When I turn back around, Sassy is standing up and pulling her pants down her thighs.
I suck in a breath and tell myself I shouldn’t be watching her, but nothing could drag my eyes off her.
She sees me watching with a stunned look on my face and stops. “Shoot, I’m sorry. I wasn’t even thinking. You saw me at the doctor’s office, and I didn’t even think how scary this might be for someone.”
She laughs, but I don’t. I walk over to her, and my hand goes to her swollen belly. “You’re beautiful, Sassy. It’s not scary at all, not to me.”
She puts her hand over mine. “Then why are you staring at me like that?”
I shrug. “Because I think you’re beautiful.”
She giggles and shakes her head. “I’m not. You know I’m not.”
I give her a nod. “I know you are.”
She opens her mouth, no doubt to argue with me, but then closes it.
“Can I help you?”
She stares into my eyes. “You want to help me put your shirt on?”
Words escape me, but I nod. She pulls her shirt up over her body, and even though I want to stare at her, I don’t. She has her bra and panties on. I’ve seen more skin on women at the beach, but this is different. I thread the T-shirt through her arms and cover her body.
She looks down. “This is your bed.”
I nod. “I know it is. I wanted you to sleep here.”
She lifts her chin. “Where are you going to sleep?”
“In the spare bedroom.”
She shakes her head. “That doesn’t make sense. I’ll sleep in the guest room, and then you can have your bed.”
I guide her to the bed and pull the covers over her.
“Sleep, honey. I’ll see you in the morning.”
I lean down and kiss her forehead. I want more. I want it all, but I force myself to stand up and back out of the room. I can feel her eyes on me the whole way, but I don’t meet them because it wouldn’t take much to convince me to stay.
Tonight didn’t go as I expected. I don’t know what I thought would happen, but I had hoped she would have been all in. I’m willing to wait, though. I’ll wait until she’s ready.
My phone rings from the other room, and I jog to it, not wanting to disturb Sam. As soon as I see Kane’s name on the caller ID, I know I’m in trouble.
“She’s fine,” I answer.
“Where the fuck is my sister, Elijah?”
“She’s in my bed.” As soon as I say it, I know I fucked up.
Kane rages through the phone, and I walk out the back door so I don’t have to speak in a hushed tone. “Kane, listen, she fell asleep watching a movie, and I put her to bed. I’m not taking advantage of her.”
He’s silent, and I rush to say, “This is me, Elijah. I have always looked out for Sam, and I’m not going to hurt her. I need you to trust me on this.”
He huffs out a breath. “What did she say? I’m assuming you talked to her about dating?”
I hesitate. “She uh, wants no promises, no expectations. She just wants this to be fun.”
He cusses loudly into the phone. “What the fuck? She should be demanding all those things. What is wrong with her?”
