She sent that a couple of minutes ago.
Me
I might still be in the shower when you come in. I need caffeine badly.
Lexi
I decided to swing by the coffee shop, so you have some time. Get moving, Firefly!
Rolling my eyes in affection, I walk quickly to my bathroom and turn on the rainfall shower. I managed to change it out myself and ordered it online. Money can’t buy happiness, but a damn good shower can.
This time, I wash my hair as well as my body, sighing as I scrub the nightmare away. I don’t want to worry my sister, but I’m woken up at least three times a week by the memories of my past.
I managed to bury it when we were busy getting Widows Peak established, making sure everyone who we first recruited were decent people, but now it feels like my carefully constructed compartments are splitting down the seams. There are a few therapists in our town, something we made sure of to take care of any of our omegas who may be running from something.
I don’t know if I want to schedule an appointment yet. I want to see if there’s a reason I’m dreaming about my time at the Henderson estate. This feels like some kind of omen.
Frowning, I finish washing my face and shut off the water. My towel is on the rack as I reach for it, and dry off before putting on lotion and brushing my teeth. Knowing I won’t have time to dry my hair, I throw curling product in and scrunch it so it’ll air dry naturally.
It’s really fucking wet, so I squeeze out the moisture with a towel before I leave the bathroom to put on a pair of my favorite cut up jeans, a snarky t-shirt, and cute socks. I don’t need to wear shoes in my own house.
Glancing at my bedsheets, I check the time and open my door to see if my sister is here yet. There’s not been another text, so maybe I’ll be okay. Pocketing my phone, I strip the bed of its sheets and bedspread before hustling downstairs to start a load of laundry.
I’ll have to do it in two loads because of my king size bedspread, but that’s fine. It’ll just look like I’m doing my weekly routine of cleaning, and she shouldn’t worry about me.
I mean, normal people wash laundry simply so it’s clean and not to exorcise their demons, right?
Blowing out a breath, I toss my sheets over the railing as I jog downstairs to pick it up. The last thing I need is to fall down the damn stairs because I can’t see my feet. A broken leg due to being a klutz, no thank you.
At the main floor, I gather up my sheets and hurry to my laundry room. I sort things quickly, throw them in with my favorite detergent, and then enter my kitchen to wipe down the surfaces. This also means that I have to clean and dry the glass I left to dry on the rack.
It’s at this point that I hear the deadbolt turn over and my front door opens.
It’s just Lexi,I tell myself, moving until I have a clear vantage point of the front of my home.
“It’s me!” Lexi says clearly, knowing that I’m a bit paranoid about my space.
“Hey,” I say, walking over to help her with her haul of goodies. There’s coffee and pastries that Mrs. Hall makes at her shop bright and early. “Oh my god, you must have been there right when it opened.”
“I was, and I was rewarded with donuts and bagels,” she says gleefully.
“This looks amazing.” I sigh happily, bringing her haul into the kitchen. Grabbing plates, I put everything out, happy to find that the bagels are already toasted and have cream cheese between the sliced pieces.
“I’m buttering you up,” my sister announces as I pick up a cup and check to see if it’s mine. Mmm, fuck yes. A pumpkin maple coffee.
Taking a sip, my eyelashes flutter as I groan, while Lexi sits on my bar stool and wraps her hands around her own coffee cup.
“Your sex noises aren’t going to deter me,” she growls, making my grin appear. “Oh my god! You’re smiling. What the hell happened?"
“Nothing really,” I admit. “It was a very Syrus moment. He very politely informed me that he wanted to renegotiate our relationship status from verbal sparring partners to something more, and then he stole the soul from my body with a kiss.”
“That’s your description of ‘nothing really’?!” Lexi squeals, making me huff out a laugh. “Ugh, the man is fine. Get it, Firefly. Does he know anything about our lives from before we lived here?”
“Nope,” I sigh. “I don’t really want to lead with our baggage, Lex. What if it’s too much for him to handle?”
“Syrus Lynch has seen some shit in Seattle. It’s the reason he left, babe,” she says. “I think he’d be more than willing to listen.”
“The issue is that men like Syrus don’t just want to listen,” I explain to her. “Our hands are tied. We aren’t supposed to even look in Gideon’s direction anymore.”
