Page 56 of Witch Please

Maya agreed. “Reasonable. No sex in public spaces, no roaming around naked. If you keep it in your room, I’m fine. And to make it lesseekright now, I’ll take Doris out for a long run. But damn, bro, give me a heads-up next time.”

“You assume she’ll see me again after I let this happen,” he said mournfully.

“Titus, the woman choseyouover hot food. Stop being a downer.”

“Sorry. I’m disturbingly bad at…” He waved a hand toward the stairs. “All of this. With her, though, it doesn’t matter. I won’t walk away unless she gives up on me first.”

“That’s quitter talk. Oh, and Titus?” Maya’s tone turned teasing.

“What?” he asked warily.

“Well done. She’s fire hot.”

Oh God. I wish my sister didn’t know that about…my girlfriend?In all honesty, he didn’t even know if he could use that word yet. Maybe they were supposed to eventually have a conversation about it after dating for a while and decide if they were exclusive. With every fiber of his being, he wanted that already, but Danica might not. He didn’t know how she saw him, if she considered him a rebound fling as her cousin seemed to suspect.

Hell, I’m getting too much in my own head when I have a seriously sexy woman waiting in my bedroom.

He scrubbed at his beard with a flustered hand. “Please don’t ever say that again. Don’t even think it.”

“Deal. Doris, let’s go, girl! Daddy has a job to do.”

I might never hear the end of this.

Fortunately, the dog didn’t care what else was up when Maya waved the leash. Titus made his escape, bolting upstairs like embarrassment could tackle him from behind. Danica was still fully dressed when he opened the door, not that he expected otherwise after the debacle earlier. She’d perched on his bed and was reading one of his books. Bending to read the cover, he saw she’d chosen one of his favorite romances.

“I love that one.”

She glanced up with a tremulous smile, and he noticed the tear streaks on her cheeks.Crap, she’s been crying? I’m such an asshole.Quickly, he settled beside her and wrapped his arms around her. His heart tried to ricochet out of his sternum when she cuddled against his chest, taking comfort instead of shoving him away. That was what he feared most: Danica getting tired of his ineptitude and bailing, like everyone always did.

“Please don’t feel bad. If anything, this is my fault, and Maya’s totally fine. She was laughing about it when she took Doris out for a jog.”

“She probably made herself scarce to spare me further shame. Your sister is a sweetheart, and I’m—”

“Amazing,” he cut in.

“I’m the only one who could end up like that, trying to be sexy.”

His throat went dry, remembering just how hot and powerful she’d looked. “Trust me, if Maya hadn’t been here, we’d have already done it once, and I’d be resting up for round two. You seduced the hell out of me. The timing was just off.” He hesitated, wondering if this would make her feel better or worse. “It’s not just you. The first time someone other than me tried to touch my junk, I almost got arrested.”

She stared up at him for a few incredulous seconds. “Okay, I have to hear this story. Tell me everything.”

If baring past humiliation could cheer her up, Titus would fall on that grenade. “I was a senior in high school, and I’d just realized…” Hmm, best to get it out now. Hopefully she wouldn’t have a problem with it. “That I’m bi. There was a boy I’d been hanging out with, although I didn’t realize Ilikeliked him at the time. We took some beers to the reservoir, made out a lot, and just as he stuck his hand down my pants, there was a knock on the windows we fogged up. You can imagine the rest.”

Truthfully, it had been worse than he was letting on due to the rumors that went around in a small town. Danica stroked his cheek. “Did they call your parents?”

“My mom, thankfully. She lectured me about the beer, but she didn’t say a word about anything else.”

“I bet it was tough for a while. Small towns have a lot to say about that sort of thing.”

Surprised, he studied her face, but he saw only warmth and kindness, regret for what he might have suffered. “It blew over. We weren’t the only kids groping each other, and the QB got arrested for doping.”

“Sportsball is always big drama.” Softly she leaned in and kissed him on the corner of his mouth, nuzzling into his beard to find it. “Thank you. That can’t be an easy memory to share, and you did it to make me feel better. I…don’t deserve you.”

“Why would you say that?”

For a moment, her expression was haunted, holding more secrets than he could grasp, and then her gaze heated, glittering as her look raked him from head to toe. “It would be a waste not to seize the opportunity we’ve been given. Don’t you agree?”

Sheer longing cascaded through him. “Carpe diem,” he whispered.

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