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Shaking her head, she pulled away. How could he not understand? We’re fighting because I like him, and he doesn’t like me back. “It’s probably better this way. We should’ve just been friends from the beginning. I shouldn’t have messed with it.” She went to her door and held it open, inviting him to leave.
He walked over to her and threaded both hands into her wet hair, gazing into her eyes. “We’re more.”
She let go of the door.
“Tell me you know that. Tell me, Mia.”
He was messing with her head. Mia sighed. “Alexi, don’t. I like you, and you don’t like me the same way. Simple. We need to back off.”
“I do like you. I adore you. I just don’t want to. And, yes. we should back off.”
Chapter 24
Adore? Mia’s heart raced. She had no clue what to make of that. Back off? He pulled her against him. She put her arms around his waist and rested her forehead against his shoulder. She held on tight with mad confusion.
Alexi wrapped one arm behind her back and bent to put one beneath her knees. Lifting her, he carried her out into the game room and over to their usual spot on the couch. Mia lay across his chest with one arm wrapped around his neck and the other hand resting against his heartbeat.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered into her ear against her hair. “Sorry I didn’t know you were out there. Didn’t know to wait.”
It was the sweetest thing ever. She squeezed him tightly, but didn’t say anything; she didn’t know what to say. They lay entwined around each other for a long time, not speaking. She didn’t want to move and had to think of the right thing to say. He was warm and comfortable. Eventually Mia’s arms loosened, and she fell asleep.
Alexi didn’t let her go.
Mia awakened on top of Alexi’s chest. She swallowed against her dry throat and looked down at Alexi. He is even beautiful when he sleeps. No drool, no snoring, so unfair. She rubbed a hand across the side of his face. It was rough. He needed to shave. In sleep, he turned his face toward her palm. She eased up without waking him and went to her bathroom. One look in the mirror reminded her she should never go to bed without drying her hair. It was a rumpled, crimped mass. She hopped back in the shower and then brushed her teeth, performing all her nighttime rituals one more time.
After drying her hair, she checked the clock. It was still early, so she got dressed in her favorite blue sleep shorts with a tank top and went back out to the game room. No Alexi. She grabbed chilled water from the minifridge. It helped. She knocked against his door and peeked in. Alexi sat against the headboard staring across the room. He wore shorts and a T-shirt and looked as tired as she felt.
She didn’t move. “May I come in?”
“Yes.”
Mia closed the door behind her, but she didn’t know what to say, so she hovered just inside. Alexi patted the sheet. Mia closed her eyes a second and stepped forward. After placing the water on his nightstand, she climbed onto the bed. The mattress dipped at her weight, and the clean sheets smelled like a rainy day. She sat cross-legged facing him, meeting his eyes.
“Tell me you know I’m not letting you go,” Alexi said.
Mia looked down at her hands. Wow.
“What I said about backing off was crap. I won’t watch you date other guys.” He reached out and took her hand. She curled hers into his.
Alexi tightened his grip. “You said you don’t want to look at me across a family table if we break up.”
Mia nodded.
With his free hand, he brushed her hair back from her face and tilted her chin up. “I don’t want to look over at you at that same table and think we didn’t even try.”
Her heart leapt and she bit her lip to contain herself. She looked at his sincere blue-gray eyes, and his beautiful face. She couldn’t resist him, always wanted him. Could they really try this? A flash of Hope’s worried face from last night crossed her mind. “Hope and Niko can’t know.”
Alexi frowned and shook his head.
“It’s not a secret. Everyone else can know, but if we mess this up, it’s not Hope’s problem to worry about, okay?”
He looked at her in a considering manner and slid a hand from the top of her shoulder down her arm to her hand. He ran his thumb across her palm.
Mia lifted his hand within hers to her lips and kissed it. Alexi nodded. She leaned toward him and said, “Yes,” against his lips.
Alexi kissed her.
Chapter 25
