Page 68 of Beneath Her Skin

“Oh, no. Riles, that’s so terr?—”

She cuts him off with a sharp wave of her hand, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Your dad owns that pizza shop on Main Street, right? Pizza Crumbles?”

Felix nods enthusiastically, adjusting his thick glasses. “Yeah, why?”

“Well, isn’t there that furnished space in the attic that could potentially be used as a tiny apartment?”

Felix hesitates, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, but?—”

“We really need a place to stay, Felix.” Riley flashes him her famous sad eyes, accompanied by that pouty bottom lip. Man, she’s really laying it on thick, huh?

“I don’t know, Riles. He mentioned something about using it for storage…” Felix’s brow furrows as he thinks it over.

“Please? Can you just ask him?” Riley pleads, her hands coming together as if she were praying. “We could work for him in the pizza shop. We just need a place to stay while we save up some money and get ourselves together. Please, Felix, will you ask him? We won’t be a bother.”

Felix lets out a nervous laugh, clearly caving under the weight of her plea. “Anything for my favorite girls.”

Riley grabs onto the door frame with a wide grin, her excitement contagious. “Thank you!”

She turns to me, throwing her arm around my shoulder once more. “Maybe we won’t have to live on the streets after all, Will.”

I offer her a warm smile, one she accepts as my quiet approval. It’s definitely not the perfect solution, but it’s a start—my clever girl.

“Now, why did you come to see us, Felix?”

His entire demeanor shifts in an instant, from shy to downright nervous. He stammers, rubbing his palm along his jeans. “Oh, th-that, right. The reason I, uh, originally c-came here…”

Riley and I exchange a weary glance, noticing the change in his behavior. “What’s the matter, dude?” she asks with a light laugh, though there’s an edge to her tone.

“N-nothing. I was just gonna see if the two of you would, y’know…”

Riley clicks her tongue and rolls her eyes. Her nonexistent patience is wearing thin. “Spit it out, Felix!”

He anxiously taps his fingers on the steering wheel, lips thinning. He exhales a deep breath. “There’s a gathering tonight. Me and the Dungeons & Dragons guys—we’re throwing a little party. And I was wondering if…”

Riley flexes her bicep, pulling my head closer to hers. “Jesus, why was that so hard to ask, dude?”

Felix squirms in his seat, avoiding eye contact. “I don’t know. Sorry for being weird.” He turns to face us, trying to gauge our reactions. “There will be booze. Lots and lots of it. And I wasn’t sure if you both would still want to hang out with me now that school is over.”

Riley scoffs. “Of course we still want to hang out with you, weirdo. Plus, I think we could use a drink after this shitty day.” She lifts her free hand, gently guiding my chin with her fingersto meet her eyes. “What do you say, pretty girl? Wanna go have some fun?”

I nibble on my bottom lip, and I can’t miss how Riley’s gaze lingers on the movement, her breath hitching ever so slightly. Her eyes glaze over as she lets out a sharp inhale, a subtle shift in the air between us.

I start to nod, but as I do, I can feel Riley’s attention shift back to the situation at hand. For a split second, I can’t help but wonder what her full lips would feel like against mine. I’ve thought about it—dreamt about it. There have been days when the fantasy wouldn’t so easily dissipate.

But she’s my foster sister. My other half. We simply cannot cross that line. It would destroy everything.

She glances at Felix, breaking the moment of charged tension before I get too lost in my thoughts. “You heard her. We’re in.”

Felix flashes us a smile, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Cool. I’ll pick you up later. Say, eight?”

Riley grabs her skateboard and bends down to strap it to her bag. “Sounds good. We’ll meet out here.”

Felix nods, rolls up the window, and speeds off, leaving us standing there with buzzing excitement and slight confusion.

3

MY HEART TO KEEP

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