Page 19 of #Starstruck

“You need to go brush your teeth,” I said, slowly backing away toward the kitchen sink, trying not to drip all over the floor. “Zane! Come help Zelda brush her teeth.”

“Why do I have to?” he whined.

“Because superheroes help their sisters!” I yelled back. He stomped into the room, clearly unhappy with me, and pulled Zelda away.

Then the doorbell rang. I went over to the kitchen sink and used a paper towel to scrape off as much vomit as I could. “Zo! Door!” Zander called. I was tempted to tell him to get it, but Mom had a rule. He was too young to open the door at night.

The bell rang again. It was probably Mrs.Wittemore. She had been a very good friend to my mom over the last two years, and she did not like to be kept waiting when she stopped by. “Hold on, hold on,” I muttered.

I opened the door, and there, on my front porch, stood Chase Covington. “Hey. I was nowhere near your neighborhood—”

I did the only thing I could do. I slammed the door shut on him.

CHAPTER SEVEN

I’d just slammed the door in Chase Covington’s face.

Taking in a deep breath, I reopened it. He looked adorably confused. He wore a pale-blue T-shirt that made his eyes impossibly bluer and jeans that had been created solely to be worn by him. And I was covered in poop and puke.

“Nobody’s ever shut a door on me before.” And I’d never shut a door on anyone before. “Bad time?”

No, I was so glad he’d decided to visit when I had one sister’s regurgitated chocolate and the other’s fecal matter all over me. “You could say that.”

“I just needed to get my tux. I thought I would save you the trip.”

My eyes flicked past him to the dark, quiet street. I thought celebrities were chased by paparazzi everywhere they went. I stepped back to let him inside. As he came in, I pushed myself against the wall so I wouldn’t get puke on him, acutely aware the entire time that he looked like, well, a movie star, and I looked like something the cat found in the dump, dragged across town, and then shoved under the dryer.

Zia toddled in, sucking on her thumb, as I closed the front door. She walked over to Chase and looked up at him from under her lashes. “I Zia.”

Chase crouched down so they were eye level. “Hi, Zia. I’m Chase.”

She reached out and patted his cheek. “Hi, Cheese.”

“Chase,” I corrected her, and she glared at me. “He Cheese.”

He straightened to standing with an amused smile. Zia held up both her pudgy hands and reached for him. He complied, picking her up. She quickly nestled her head against his shoulder and sighed. “I loves him. My Cheese.”

My baby sister was seriously flirting with him. Not that I could blame her.

“You should take it as a compliment,” I explained. “Cheese is her favorite food.”

Chase smiled. He had Zia propped on one side like he’d been holding kids his entire life. He didn’t look even a little bit uncomfortable. His gaze traveled up and down my body, only this time it felt like a question instead of a compliment.

“My four-year-old sister barfed on me. She got into some chocolate chips. Which she’s kind of allergic to. Leaving me with this lovely candy-coated shell.” Great. Another watermelon-carrying moment. He hadn’t asked, but I had to overshare.

“Hmm. Does that mean you’ll melt in my mouth and not in my hands?”

A wave of want slammed into me. I was pretty sure I would melt either way. The offer was completely gross on its surface, given where said candy-coated shell had come from, but somehow still hot.

As if he hadn’t just shifted my entire world on its axis, he cocked his head to the side, and I realized he was looking into the living room at my other siblings. “There’s four kids total?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Go take a shower and get changed. I’ll watch them.”

“Seriously?”

“I’m not completely helpless. When I didNoah’s Ark, I spent a lot of time with the sets of twins who played my siblings. They wanted us to bond and seem like a real family during filming. I learned how to take care of little kids. Go on.” I still hesitated. “Trust me.”

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