Page 43 of Of Poison & Pumpkins
“I’m not freaked out.” I continue to loop the yarn around my needle. Loop. Pull. Tug.
“Sure, sure.”
When he pats the spot beside him on the bed, I stay where I am. Nope. Can’t go over there. Won’t.
Elias chuckles low. “I won’t bite unless you ask. Though, I can’t guarantee I won’t tie you up. Did you know suspenders have more than one function?”
“I know what you’re trying to do,” I say, whipping the yarn around the needle.
“I think anyone could guess that I’m trying to seduce you.”
“No, you’re trying to distract me from my thoughts.”
“Maybe a listening ear could help.”
I force myself to lower my shield. If I’m going to learn to trust anyone, he’s the easiest one to practice with. “I don’t like storms,” I confess.
“Something bad happen?”
“Twice actually. The first time, Tinsley’s entire family died in a hurricane. She was supposed to be with them that night.” I suck in a deep breath and wipe away a single tear that escapes.
“Oh, Sunflower, come here.”
Stupidly, I slide onto the bed next to him. When he puts his arm around me, I melt into his warm, comforting embrace and lean onto his side. He might be the one person on this planet who soothes my racing heart. I release the breath I’ve been holding and begin.
“Second time, Tinz was pregnant, and I was driving her to the hospital at one in the morning,” I say quietly, watching his thumb rub my wrist back and forth. “Her contractions were close enough that she was gripping the ‘oh shit’ handle with deathly white knuckles, but she was still trying to keep the energy light by singing along to the radio every time pain crashed through her.
“It was storming. The roads were windy and so dark. And I have astigmatism, so night driving is already hard, but in the rain, it was impossible to see anything. I was doing my best, focusing so hard. That tree came out of nowhere and?—”
He tenses.
“We slammed into the tree trunk so hard. Too hard. I remember gaining consciousness in the dark. I was so confused. I didn’t know what happened. Tinsley was crying and screaming next to me. I didn’t know if she was hurt, or because Maya was on the way. When I tried to reach her, my seatbelt was stuck. I couldn’t get out. Somehow, I wrangled my phone out of my pocket and called an ambulance. It was all such a haze. I don’t know how long I listened to Tinz screeching. She sounded like she was dying. And I was in shock.”
Elias’s finger rubs my wrist. He waits patiently.
“Two ambulances came. Took us separately. I had a concussion, bruised ribs, and a pounding headache. The whole time I was in the ER, they wouldn’t tell me if Tinsley and her baby were okay. I was near hysterics.
“The next day the nurse reviewed all the paperwork I had signed the night before and you know who I told them was my emergency contact? You.”
His jaw drops and his eyes widen. “What?”
“Exactly. I was so out of it that I gave them your name. It had been four years since I’d last seen or spoken to you. I must’ve been out of my mind.”
“I didn’t get a call.” He shakes his head, maybe in disbelief. “I would’ve come if they called, I swear, Rynnlee.”
I sniff and he wipes my eyes with his sleeve. Too scared to dive deeper, I pull out a fresh ball of yarn from my bag and toss him some needles, too.
He fumbles them, both needles clinking against the floor. “Hey! Could’ve warned me first.”
“Want to learn the basics?”
He pauses, like he’s ready to say something meaningful about the storm, but I need a distraction.
“Please, Lias the lion.”
He clutches his chest dramatically. “Lias. That’s it! That’s my official nickname and you can’t change it. Swear it. Swear that I am your lion!”
“I swear.” Laughter finds a way through me once more—because of him, this adorable lion. “Look, this is how to make a slipknot.” My voice becomes shaky.
