Page 117 of Catching Feelings

“Thanks.” I sigh. “Miles got it for me after he fucked me so hard my other bed broke.”

“Um, what?” Riley says, stunned.

“You and Miles are fucking?” Kendall asks. “Please tell me you’ve washed these sheets.”

I shake my head. “It was a long time ago. This fall.”

“Wait. What? You slept with him months ago and never told us?” Kendall asks.

Riley smacks her arm. “Why don’t you back up and start from the beginning.”

And so I do. I tell them about our blooming friendship over the summer, the flirting, our dates that I didn’t realize were dates, then our two intense weekends in bed. Kendall asks for the specifics: how many orgasms, how big is his cock, is he good at oral.

Much to her dismay, all I tell them is how amazing he is. Attentive, caring, kind, gentle. And then I tell them about the online persona. How he knew who I was and got me to tell him my darkest secrets. Kendall begs for me to tell her the details of the messages, but all I offer her is a tease.

“We sexted a few times. It was...intense.”

“Okay, so he finally confesses to being Adam. I get that it was an asshole move on his part, but if he really didn’t act on any of what you guys talked about, do you still feel your relationship was built on lies?” Riley asks.

I scrunch my shoulders to my ears and drop them. “No. Not anymore. I ruined things between us.”

“I don’t believe that.” Riley strokes my arm.

“In case you haven’t picked up on this by now, I’m not exactly an open book. I don’t know how to talk about my feelings. How to be honest with my wants or even how to speak up and defend myself. Miles tried to get me to open up, but it’s all surface level stuff. I felt so free when I could write to him as Adam. I told him my innermost thoughts. Things I didn’t even realize about myself until the words came pouring out.”

“That’s good, though, isn’t it?”

“Maybe.” I don’t hold back and tell them about my family’s emotional abuse, the neglect, the doormat I’ve been my entire life.

“Holy shit. I’m glad I never met your sister. I would have throat punched her the first time I heard her say anything like that to you.”

“I’m pretty sure Miles was tempted as well. He came over when he learned she was staying here. He was really sweet. Even bought me a new couch when he learned I’d been sleeping on it.”

“How the hell could you sleep on it? It was barely big enough for two people to sit on it.”

“My sister needed my bed.”

“And you couldn’t share?”

“She says I thrash around.”

“Do you?”

“Not according to Miles. Unless we were, uh, both thrashing.”

“Okay, so you two have a great connection, which I totally predicted last year but then kind of forgot about it when I got caught up in Potato and our wedding and being a new mom.”

“You predicted us hooking up?” I lift my head from Kendall’s shoulder.

“Hell, yeah. Potato and I saw how he looked at you at the Super Bowl party. We’ve never seen him be so enthralled by a woman before.”

“You never said anything to me about it.”

“It was a hunch. I’m sorry I didn’t pick up on it this past year. I’ve been so caught up in myself and Nash and Paisley.”

“Kendall.” I squeeze her arm. “You deserve to be caught up in your new family. I’m so happy for you and love seeing you radiate joy. Being a wife and mother look so good on you. Don’t apologize for making them your number one priority. That’s how family should be.”

“Agreed,” Riley says. “And I can’t say how much I dislike your family for hurting you all these years.”

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