Page 47 of Make You Mine

He let out a sigh of relief and leaned against the wall. “I guess we can let the cats out now,” he said with a smile, wiping sweat from his brow.

“Yeah, I think it’s safe.”

“Want me to stay here tonight? I can crash on the couch. Or I’ll sleep outside your door. This was a lot. You need some rest.” He tucked my hair behind my ear, his touch lingering as he slowly let the strands drift from his fingers.

“I, uh, yes.” Forget trying to be brave. There was no way I could sleep tonight. “Please. I can’t face being alone right now. But you don’t have to sleep outside my door. That’s silly.”

“The couch?”

“Do you mind? Are you sure?” My pulse fluttered so rapidly, I wondered if he could see it. I slid my hand up my throat just in case.

“I’m happy to.”

“Okay, help me let the cats out, then I’ll grab some blankets and a pillow for you. I appreciate this a lot. You have no idea.”

“It’s no trouble at all. I’ll check on Nimbus. I don’t want him to hurt you accidentally. He was pretty worked up.”

His gaze was warm and reassuring. And I was so, so glad I wouldn’t be alone tonight. I couldn’t help but notice how his eyes lingered on me. It wasn’t just concern, there was something more, my heart raced, and my cheeks flushed. It was magnetic. A connection hummed in the air between us. A lingering hint of something deeper.

“Thanks.” I headed downstairs to the half bath. Smog sauntered out as if an army of raccoons hadn’t just overrun us. I watched him head to the kitchen, probably to check on his food bowl. “Nice talk,” I muttered. “Glad you’re okay.”

“Oh shit.” I cringed and ran for the stairs, remembering my overturned bedside table and its spilled contents—spilledprivatecontents.

Damn it, damn it, damn it.

Too late.

Ren was already standing in the doorway, his cheeks tinged with pink as he saw my collection of vibrators strewn all over the floor.

“Uh…nothing to see here,” I cracked, better to make a joke than die of humiliation. “Just my drawer full of fun. Hopefully, it will help me stick to myno-more-dating and never-falling-in-love-again-ever plans.”

“Ahh, I see.” He seemed relieved that I was joking and not embarrassed.

I fumbled to gather the scattered items; my face probably as pink as Ren’s. “Can we pretend this never happened?”

He righted the bedside table, and I managed to stuff everything back into the drawer. “Thanks,” I mumbled, maybe dying of humiliation was a good idea now.

“Sure,” he said, chuckling. “This never happened. No dating, no love, gotcha. But our fake dates are still on, right?”

“Of course,” I replied, closing the drawer with a decisive thud. “I never go back on my word.”

His smile was a mixture of genuine amusement and the kind of understanding that made my embarrassment slowly fade. He leaned against the doorway, watching me with those steady, thoughtful eyes.

“Seriously,” I finally said, once I had managed to compose myself somewhat. “Thanks for not making this even more awkward.”

“Hey, everyone has their secrets,” he replied lightly. “Yours just happen to be a lot more…colorful. Raccoons in the attic and an impressive collection of—fun.”

“Colorful.” I laughed, taking a slow step closer to him. “I guess you could say that.”

“By the way, about those fake dates, a gala at a children’s hospital is coming up.”

“You’re so amazing.” I tried to be cool, to ignore the fluttering in my stomach at the thought of another evening spent in his company.

“Thank you, but not really. I—um—like to help when I can, I guess. Anyone would.”

“No, I mean, look at what you did tonight. You drove right into my driveway, no questions asked, and single-handedly defeated the covert army of raccoons living in my attic. Where were you anyway?”

He huffed a laugh. “I couldn’t fall asleep, so I went on an ice cream run. It’s probably melted in the bag.”

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