Spotting the crime channel, I click onThe First 48without hesitation. There is absolutely nothing sexy about this at all. Investigations, and blood and—
Cyrus appears, still shirtless. Stepping over Meatball, he settles next to me instead of leaving a cushion empty in between. Knees spread wide, he takes up a cushion and a half easily by himself. He’s got a plate of two sandwiches and chips.
“Eat.” He steals one sandwich and nudges me with the plate. “You’ll get sick if you don’t keep up with your body’s needs.”
There he goes again, bossing me around. If I don’t accept his offering, he’ll give me all his attention, and I’ll melt into abig puddle. So, with little choice, I accept his offering and busy myself with eating.
We get through an entire episode in mostly silence. Cyrus mutters some stuff under his breath during the ridiculous interrogation scenes.
By the time I’ve tossed a few chips toward the pup and cleared my plate, setting it aside, I feel okay. As okay as someone in my position can.
Cyrus doesn’t dip at the credit scene, sticking around for half of another episode before I feel his eyes against me. It takes effort not to look back. Not while there’s silence between us.
That silence doesn’t last for long.
“Be honest with me about something.” His eyes sweep over me, analyzing. “Are you really here to learn anything?” His mouth curves into a frown, and I hate that it gives me butterflies. “Tell me, Jerry didn’t send you here as some kind of free labor or as a way to fix things.”
I knew it.
“No.” The word leaves me too quickly, making me look guilty. I can see it in the way he squints. Reaching out for him, his arm stiffens as my fingers make contact. “Dad has nothing to do with why I’m really here. Not really, I mean. He may have mentioned some things, but that’s his own concern. I’m here to figure my own stuff out, really.”
His nose scrunches, and the disbelief is still there. He lowers his gaze, and he stares at my hand. I can’t tell what he’s thinking, and I wish I could. He doesn’t demand that I not touch him, so I don’t bother pulling away. His skin is warm beneath my fingers.
“I’m still learning the basics, that’s all. I can’t focus on my stuff until I learn everything else first.” Sounding like an excuse, I grimace at the disbelief in his eyes.
There has to be a way to convince him that I’m here for me, not for him. That I’m getting something out of this. Words alone aren’t really doing it for him.
“What else do you need to know?” His voice is growing rougher by the syllable as I meet his heavy gaze.
There’s a logical, respectful answer to this. Yet, my thoughts spiral, just as they always do.
“Whatever you’re willing to teach me, Cyrus.” Biting my lip, I take the biggest risk of my life by dragging my fingers to his shoulder. At the low sound that escapes him, it’s not him telling me this is inappropriate. “I’m a big fan of learning new things.”
“Millie…” Using that stern tone against me, warning me with just my name, he finally acknowledges my touch. Grabbing my hand, he squeezes it once. “You shouldn’t tease someone like this. Not unless you plan on doing something about it.”
My poor heart flutters at his words, and I find myself leaning in. “I don’t know much about what I should do.” Breathlessly, I squeeze his fingers back and choose to be brave instead of pulling away. “Can this be something you teach me?”
Silence fills the space between us, and all I can hear is the heavy thumps of my pulse as I wait for rejection. Knowing it’ll have to come, I’m surprised by the curse that leaves him.
Pulled deep from the pit of his chest, sounding of both pure frustration and surrender, his hand leaves mine.
Instead of pulling away, he’s reaching to grab me. The moment his hands make contact, I realize this is really happening.
Cyrus wants me, and even if it makes me greedy, I plan on taking full advantage of the discovery.
5
Cyrus
This is really happening. As hard as it is to believe, Millieissitting on my lap, squirming like she’s more than eager tolearn.
Her constant grinding against me, as if she’s unaware of it, makes me realize more and more as I try to hold back from touching her the way I want.
“How much do you know?” Forcing out the words, I stroke her sides and tease the band of her shorts with my pinkies. “Surely, you know the basics.”
Shehasto. A woman as pretty as her? By now, there has to be a bastard or two who have tried their luck. Even if she looks like an angel radiating innocence, there’s no way…
When she bites that damn lip of hers again, I want to howl in jealousy. She has to know what she’s doing to me when she does it; that’s why it keeps happening.
