Page 25 of When the Smoke Clears

Or us.

Leah:

That’s it. We’re coming out there if you don’t message by dinner time.

Izzy:

I’m leaving in five to pick you up, Leah.

I roll my eyes at their wholly unnecessary escalation.

Me:

Jesus, calm down. I took a damn nap.

Leah:

You don’t have to be so snappy.

>devil face<

Izzy:

Did you talk to the cowboy?

Me:

OMG MOM, I will!!

And do not show up out here. I can’t be held responsible for my actions if you do.

“Everything okay?” Sutton’s warm voice draws my attention.

I lock my phone and lay it back on the table. “Yeah, just Izzy and Leah being overbearing as usual.”

He smiles softly. “You could do worse than a couple friends who check in on you.”

Raising my eyebrows at him, I slide my feet into my boots. “So could you.”

He grunts in response.

Dinner with Sutton’s parents is quieter than the last time we dined together. Andi is always one to fill the silence with words, but even she falls quiet a few times. Despite her protests, I help clean up after we eat.

“I won’t break if I load a few dishes into the dishwasher,” I promise her with a wink.

She shakes her head at me in that loving way mothers do. At least, the way I assume mothers do, because it’s a habit Nana had. Stephanie has never looked at me that way, with crinkled eyes and a tight mouth.

Michael retreats to his office after dinner. I don’t know what he makes of everything, but despite his quiet nature, I don’t get the impression he’s judging me.

As soon as the last dish is clean, Sutton whisks me back to his private area of the house. He showers while I change into his shirt from last night and apply a fresh bandage to my stitched body. I crawl into bed and wait for him to emerge, hoping that he’ll come out in just a towel, shaggy hair still dripping.

He does not.

He returns from the bathroom in dark, cotton, drawstring pants hung low on his hips. I’ve never seen him wear them before, and my mouth immediately begins to water. His perfect torso is dry, and each sculpted line is on display in the amber glow of the lamp as every shadow points lower to what’s hidden in his pants.

He pauses at the foot of the bed. “Behave.”

My cheeks heat and my lips part. “I’m just lying here, broken and helpless.” This elicits the most beautiful laugh from him, and his face lights up in the way I love. He’s truly an exceptionally handsome specimen of a man.

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