“You’re not gonna die. You’re never gonna be an O’Dell, either.”
She looked back down at her book and after a minute, she smiled to herself.“Tell me every terrible thing you ever did…and let me love you anyway.”
“What?” Is it bad to say that the soft side of my little sister is making me extremely uncomfortable? I think I liked it better when I had Pop holding a knife to my throat.
“It’s something he wrote. Made me think of you and Shavonn. I see it. I know what got you interested in her, Malek. She’s definitely not her. But I swear, I feel like she would love you this way. She couldn’t be more perfect for you and vice-versa if you’d picked each other out in a fucking catalog.”
“It’s an idea that thrills me, Bridget…but I wouldn’t wish that on her. Lovin’ me is a death sentence. No matter what way you look at it.”
“Then why are we here?”
Because I can’t stay away.
Because every second we’re not giving each other hell, itfeelslike hell to me. Because I’ve felt the sun shining on my face for the first time in seven years and—
Seven years…
Seven.
“I’m gonna go take a shower.”
“Wait, you still haven’t told me what happened with Daddy.”
I walked past her into Seven’s bedroom, and felt my chest tighten up when I locked the bathroom door behind me. I leaned back against it, staring up at the ceiling and trying to get a fucking grip while my mind spun for a bit. Seven’s always been my lucky number. It was seven years before I got the sweet taste of revenge on my tongue after losing Shavonn. Everything can’t always be the luck of the Irish. Not the way my life has ended up. The mere thought that the girl I swear I’ve already got it bad for after just a week, stumbled into my life because of fate? That’s just fucking ludicrous. Even more so, when I add the idea that she’s just as open to some kind of future with me beyond what I’m asking her to do. I’m not used to this kind of seriousness anymore. The asshole I am and the nonchalance I filter my life with all stemmed from a loss I still haven’t gotten over.
But I just can’t leave her alone.
“She didn’t pass any of this onto you?”
I heard Bridget’s muffled voice through the bedroom door as I toweled off, and it sounded like she was talking through a mouthful of food. Seven’s home. And being in this bedroom listening to the two of them after taking a scalding hot shower suddenly feels extremely domestic. Oddly, I think I might like ita bit. I opened the door and cracked a smirk at Viper, downright giddy about the fact that she’ll only glance at me like she’s trying her best to hide the fact that everything I did to that pussy this morning is playing back through her mind. She might be fooling Bridget, but she’s not fooling me. That chest is flushed.
“I mean, I’ve watched her cook my whole life, so I know her secrets. I just don’t have her talent. Not really my forte.” She made herself busy in the kitchen and Bridget sat at the bar, stuffing her face with whatever was brought home for us. Smelled good.
“I’ve never had potatoes this good.”
Because she wasn’t fortunate enough to have Ma’s.
I banished that thought while I snuck up beside Seven at the kitchen sink.
“Shower’s free,” I winked.
“Could we talk for a sec?” I got a sideways look and gripped both sides of the towel as I hung it around the back of my neck. She looks bothered by something, and I’m wondering if my luck’s finally run out because of the move I made. Sure seemed like she enjoyed herself. “Alone?”
“Yeah.”
Bridget continued to eat, chewing while she watched us follow each other back to the bedroom. I closed the door behind me and leaned back on it while Seven flopped down on the end of her bed.
“If you need us to stay somewhere else, I told you I’d put her up in—”
“It’s not that. My mom busted you trying to sneak outta the house this morning.” I bit down on my lip, unable to hide my grin. Feels like being sixteen all over again. “It’s not funny, asshole.”
“Sorry.” I tried to straighten my face, but…failed. “You grounded?”
She sat up and sighed, rolling her eyes and it just made this whole being serious thing that much harder. “Would you grow up? No. But now you’ve got everybody wanting to figure out whatever this is, and that’s the last thing I need right now, Malek.”
“I didn’t see a single soul when I snuck through that house. I swear.”
“Yeah, well. Your stalker skills aren’t as good as your butchering. She saw you going to get your stupid milkshake. Fuck you for that, by the way.”
