Page 43 of Chasing Secrets

When his mouth did meet mine, I eagerly waited for him to consume me like he had the night before. I waited for that frantic need to return his kiss. But he merely slanted his mouth over mine and left me with one sweet, soft kiss that was entirely different from the night before.

It was a whole lot fucking scarier was what it was.

It wasn’t an I-need-to-rip-your-clothes-off-right-now-and-fuck-you kind of kiss. It was so much more.

A wave of panic washed over me. Ford was the only other person I’d ever kissed, and ithadbeen the I-need-to-fuck-you kind of kiss even though we hadn’t known that back then. What Lincoln had just done to me was so bad.

So fucking bad.

He continued to hold my face by keeping his hand at the back of my neck. He ran the thumb of his free hand along my cheek, right along the path of the tears I’d shed for him. When his eyes met mine again, it was like he’d somehow paralyzed me even though all I wanted to do was run.

“Thank you,” Lincoln said softly. He looked a mess with his loose hair covered in leaves and his red-rimmed eyes all puffy. But that lightness I thought I heard in his voice was in those tired eyes too. And his words… those two simple words threatened to steal away all the cold that had started to consume my body again. They were threatening to steal away the Theo he thought was strong like his amazing little brother.

Strong like himself.

I tried desperately to find the right mask to drop into place so I could get out of there, but it just wasn’t there.

“Sure, no problem,” I said stupidly as I pulled free of Lincoln’s hold. I wanted so badly to tell him I wasn’t trying to make light of what he’d told me but the need to escape was stronger. I knew what he would want next. He’d want me to give up one of my own secrets, or maybe even all of them.

Or he’d want an explanation about my reaction to his touch the night before.

“Theo?”

“I’ll head back first so we don’t get to the house at the same time,” I said even as I rushed into the woods, weaving in and out of trees.

“Theo!” Lincoln shouted from somewhere behind me.

He sounded confused and pissed. I didn’t blame him but all that did was make me increase my stride until I was rushing through the trees so fast that limbs were scratching my arms. It was then that I remembered my hoodie. I let out a cry of relief when I realized it was still tied around my waist. I shrugged it on as best I could as I made my way back to the house. I couldn’t hear Lincoln anymore, but I couldn’t decide if I was relieved or disappointed about that.

“Fuck,” I whispered to myself. What the hell was happening? I’d come to Ford’s house to escape a fucked-up situation in the city and plan my next steps, and here it was less than two weeks later and one man had managed to turn my entire world upside down.

Once I reached the path that led back to the main house, I looked behind me to see if I could see Lincoln, but he was nowhere in sight. I kept my pace brisk but slowed enough to catch my breath so no one would question why I was breathing like I’d just been running in a marathon.

In a hoodie, no less.

I could feel the sweat streaming down my back and I wanted nothing more than to rip the offending garment off, but I couldn’t risk anyone seeing my arms.

As I neared the house, I saw Cam’s police-issued SUV along with a truck I didn’t recognize. An unreasonable jolt of fear went through me before I managed to catch myself. No one knew I was here. My parents no longer lived in the area and the chances that someone from Pelican Bay would know who I was were slim to none.

“Theo?”

I stopped short at the sound of Ford’s voice and scanned the area before I found him sitting on the bench by the fire pit. He wasn’t alone, either. I glanced over my shoulder again but still no Lincoln, so I managed to pull myself together enough to plaster a relaxed look on my face.

“Hey,” I responded.

“Everything okay?” Ford asked as he and the other guy rose to their feet.

Fuck, I needed to get control of myself because apparently my ability to act like I didn’t have a care in the world was starting to falter.

“Yeah. Just took a little walk,” I said, adding in a smile for good measure. “It’s so pretty here, Ford.”

“Theo, this is Sawyer Brower,” Ford responded as he motioned to the man next to him. The guy was quite good-looking though his hair was an odd mix of brown with considerably lighter roots.

I recognized the name, so I said, “The vet.” I nodded in greeting and added, “It’s nice to meet you.”

I wanted nothing more than to escape but I knew the formalities weren’t through yet, especially if I wanted to convince both men that I reallyhadjust been taking a walk.

“You too,” Sawyer said. I felt something go through me as the man looked at me, but I passed it off as how tense I was about Lincoln appearing out of nowhere.

---