Page 123 of Creeping Beautiful

It was fuckin’ hot.

And then… then Adam kissed her back.

He put both hands on her cheeks and kissed her like she was the love of his life. He kissed her like he was about to rip her clothes off and fuck her up against the front door.

He kissed her like Donovan and I weren’t even there.

And that’s the day I knew… Indie wasn’t the only one with secrets.

We all had them, didn’t we?

Indie Anna Accorsi had played a starring role in our fantasies since she was ten years old, but up until now they’d all been dress rehearsals.

That day of her twentieth birthday?

That was opening night.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO - INDIE

If I had to choose between them, I would die. There is just no way I could only choose one.

I need them all.

I don’t even care if that’s selfish. I want them all.

And if I thought I could have Nathan St. James, then I would. I would have him too. I would keep all four of them because they are each different, and unique, and give me something I can’t get from anyone else.

Every single way they fill me up has been written in this journal. So if it’s not clear by now, there is nothing left to be said. There are simply no words to describe my need.

But I am afraid that you will see this and you won’t understand. And I don’t care if you are Nathan, or McKay, or Adam, or Donovan. I need you to understand.

How many other ways are there to describe Nathan St. James? He is my boy next door. He is my best friend. He is the firefly-catcher, and the treehouse-builder, and the swamp-charmer.

Oh, I know what Adam would say. “He was running around on you back in high school.” Yes, Adam. He told me all about what he did. He told me that you caught him. He told me what you said to him. And I get it. If Nathan loved me best, he would be more careful with my heart. He’d be like McKay.

McKay is so very, very careful with me. McKay is my soul. He is my trainer. He is the dinner-maker, and the hair-washer, and the nightmare-chaser.

But McKay will never admit he has always loved me. That I am his first, and only, one true love.

So I have Donovan. Donovan is careful too. He is my mind-reader. My note-taker. He is the light in the dark, he is the filler of holes, he is the voice in my head that keeps me calm during my stormy nights of insanity.

But he’s part-time. We all know it. He will never take me with him to LA and I wouldn’t want to go. This is my home. Right here. This is where I belong.

And that’s where Adam comes in. Adam. My owner. My knight. My protector. He is my partner in crime. The fixer of mistakes, the leader of us all, the untouchable one.

He is like a mean old dog who will bite anyone who gets too close.

Everyone but me.

He lets me get close.

But will he share?

Will any of them share?

Only if I make them.

So this is how I made them…