“You and I have different methods of processing.”
“Please.” Holly held up a hand. “Please, let me get this out, or else I’ll run into my room crying, and I won’t come out for a week.”
Trevor closed his mouth and nodded for her to continue.
“I’ve had a weird life,” Holly said. “Even before all of this Maiden and shifter crap, my life has been weird. I’ve always felt different, but for the longest time, I wrote it off as conceit and didn’t think anything of it. I isolated myself because I couldn’t relate to people the way my sisters could. Everyone loves them, especially me. The whole family is puzzled over how I came out so off when my sisters hit the mark.
“I got used to being alone. That’s why I didn’t mind living in California when my whole family, except for Pearl, lives in Louisiana. I didn’t mind dedicating all of my time to work and online classes. I was alone, but I was busy. I was growing. It was fine.
“Then I came here. I met Johnny, Keller, and Garret. Suddenly, I had a support system that I’d never had before. Well, that’s not true. My family is supportive as hell when they’re not keeping secrets about our magic-infused family history. I still don’t think my sisters know. Anyway—wait, where was I?”
Trevor remained silent.
“You’re allowed to answer that.” Holly sighed.
“Magic history. Support system,” he recited.
“Right! Thank you. Go back to being quiet, please. I’m almost done,” she said. “I learned about who I am. I found my people. Not just friends. Not just family. But my people. I wasn’t alone anymore. Then…shit happened. I’m here. I’m trapped. My support system, the one I’d just gotten used to having, is gone. Have you ever had a really bad splinter?”
Trevor nodded.
“You know how when you pull it out, you don’t feel anything at first? But then, after a moment or two, the soreness starts?”
Trevor nodded again.
“That’s how I feel right now. I feel like the big, sore, gaping hole left behind after a splinter is gone. I know it’s a crap analogy. It’s even worse than your melted candle one, but it’s all I’ve got right now because I’m alone again. I didn’t think it would hurt to be alone again. I thought, if the day ever came, that it wouldn’t be hard to go back to how things were. It is hard. It’s really fucking hard, okay?”
“Okay,” Trevor murmured.
Holly lost her train of thought the moment she looked into his mismatched eyes. The pale eye, the same color as Elise’s eyes, shone in the low light. The dark one glittered like a gem at the bottom of a murky well.
“It’s my birthday,” Holly sniffled. “It’s my birthday. I feel alone. I don’t have a clue what’s going to happen to the men I love or me. Yes, I said men. I love them all. You can judge me for that if you want. I won’t be mad.”
“I’m not judging you,” he said. “What do you need?”
Her composure cracked. The sobs came hard and fast, with no end in sight. She didn’t resist when Trevor put his arms around her. She clutched his shirt and held herself against him.
He held her close, but not nearly tight enough.
She wanted to be crushed so tightly that she wouldn’t have room to feel anything else.
“Holly, I’m not a mind reader,” he said gently. “Tell me what you need, and I’ll give it to you.”
She looked up at him. He watched her with a sharp, careful gaze.
“Just make it stop, okay?” she pled. “Just for a little while. Just until my birthday is over. Please?”
“Okay.” Trevor nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
CHAPTER TWELVE—HOLLY
As soon as Trevor said okay, Holly felt the world lift from her shoulders.
He held her close and walked backward into his room. He released Holly for just long enough to close the door then he went right back to holding her.
Holly looked up at him.
Their eyes locked.
Trevor went still.
Holly realized he was waiting for her.
She stretched up and kissed him without hesitation. If she hesitated, she’d start thinking. If she started thinking, she’d end up right back in her room again. Alone and crying.
No more thinking. No more hesitation.
Trevor released his grip on her just so he could take her face in his hands. He kissed her with such depth and passion that every lingering thought fled from her mind. Even the tiny little voice in the back of her head that never shut up, the one that cautioned her against getting close to Trevor, fell silent.
If she wasn’t meant to get close to him, why did she only want to get closer?
He resumed his backward steps until his knees hit his mattress. He fell back slowly, keeping Holly against his chest.
This wasn’t what she expected.
She thought this would be a flurry of torn clothes and rough kisses. She didn’t expect him to be so gentle. She moved her legs so that they rested on either side of him and sat up.
He ran his hands over her body, gripping the hem of her shirt. She placed her hands on his and urged him to remove her top faster. There was a time for slow and gentle. This wasn’t the time. Trevor took the hint. He tore the shirt from her body as she worked on the buttons of his.
“What is it with dudes up here and flannels?” Holly muttered. “Too many damn buttons.”
“Allow me.” Trevor took hold of his shirt and ripped it so cleanly that the buttons flew off. They clattered onto the floor. One bounced off Holly’s arm.
“That works.” She leaned forward, pressing
