“You should take a turn,” Naomi teased and poked her elbow in my side.
“Later,” I said. “I need to talk to you.”
She raised a brow, her smile fading. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine. Can we go somewhere quiet?”
Naomi’s eyes strayed back to the crowd. Lincoln was taking his turn against Aderyn.
“Of course,” she said. We both started out of the room as the two began their match.
“Front porch okay?” she asked as we walked down the hall. There was an unmissable shakiness in her voice.
I shook my head. There was too much risk of being interrupted. I needed time to say my speech. Who knew how long my courage would linger?
“Follow me?” I started up the stairs, and she trailed behind.
Naomi’s eyes went big when I welcomed her into my room. She didn’t say anything when I closed the door behind us. I lingered at the door to take a deep breath. This felt like do or die. I either lose her forever or got the chance to be something more.
In the silence, Naomi looked around my room. She scratched at her arm as she took the surroundings in. The last time she was in here, she’d seen me naked. I pushed away the thought because that was not the kind of distraction I needed right now.
“Naomi—”
“Finn,” she said at the same time.
My jaw tightened at how she let out a sigh. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I-I think I know what you’re going to say,” she explained.
“Really?” My heart pounded. Her knowing what I was about to confess seemed unlikely. Unless she somehow discovered I was Mid. But how? Sam had my phone, so she didn’t accidentally see a text thread there. I hadn’t told anyone about moderating for her. And Lincoln only called me by my username once.
My mind raced with possibilities as she continued, “Yeah. This is about our kiss.”
I swallowed. “Well, in part.”
She closed her eyes for a second. “I didn’t mean to avoid you…well, no, I did. What I wanted to say was, I didn’t mean to come off as rude. I needed some time to consider what it meant for us.”
“I get it. Trust me.” I stepped closer to her but kept my hands stuffed in my pockets to maintain control. “I was doing the same thing.”
“You were?”
I nodded. “I thought you were regretting it and I needed space to deal with that regret.”
Naomi shook her head. “No, I don’t regret it. I’d never regret it.”
Some of the knots in my stomach untangled. “That’s good to hear.”
“Just so we’re clear, not only did I enjoy the kiss, but I would also like to do it more with you.” She picked at a loose thread on her shirt as she spoke. Her eyes remained on mine, and I could see her nervousness. “But you should know something before we move forward.”
“Naomi—”
“I like you and I probably shouldn’t,” she said. “Because honestly, you’re scary sometimes.”
I winced. “I scare you?”
“Not in an ‘I’m fearing for my life’ kind of way. But I thought you hated me for a good while. After you kissed me, I wasn’t sure if you felt like I did.” She wrung her fingers. Her gaze flickered away at the last words. God, she was sweet.
“But I do have some baggage,” she continued in a whisper. “I feel like you should be aware.”
