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“It’s okay. Just bring her here. I’ll be waiting.”
ChapterNine
Shejust about had time to pull on a pair of shorts and a crop t-shirt before she saw the headlights illuminate her small drive. Grace ran down the stairs and slid her bare feet into her sneakers and pulled open the door, not bothering to check herself in the mirror.
Mostly because she knew she’d look sleep ridden.
She flicked on the outside lamp as Michael climbed out of the car. For a moment, he froze in the light, his eyes connecting with hers.
She smiled at him and he smiled back. Weird how that made her heart jump.
“You need help bringing her in?” she asked, not bothering to wait for him to offer. Her nose wrinkled as soon as he opened the passenger door, the sweet cloying smell of whatever Sabrina had drunk earlier sticking to her nostrils.
“I’m sorry,” Sabrina told her as soon as Michael lifted her out. “I didn’t know where else to go.”
It hadn’t escaped her notice that Michael was carrying his sister like she was as light as a feather.
“It’s okay,” she told Sabrina. “Try not to worry. Let’s just get you inside and cleaned up.”
“Where do you want me to take her?” Michael asked. He glanced down at her legs and up again.
She liked that he noticed her. Too much.
“Let’s go to my bathroom,” Grace said, closing the passenger door. “You got the keys for your car?”
“Yeah, it’ll lock automatically.”
She led the way to her bathroom. Michael had to walk through her bedroom to get there, and she felt strangely vulnerable. The covers on her bed were thrown to the side from getting up fast.
“Okay sweetie,” Grace said to Sabrina after Michael had set her gently on the tiled floor. “We’re gonna get you undressed and into the shower and then you can sleep, okay?” She looked at Michael. “Could you grab a towel from the closet right outside my room for me? And maybe a long t-shirt if you can find one? There should be a few in my bedroom closet.”
He nodded, walking out to her bedroom, and she turned back to Sabrina, who was half-slumped against the bathroom tiles.
“Just hang in there,” she told her little cousin. “You’re doing great.”
“Michael must hate me,” Sabrina groaned. “I’m such a mess.”
“He’s your brother. He loves you. He’s just worried about you.”
She could hear the noise of her closet door opening. Her face felt hot at the thought of him in her bedroom, rummaging through her clothes.
Not because she hated it, but because she liked it. Liked the idea of him in there.
“Have you found a towel?” she called out. Sabrina slid down further and Grace held her up. She needed to get this shower started.
“Uh, yeah. Just getting a t-shirt.”
She made sure Sabrina was stable, then walked over to turn on her shower. It always took a while for the water to heat up at night. Then she reached through the spray to grab the shampoo and shower gel from the shelf. It would be easier for her to have them on this side of the shower.
“Okay, let’s get this done,” she muttered, then bent over to tug at Sabrina’s jeans. It’s only when she heard Michael clearing his throat that she realized he’d walked into the view of her own ass jutting up at him.
“You need help?” he asked, as she tugged at the denim.
She looked over her shoulder at him, her hair swaying with the movement.
“Maybe I should do this bit?” she suggested. “I don’t think you want to see Sabrina half clothed.”
He nodded gratefully. “Yeah. That would be good.”
