scoffs. “Like you expected anything else.”

I keep folding clothes, a little too worried about what my face will give away.

“You’re really going to hold out.”

“There’s nothing to tell,” I lie.

“It’s fine. You gave enough away without saying anything, anyway.” Resigned, I look up at her. She smiles the second she knows she’s got my attention. “The Cole I know is a sex only type of guy. And that, my friend, was not a sex only smile.”

“Shut up with your woman logic,” I quip.

She raises her shoulders in excitement. “Well, I can’t wait till you decide to tell me about him.”

An unusual, unfamiliar feeling tightens my chest when Harper mentions sharing details of Elijah. Being tight lipped about our relationship is non-negotiable. I understand why, I just didn’t think it through enough to realize that not being able to display our connection would bother me.

“It’s new,” I concede. “And that’s all you’re going to get.”

“I can deal with that.”

Grateful she’s unusually agreeable, I change the subject.

“So, when are you going to move out of this place?” I prompt.

“I can’t,” she snaps, taking me by surprise.

What the hell was that?

Placing my shirt in a box, I stride around to the side of the bed. Sitting on the edge closest to her, I hold her stare.

“What is it?” I ask.

“I don't know what you're talking about.”

“You just bit my head off and I'd kinda like to know why.”

Hiding her gaze from me, Harper lowers her face. Shifting her shoulders away from me, her body language gets the point across, but it still upsets me to see her clamp up and put walls between us.

“I won’t push because I don’t like when someone does it to me,” I tell her. “But I’m a really good listener. Just ask my sister.”

She looks back at me and offers me a sad smile.

She waves me off. “I’m just being dramatic.”

“I’m down for drama. Just tell me when and where and I’ll be there for all of it.”

Scooting over, Harper wraps her arms around my bicep, snuggling into me. “You make me miss my brothers.” Tilting my head, I give her a soft kiss on the forehead. “Now that you’ve unofficially called me your brother, want to actually help me pack instead of watching?”

She laughs, her body shaking against mine. “Sorry, I’m just not that kind of sister.”

Snaking a hand behind my back, I grab a pillow and swiftly hit her in the face with it. “Thanks for nothing.”

“Cole,” she squeals, falling back on the bed in hysterics. Once we both stop laughing, Harper lets out a long sigh. “I should get going.”

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