He traced the edge of the quilt, revealing the top curve of her breast, and watched goose bumps rise on her skin as his fingertip brushed over her. “Still in secret, though.”
She smiled, letting her hand slide under the quilt and over his abdomen, and then she laid her head against the crook of his shoulder. “You’re not my secret. You’re an old friend who I might be having some naked fun with for the summer. I have no desire to hide that unless you do.”
He gathered the quilt around them both, loving the feel of her, skin to skin. “No, I agree. No hiding.”
“Good.”
He let his fingers play idly in her hair for a few minutes, his brain working, his gaze on the ceiling. “I’m supposed to visit my parents on this break.”
“Yeah?”
He let out a sigh. “It’s one of Billings’s and the psychologist’s directives. I haven’t been home in years, and when I called my mom to let her know I was off assignment and okay, she cried. She got me to promise I would stop by, and she’s been texting me.”
“Hmm. You sound really excited about that.”
“I’ve been thinking of a hundred ways to get out of it,” he admitted. “I don’t know how to…be around them anymore.”
She was quiet for a moment, her breath soft against his chest.
“I guess that makes me sound like a heartless jerk,” he said finally.
“No, I get it. You’ve been through a lot, and family can be…intense. But you can’t break a promise to your mom.” She traced her fingers over his hip bone. “I’m sure she’s been worried. And I know it’s going to sound trite, but I wish my mom was still around for me to visit and get annoyed with.”
His lungs contracted at that. “God, I’m sorry. I didn’t think—”
“Don’t. That’s not why I’m saying it. I’ve had a lot of years to get used to my mom being gone. All I’m saying is don’t lock out the rest of your family just because you and your dad don’t see eye to eye. Life’s short.”
He let out a long breath, the words sticking to him with a thick layer of guilt. She was right. He knew that. But it didn’t make the idea of visiting them any more palatable. He didn’t know how to be part of a family anymore—particularly his. He would probably make things worse rather than better by being there. “Maybe you could come with me?”
The question popped out before he could evaluate the repercussions.
Olivia tensed in his hold. “Uh, are you drunk on afterglow? You want to take me to see your parents? Maybe not the best icebreaker. Hey, Dad, remember that girl who did your lawn? The one you didn’t want tarnishing your precious son’s reputation?”
He frowned. “I don’t give a shit what my dad thinks at this point. In fact, part of me wants to stroll in there and lie, tell him we’re going to elope or something. But you’re right. I don’t want you to go someplace where you’re uncomfortable. And I couldn’t promise that my parents wouldn’t make you feel that way.” He pulled her closer. “Sorry. I’m not sure where that idea came from.”
She was silent for a long moment, and he thought maybe she’d dozed off, but then she let out a sigh, one that drifted over his chest with a warm gust of air. “If you want me to go, I’ll go.”
The offer made his breath stall. “No, I wasn’t thinking—”
She lifted herself up and gave him a shut-up-and-listen look. “I said I’ll go. You’re helping me with stuff. I’m helping you back. And I can handle whatever dirty looks your dad throws my way. I might tell him I’m pregnant with your triplets. I give exactly zero shits about his opinion of me.”
He smiled. “Zero shits?”
“Exactly zero.”
He pushed her hair behind her ear. “You’re kind of amazing, you know?”
Her eyes flickered with some emotion he couldn’t pinpoint, but it was gone almost as quickly as it was there, making him question if it had been there at all.
“I know. All the boys tell me that when I’m naked.” She pecked him on the lips. “Now get out of my bed so I can get some sleep.”
He chuckled. “Kicking me out already?”
“Yep.”
“And into the rain, no less. I feel so used.”
Her mouth kicked up at the corner. “You should. I used you well. But I can’t share a bed. Sleeping quirk. All guests must exit by midnight, or I turn into an angry pumpkin.”