Page 54 of The Prodigal Son

“What are you thinking?” he whispers.

“How crazy this is,” I reply without lifting my head.

“What exactly is crazy about it?”

“The fact that I’ve only known you for a week, but it feels like longer.”

“It does,” he mumbles against the side of my head.

“Are we moving too fast?” I ask.

He chuckles. “We haven’t even had sex yet.”

“I don’t mean the sex part,” I reply. “I mean…”

Pulling away, I only glance into his eyes for a moment before getting self-conscious. Maybe it’s just me who feels this way. I don’t want to say something stupid. It’s embarrassing.

“What is it?” he pushes.

“I just mean that…I don’t normally get this close to the guys I’m with. The sex is what normally happens fast, but the relationship…that’s what’s freaking me out.”

“Do you want to slow down?” he asks.

“No.”

“Me neither.”

“Are you afraid that I’m going to break your heart?” he asks, and I have to let out a heavy breath. Relationship talk is not my favorite. Feelings and fears and all that shit is not for me. It’s much easier to find a guy I find hot, have my fun with him, and say goodbye forever. The heart has nothing to do with it.

Staring at the ceiling, I let out a huff of frustration. “Yes, I am.”

Jensen wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me toward him. Then, with his fingers on my chin, he forces me to look at him.

“I won’t.”

“It’s okay if you do. It’ll give me more songs to write.”

He doesn’t laugh. “That’s not funny.”

“I know it’s not, but I cover up fear with humor. You should know that about me.”

“You cover a lot up with humor,” he replies. Then, after a moment, he adds, “But you don’t need to hide anything from me.”

Suddenly, it hits me that I’ve been keeping a secret from him this whole time and if we’re going to talk about trust and relationships, I should probably come out with this.

“My name’s not Theo.”

Okay, maybe I should have worked my way into it instead of just blurting it out because he’s staring at me as if I’ve grown a dick on my forehead.

“What?”

“There was never a good time to tell you, so I’m telling you now.” I wince as I wait for his reaction. Is this a big deal? Will he storm out in anger?

“So…” he asks.

“So what?”

“What the fuck is your name?”

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