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She laughed quietly. “Seems so. I’m kind of impressed we’ve managed it this long without anyone finding out.”
“Unless we count Auggie,” I reminded her.
“Auggie counts, but he’s a unique case. He knows how to be discreet and it’s not like he’s going to rat us out to your mom.”
That got a chuckle out of me. “Could you imagine?”
Luna snorted. “Honestly, he and Mama Marino would probably get along if she wasn’t completely scandalized by his job. Are you still taking pole classes with him?”
“Uh, sporadically? Things kind of fell by the wayside when I started my classes again, but I should see if I can squeak in some more with him.”
“Fuck yeah, you should. I want to see those thighs grip the pole like you’re trying to crush a watermelon.” Luna giggled, and a yawn overtook her a moment later. “The sleepies are starting to hit.”
“Then I guess we had better get you back.”
As much as I would’ve liked to keep walking with her, I knew she had to get up early. Before we came into sight of Sidney’s house, Luna turned and hopped into my arms, letting me cradle her thighs while she kissed me slow and deep in the shadows.
Her soft grin when her feet hit the ground again warmed me down to my toes.
Headlights nearly blinded me, and the car creeping at slow speeds past us was more than a little unnerving, but I couldn’t see who was in the driver’s seat. I tucked Luna behind me just in case, waiting until the glow of those lights had disappeared once more.
“Okay, let’s get you safely indoors.” I walked her up to the house next to Sidney’s, stealing one more kiss before I watched her disappear inside. Once she waved at me through the window, I turned back to my car and made the trip back home.
At no point in my life had I ever sat down with friends and had dinner with a lover. The fact that I was now, with Sidney and Allie across from me and Luca at my side, was bizarre in a way I couldn’t put into words. It didn’t matter that they didn’t know Luca and I were lovers. Double dates were not something I had ever done, and I knew that wasn’t what tonight was, but it felt like it nonetheless. It was just the four of us. While we had invited Nicky and her pack, they weren’t available to join.
What made it doubly strange was that it was the five-month anniversary of the first time Luca and I had been together. I wasn’t an anniversary kind of girl, but maybe that was because I had never gotten to a point where they felt like they mattered.
It was also my last night staying with Sidney and Allie. All of the security measures had been put in at my apartment building, the forensics team Luca had convinced me to hire had taken all of their samples, everything had been sterilized and returned, and the cleaning company had scrubbed the place top to bottom. I had no reason to stay any longer.
As awkward as it was to navigate living with other people, knowing that there were other bodies in the home was a comfort whenever I came home late. My apartment didn’t feel the same anymore. I had gone by briefly between the end of work and coming to dinner, and the oppressive emptiness had just about swallowed me whole.
Some things couldn’t be scrubbed away.
I was stuck between being furious that I wanted to leave and resigned to staying so I wasn’t letting anyone chase me out.
“You okay, Loons?”
I looked up from my food to see Allie watching me. “Sorry, got stuck in my head.”
“Is it something we could help get unstuck?”
“Just nervous about going back home.”
“You can stay with us as long as you like,” she insisted.
“Your heat starts in two weeks,” Sidney reminded her.
“Okay, well, you can stay at least another week, then. I won’t start getting weird until closer to.”
“We have extra bedrooms at the house,” Luca offered.
I looked at him as if he had grown an extra head.
Allie tapped her chin in thought. “Mama Marino is definitely not as fun as us, but I bet you she would be happy to fill one of those bedrooms for a while if you found it too uncomfortable to stay at your apartment.”
I could only imagine how awkward it would be to stay in the same house with Luca and his parents. “I don’t know if that would be the best idea.”
“You totally don’t have to,” Luca added. “Doesn’t hurt to have the option, though. Do either of your sisters have space?”
