But something about Emilia Marsters seems to effortlessly unsettle me without even trying.
“What do you mean?” She’s trembling. “Ben asked you to walk me home?”
I loosen a slow breath. “No. To… to keep an eye on you. Because you clearly need it.”
My words turn acerbic, and she glares at me again. But I can see from the skin bunched around her eyes that the words hurt her. “You’renothinglike him.”
Now I’m the one that flinches.
I know.
She sucks in a breath, watching my face. “Jared—,”
“Come on.” I step around her, focusing on keeping my voice even. “Just… let’s go. I can’t leave you out here like this.”
Not with her legs bleeding, and her body shaking, and pain written across every part of her face.
She takes a small step, and her stifled gasp has me turning around. “Can you walk?”
Emilia doesn’t look at me as she nods. “I’m fine.”
Another step, and her eyes scrunch up in a wince. One of the cuts on her knee looks pretty deep.
I stay where I am. “I’ll just carry you. It’ll be faster.”
“Absolutely fucking not.” She shuffles forward, biting down on her lip. Her knee nearly buckles, and I dart forward.
Emilia topples forward into me, my arms wrapping around her to hold her steady.
We both freeze, our bodies pressed together. Emilia’s cheek sits just below my chest. She feels warm despite the rain, her heat soaking through my damp t-shirt.
She smells like watermelon.
Red fucking flag.
I shift, but she leans against me. “Wait. Please.”
I wait. Trying not to think about how well my arms fit around her. How perfectly she fits againstme.
She doesn’t do anything but lean against me, her cheek pressed against my chest. My heart thumps, and I wonder if she can hear it.
“Emilia.” My voice sounds gritty. Pained. “Does your leg hurt?”
“A little.” Her voice shakes. “Just give me a second. Please?”
I stare down at the top of her head. “Okay.”
This feels… dangerous. My body feels like it doesn’t know what to do. How to stand. How to breathe.
I swallow.
“Jared?” Emilia whispers.
I try to look at her face. “Yeah?”
“I don’t know what I’m doing.”
There’s no more fight in her. She sounds tired. And scared.
