Page 13 of Following Their Heart

“I swear it, as well,” Shep says, nodding his blond head.

Cora’s holding both our hands again. “The only promises I want are that we’llallmake it through this. Each one of us. But I know you can’t promise that. No one can know the future.”

“Except Rev,” Shep says.

Cora sits up straight. “Yes.” An energy of purpose fills her. “That’s right! I almost forgot! That’s why you two are here tonight!”

That gets my attention. “Rev is why we’re here tonight?” I look between her and Shep, and Shep looks just as curious as I am.

“I had this dream,” she says, and she pops up off the couch and begins pacing over the shag carpet. The low coffee table between us holds the only source of light. As she paces, her shadow glides across the wood-grain paneling. “You both were in it.” She pauses and frowns. “I mean, I don’t have a Gift, so it probably doesn’t mean anything. But Rev thinks if we can recreate what I saw in the dream, maybe it’ll help, somehow.” A hopeful expression brightens her face.

“All right,” I say. “Tell us about it.”

“But come sit with us while you do,” Shep says, arm outstretched.

“Yeah. What he said.” I hold out an arm, too, and Cora comes to us without hesitation.

If this whole doubling-up thing is because of a dream she had, maybe that means she’s cool with me. I hope so. I would kill for another day with her like the one we had before the others got back from the scavenge.

Having her all to myself for a short time made me forget the shit storm of the Virus and the past two years and the fact that the World is utterly fucked. Being with Cora made me feel normal again, like just a guy with a girl, having fun, giggling and playing with each other’s bodies. I felt close to someone for the first time in a long time. For the first time in a long time, I forgot what a failure I was with Frannie.

Cora choosing Shep to join us tonight had me thinking maybe she didn’t feel that closeness the way I did. But when she slips her hand into mine and links our fingers together, Ifeelher trust and affection. I know I don’t have anything to worry about.

As long as I know Cora and I are cool, I can handle sharing. In fact, sharing can have its advantages. “So,” I say, wondering if she got a taste of those advantages in her dream. “What were Shep and I doing in this dream of yours,chér?” When she blushes, I know my instincts were right. I put my mouth by her ear. “Or should I say,whowere we doing?”

Cora looks up at me through her eyelashes. She is coyness embodied.

Oh yeah. It wasthatkind of dream.

“Were we kissing these sweet lips?” With my free hand, I trace her parted lips, and she playfully nips at the pad of my finger.

“Maybe,” she says.

“Were we undressing this delectable body?”

“No,” she says, a twinkle in her eye. “I was already undressed.”

A strangled groan comes from Shep. Cora’s hand is on his knee, and his big hand covers hers.

“Mmmm, I like the sound of that,chér.Maybe we should continue this conversation in your bed.”

“Yes,” she says. “That’s where the dream happened. At least that’s where the first part happened.”

“Where did the second part happen?” Shep asks, and it’s all I can do not to smack the back of his head. When a girl agrees to go to bed with you, you don’t change the subject.

“Later,” I say, and I scoop Cora to me and take her to the behemoth of a bed filling up her small room. The blinds are closed, and it’s pitch dark until Shep catches up with the lantern. “I want to hear more about the first part of the dream.” I lay her down and crawl over her. “But first, I think we need to get you undressed. You know, for the reenactment.”

She giggles as I kiss her neck and lift the hem of her shirt.

Beside the bed, Shep shifts from foot to foot. The guy’s not exactly smooth-as-silk with the ladies. That’s all right. I’m smooth enough for the both of us.

I scoot to Cora’s side, making room for him on her other side. “Put down that lantern and climb up,” I say.

He’s on the bed in record time. I’m focused on slipping Cora’s shirt over her head, but I hear thethud-thudof his boots hitting the floor. Oh yeah. I should take mine off too. “Help our girl out of these jeans, yeah?”

“My pleasure.” Our resident Norwegian is good at taking instruction. That gives me an idea.

It’s not long before I’m back on the bed in just my jeans. There’s nothing but a pink bra and polka-dot panties standing between me and the perfect woman.

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