Page 36 of Instinct & New Identity

“What if it goes horribly wrong?”

“What if it turns into marriage and babies and the best decision you ever made?”Valcountered.

I took a deep breath and really thought about that scenario. “I’mscared.”

She scoffed. “Duh.”

I smiled at her comment.Sheknew me so well, andIloved her for her honesty. “Youmay be right.”

“I’m always right and also pretty much the perfect sister.”

“And so humble,”Ijested back to her.

“Just think about it,”Valremarked. “Alright, enough sappy talk.Comehelp me paint my nails on my right hand, because whenItry to do it with my left, it looks likeIlet a drunk person do it.”

We both laughed, butIultimately decided to help her.

We spent the rest of the night catching up on her job at the pub, the new podcast she was listening to, and whether we really wanted to bringHarrytoVince’sfamily’sThanksgivingmeal tomorrow.Vince’smom had insisted we bring him.She’deven stopped by the pub a few days ago, corneringValinto promising to bringHarrywith her.

It was a good night, one thatIrealized bothValandIneeded.NowIjust needed to think about another important decision.Onethat related toVince.OrmaybeI’dput that decision off for a few more days.

Yeah, definitely putting it off.

14

CAT

I successfully avoidedVinceall night after our interesting kitchen encounter, and it was nowThanksgivingmorning.Ifell asleep inVal’sbed last night as we watched a movie together, thoughIspent most of the night restless, my mind choosing to think ofVinceinstead of getting sleep.

I woke up whenHarrydecided to plop down on top of my face.Somethinghe liked to do when he was either hungry or demanding attention.Sometimes, he also just did it because he’s a jerk.

This time, the jerk won, soIgot up and made my way out to the kitchen withHarryin tow to feed him as he demanded.Iheard the shower going and realizedValwas already up and getting ready.AsIwalked out from the hallway toward the kitchen island,IfoundVincestanding with his back up against the counter.Hewas scrolling on his phone, so he didn’t immediately see me, which gave me a chance to look him over privately.

He had slightly messier hair than usual, his five o’clock shadow now a thicker stubble, and he wore gray workout shorts and a navyT-shirt.TheT-shirt stuck to parts of him via sweat.Helooked so deliciously handsome.Thosemuscles filled out his shirt in all the right places.Thinkingback to his lips on mine yesterday brought chills throughout my body.

“Get your fill, or do you need more time to look me over?”Vince’sgravelly voice said even though he was still looking down at his phone.

How did he even knowIwas standing here?Shockedand a little embarrassed that he’d caught me,Icould feel my face warm.Hefinally looked up, and a big grin split across his face.

“H-Howdid you…”Istarted to ask.

“Harry only ever comes out here after one of you has opened the bedroom door,” he said while continuing to rake his eyes all over my body, making me feel likeIwasn’t fully clothed. “Also, your sister does everything loudly, soIfigured it was you creeping in here.”

The explanation made sense, andIrealized how much he paid attention to it since he made all those observations in a short period of time.

“I can’t tell if he likes me or not,”Vincesaid, looking down atHarrywho was staring atVincefrom across the kitchen like he was plotting his demise.

“Honestly, the fact that he even came near you means he likes you,”Iexplained.

“Yeah, but he glared at me the whole time and hissed.Ifthat means he likes me, what does he do if hedoesn’tlike me?”

“It’s best if you don’t know,”Iresponded dryly.

I grinned, knowing how evilHarrycould be when he wanted to be. “Justallow the sassy little dictator to do his thing, and you’ll be safe.”

Vince’s eyes grew larger, andIrealized maybeIneeded to makeHarryappear friendlier soVincedidn’t just give our cat away to his mom when we went there later today.

“Um, if you give him some treats from time to time, he’ll be putty in your hands in no time,”Ioffered.

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