I mumble a goodbye, my eyes never straying from Chase.
He finally moves, his hand reaching out to lightly push my stomach, walking me back until I’m pressed against the wall. My heart dances so wild in my chest I’m afraid I’ll pass out. He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into his body, my breasts grazing his chest. My nipples harden at the contact, and a pulse of arousal shoots through me. He leans down and takes my lips in a kiss, different from the ones last night—sweeter. Still, when his tongue teases my mouth, my body vibrates with want.
He pulls away before coming back for a quick peck. Once… twice. “I’ve been thinking of your lips all damn day,” he growls, leaning in like he can’t stay away.
I think I might burst from happiness.
My arms wrap around his neck, pulling him down so I can deepen the kiss. He groans, his arm tightening around my waist as he lifts me. His hips push into mine, and I feel the outline of him through his jeans, hard and thick. I moan into his mouth, the ache sharpening between my legs. I think I might die if he doesn’t get inside me, but my head stops me from losing myself completely. I’m not ready for that. Not yet. Not until I know he won’t push me away again.
I pull back, his lips following mine in protest.
“Chase, we gotta stop. I don’t wanna be here when Mama and Daddy come home.”
He grips his hair, stepping back. “Shit, okay. We can go to my place to chill. Sam took Anna to work with him today, they’ll be gone awhile.”
“What about Lily?” My stomach knots thinking of what her reaction will be to Chase and me. Like everyone else, she assumes we grew apart as we got older, not realizing her brother was busy tangling up my soul with his.
He shrugs. “What about her?”
“I mean… is she home?”
“Probably. Who knows with her these days?” His jaw clenches, sadness sweeping over his features. “I’m trying not to be so overbearing. Let her live her life.”
Guilt stabs me for not voicing my worries. I promise myself that after we handle her finding out about us, I’ll bring it up. One thing at a time, Alina.
“Do you, ya know, wanna tell her about us?” I break eye contact, peering down at my pink-sparkled toes. I guess the rips he caused on my insides are a little deeper than I thought because part of me is terrified he’ll want to keep me a secret.
He tilts my chin up with his index finger. “I plan to tell everyone about us. I told you last night, I’m done fighting this. It’s us, now. Always.”
My body releases the tension, relief flooding my veins.
He pecks my lips again, trailing his hands down my arms until our fingers lace together. “How you feeling today, Goldi?”
I smile up at him. “Just right.”
He smirks, grabbing my hand and leading me out the door, making our way to his house.
Lily is home, and she does not take the news well.
I’m not sure what I expected, but it wasn’t this. I watch her pace the living room, feet moving so fast I’m not sure how the rest of her body keeps up. She looks tired today, a raggedness to her features I’m not used to seeing her wear. Her dark brown hair hangs limp and stringy, no makeup on her face. The antithesis of what Lily Adams usually represents.
“Lil, come on,” Chase pleads, standing in front of her.
She stops pacing. “Don’t you ‘come on’ me, Chase. What am I supposed to do with this? I was having an okay day. Then in walks my brother, the one person I could always count on to put me first, and I find out my whore of a best friend has been stealing him out from under me all this time?”
My heart drops through my stomach. Did she just call me a whore?
Chase cuts his hand through the air sharply. “Put you first? Lil, you haven’t let me put you first in a while. Every time I try, you call me overbearing, so don’t play that card with me. And don’t call her that. You don’t get to act like you’re a victim, here. This has nothing to do with you, Lil.”
“This has everything to do with me!” Her voice grates my eardrums, making me flinch. “She’s supposed to be my best friend! And you… you are supposed to be my brother. Didn’t you care at all about how this would make me feel?”
Tears stream down her face, and while I can understand where she’s coming from, this reaction is extreme, to say the least.
Chase breathes out, his shoulders falling as he walks toward her and takes her hands in his. “I’ll always be your brother. All I’ve ever wanted was to see you happy. Don’t you want the same for me? She makes me happy, Lil.”
Lily sniffs, staring hard at the ground like she wishes it would open up and swallow her whole. Her words are a whisper, so soft I have to strain to hear them. “She’s going to take you from me. I can’t lose you, Chase. You’re the only thing that keeps me safe.”
I feel awkward, standing behind them, watching as Lily’s scars from years I wasn’t a part of rip open and bleed out on the floor.
Chase pulls her to him harshly, the muscles in his arms tensing as he hugs her tight. “You’ll never lose me, Lil. It’s you and me against the world. That’s never going to change, okay?”
She nods against his chest.
My body relaxes, tension I didn’t even realize I was holding melting away.
Chase and Lily separate. He wipes the tears from her eyes before turning to wink at me. “You want something to drink?”
I shake my head,
