Page 5 of His to Save

Dad goes to shake her hand, but she steps back, clutching an orange-covered book to her chest.

I guess this is their first-time meeting, too. Interesting.

The tips of his ears go red, and for a second, I worry he’s about to go off, but instead he smiles. It’s the fakest smile I’ve ever seen, but it’s better than yelling, so I’ll take it.

“Well, let’s head inside before the sky falls,” Dad says, guiding Grace away from her daughter and up the steps.

Nora glares after them with all the rage of a newborn feral kitten.

Despite the wind starting to pick up, she makes no move to head inside.

“You coming, Pip?” The nickname slips out unbidden, but somehow, it fits.

“What did you just say?” She turns her icy glare on me.

I don’t know why, but I grin. “Pip—you know, like pipsqueak.”

She bares her teeth at me. “My name is Nora!”

“Right.” I glance down at my well-worn boots to hide my smile. “Well, you coming inside, Nora? I know you don’t wanna be here—and I’ll tell you a secret: I don’t either—but at least inside there’s food and no rain.”

“It’s not raining out here either…” She trails off, the unspoken yet hanging between us.

“Suit yourself, then.” I turn toward the house, feeling some kind of way about leaving someone so small outside when it’s about to storm. I know firsthand the kind of damage storms like these can bring.

But before I can ask her again, a huge crack of thunder booms overhead, and I hear a squeak followed by the sound of her shoes on the gravel as she bolts toward me, only before she can make it to the first step, the wind starts to howl, and she must be smaller than I thought because the gust sends her flying my way.

She windmills her arms, trying to keep herself upright, but it’s no use. The kid’s going down.

I reach out and steady her before she can hit the ground. “You good?” I ask, making sure she’s steady before releasing my hold on her shoulders.

“Fine,” she mutters, like the single syllable hurts her to give up, darting up the steps and into the house.

I always chalked Nora’s oddness up to grief and a healthy dose of teenage angst. The kid lost both of her parents in less than five years of each other, and now the only family she has left is me and Dad. The fact that I never really made an effort to get to know her sort of has me feeling like shit now.

Still, I read over the first passage a few times, thinking maybe there was a hidden meaning, but I’ve got nothing.

I guess I’ll have to keep going and see what I find, if anything.

“Atlas!” Scarlet snaps her fingers and I shut the diary, shoving it under my pillow, focusing all of my attention on her.

She’s dressed in a short little black number that hugs her curves like she was sewn into it as she leans against my door frame in a way I’m sure is meant to be seductive.

And yet, in this moment, even with her toned legs and ample cleavage on display, my dick stays soft.

I’m pretty sure we’re headed toward being off again in the near future, because while she’s certainly a looker, my libido seems to be on an extended vacation.

“Sorry, what?”

“Atlas.” She sighs, sauntering my way. “We have plans tonight, don’t you remember?”

“Remind me?” I give her my best grin, and she melts, running her fingers through my hair.

“Dinner and dancing ring a bell?”

I could lie and say I remember but honestly, I don’t, and I’m sure the look on my face is a dead giveaway. “Not even a little.”

Guess it’s a good thing I didn’t get that burger…

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