Page 15 of The Secret We Keep
Please, God, no.
Plenty of folks around here drive flashy cars, but I know this one is from out of town. Nobody in their right mind would drive a white car where we live.
It’s City Boy’s.
The closer we step towards it, the mud splattered up the side becomes visible. I swiftly open my jacket enough to remove the puppy, who I could feel snoring against me. “Here.” I hold him out to Holly.
A frown furrows her brows. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Take him.”
“No.” She steps back quickly.
“Take him,” I urge with a little too much force. The puppy’s legs dangle where I’m holding him out to her. “Hurry up.”
This time, she laughs. “Uh, no way. You found him. You deliver him.”
“No,youfound him first, actually.”
“And he ran toyou.”
I step closer to her. “Please, you do it,” I plead through gritted teeth, my arms beginning to ache. “I’ll give you anything you want, just don’t make me knock on their door.”
“Why are you making this such a big deal? Just go to the door, knock, and hand the man back his puppy.”
“It won’t behis, will it?”
We’re performing a little tango routine as she tries to outstep me. “Then I really don’t see the problem here. Anyway, you promised that if there was a sign to talk to him, you would take it.”
“Holly.”
“Morgan,” she says, mocking my serious tone. I swear she likes causing trouble whenever she can.
Turning to the picturesque country house, I sigh heavily, weighing up my options.
She says my name again, and when I swing back around seeing triumph brighten her face, I feel a blush brightening mine instantly. Warm tingles shoot across my skin. A flicker of recognition, a rush of heat to my core, and suddenly I feel like I’m tilting.
“Morgan?”
The air feels sharper.
My eyes dart to Paddy, who’s making his way down the lane.
With his friends.
Ever the hero
Paddy
Shelooksatmelike a deer caught in headlights.
“Morgan,” I say her name again, my heart skipping a beat.
Her head swings to the dark lane behind her, then back to me. I’m guessing I’m the lesser of the two evils.
“Hey, it’s okay. What are you doing out here?”
Danny mutters something behind me, which I don’t quite catch.
