Trying to bite back a sob, Mylo sank to the floor. It didn’t matter that he tried to hide it. His shaking frame and tiny hiccups gave away his tears.
What did I do? Did I say something wrong? Concern gnawed at me so hard it was painful. I clutched my chest, but the feeling didn’t go away. The intensity of it freaked me out. The onlyperson I’d ever been this protective over was Saffron. I’d never felt it towards anyone except my twin—until now.
I knelt on the floor. “What’s wrong? You can tell me.”
Mylo sniffled, shaking his head.
Fuck. Had I upset him that badly?
“Sorry,” he managed to say between hiccups. “I just... need a second.”
Fair enough. I wasn’t a big crier—that was more Saffron’s thing—so I knew how to wait it out. Usually when Saffron had a crying fit, I’d sit next to him with my arm around him until he chilled out.
Would the same thing work with Mylo?
There was no harm in trying. Scooting beside him, I draped my arm across his shoulders and pulled him against my chest. The closeness felt good. He was warm and soft, like a pillow I didn’t want to release.
After a few seconds, Mylo stopped shaking, and he inhaled a few long, deep breaths. But his hands still covered his face. Wasn’t it harder to breathe that way?
“You don’t have to hide,” I urged. He was meek and needed encouragement, so I gently pried his hands down to reveal his cheeks. They were bright pink and wet with tears. “See? You’re all good.”
His reply was a curt nod. Even though his crying fit was over, he was still tense. But his brown eyes weren’t scared anymore—now, theysparkled.
Weirdo.
I smiled at him, endeared by his strangeness.
Mylo’s cheeks burned like a bonfire. I actually felt the heat radiating off his face. His body heat was nice and cozy, too. I realized I’d never been so physically close to anybody I wasn’t related to—was everybody in the world this warm, or was Mylo special?
Then again, the idea of cuddling up to randos made me wanna gag. Mylo was the exception. Everything he did was cute, even the snotty crying.
“Let me grab you a tissue, dude,” I said, getting to my feet.
Disappointment washed over Mylo’s face as I stood to leave his side. I hated seeing him like that, so I hurried to the bathroom and back as fast as possible. When I handed him the handful of tissues, he smiled.
“Thanks,” he said.
As he blew his nose, I wondered if I should sit back on the floor beside him. I wanted to, but he wasn’t crying anymore, so maybe the physical touch would be unwelcome. The last thing I wanted to do was make him cry again.
When Mylo was done wiping his face, he stood up and sighed.
“I’m so sorry you had to see me like that,” he murmured, embarrassed.
I shrugged. “Why? I don’t care. Obviously, I care that you cried, ‘cause I felt bad for you, but I don’t like when people hide their feelings all the time. Just let it out.”
Mylo blinked his still-wet eyes. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“By the way, why’d you start crying in the first place?” I asked. “Was it something I said?”
He chewed his lip. “Um. It’s embarrassing, but... I got overwhelmed because you were so nice to me.”
My brows shot up. Me? Nice? I wasn’t exactly Mother Teresa. I’d lied to him and every other contestant so I could hoard my twin all to myself. Mylo had the wrong idea about me.
“Kicking two douchebags off the show doesn’t make me nice,” I argued.
But Mylo’s eyes flashed as he held my gaze, firm and steady. “Yes, it does, Aurum. Nobody’s ever taken my side like that before.Nobody.”
Hearing my name in that resolute voice sent shivers down my spine. Suddenly, the meek omega disappeared. I remembered that despite their cute appearance, ferrets were predators—perfect little killing machines.
