Page 43 of Broken Surrender
“Emergency rations,” he said.
A smile spread across my face. He might have been willing to use and degrade me, but when it came to his little sister, he cared about her. And in his own way, he cared about me too.
Corinne snatched the carton out of his hands. “You are a cliché bastard,” she said. I laughed, lowering my eyes. He handed Corinne a spoon, then offered one to me.
“Don’t tell me you don’t eat chocolate,” he said.
I took the spoon. “Only every chance that I get,” I said.
“Then let’s pig out,” Corinne said. She stabbed the ice cream with her spoon, eating a bite. Then she whispered, “Thanks.”
“What are big brothers for?”
CHAPTER 14
Desmond
Another drop of brown ice cream dropped from Lena’s spoon, landing on her dress. She looked ridiculous like that. An expensive designer dress. Ice cream splattering her body like a canvas. Her hair was a mess, her makeup faded. But she looked beautiful.
“Eating ice cream in the bathroom,” Corinne snarked. She licked the back of her spoon. “This isn’t exactly what I planned on doing tonight.” She addressed Lena. “Why are you wearing that, anyway? You two go to a fancy gala or something?”
“Something like that,” I said. Lena blushed, and I swear I wanted to kiss the shyness right off of her. “You want to move this to the theater?”
Corinne blinked rapidly at me. “I don’t have to hide?”
I shook my head. One of the rooms I had requested when designing this house was a room where Corinne could hang out that wasn’t in the basement. It was a lounge designed to double as a movie theater. No windows. Thick recliner chairs. Perfect for movie hangouts and staying out of sight.
I motioned to the hallway. “Let’s go.”
The theater had black sound-proofed walls, a surround speaker system, and a ‘bar’ full of every non-alcoholic mixer a teenager could want. And snacks. Hordes of snacks.
“I can’t believe you’ve been keeping this from me,” Corrine said.
Lena went to the computer next to the projector. “What movies do you have in here?”
Corinne trampled her to get there first. “Please tell me we haveZombie Versus Sharks 2.”
The two of them went through the media library, discussing the merits of each choice. Lena even instructed Corinne on the ‘classic’ nature of some of the older titles, even though she wasn’t that much older than Corinne. But in the end, despite my protests,Zombie Versus Sharks 2won. While the two of them drooled over the heartthrob actors as they slaughtered computer-generated living dead and gigantic sharks, giggling to each other the whole time, I sat at the back of the room, watching them. I had thrown this curveball at Lena, and she hadn’t questioned it. In fact, she had accepted Corinne with open arms.
So much for getting my priorities straight.
Perhaps I did want to protect her. She was dedicated until you wronged her, and I could respect that. Lena comforted Corinne in a way that I never could, no matter how hard I tried, and that was invaluable to me. There was no way that Lena should have trusted me, but she was here. She was mine. Having her around meant that I had one more person to protect, thus giving me more areas to guard. But with her, I almost knew where to go from here.
After the movie, Lena walked Corinne back to her bedroom downstairs, and Corinne gave her the full tour, explaining each movie poster and the weird knick-knacks she had collected over the years, and even introduced our parents’ ashes on the bookshelf. I stayed by the doorway, giving them space.
When Lena reached the top of the stairs, Corinne shouted: “Remember: you promised.”
What did Lena promise? “I know,” Lena said, grinning. “Goodnight.”
I motioned for her to follow me and we made our way to my bedroom, one of the few places where we could have complete privacy. “What promise?” I asked.
“That I would visit her.” She smiled, so damn relaxed, it made me stop. “I hope you don’t mind.” I let out a breath, keeping myself in check.
“So that’s what the panic button is for,” Lena said. “You got them for Corinne.”
“Did you find yours?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Honestly? I put it under your giant toy bag.” She lowered her eyes. “But it’s gone.”
