And before I had a chance to make the decision for myself, my legs moved without permission.
11
ANNA
I watched as Brutus looked around my room. It wasn’t much, but it was mine. His eyes canvassed the room, and I recognized the look. He was studying, like my brother always did.
Military men always looked at things like they were studying and readying themselves for war.
He stopped in front of a picture. “Where did you get this?”
I smiled as I walked over and stood next to him. “I took it.”
I felt his gaze snap down to the top of my head. “You do photography?”
I just shrugged. “It’s a hobby of mine, yeah.”
He turned and pointed to the picture hanging over the bed. “And that one?”
I turned with him. “Yep, I took that one, too. I think it warped a little bit, though, being blown up so big like that.”
“Hmm,” he hummed as he began moving around my room again.
I watched him like a hawk as I worried my lower lip with my teeth behind his back.
He was about to put two and two together.
“This is cute,” he said with a grin as he grabbed Twinkle Toes.
“Hey!” I said as I rushed over and ripped my childhood stuffed animal out of his grasp. I clutched the ratty bunny with the floppy ears to my chest. “No touching him. He’s mine.”
Brutus crooked an eyebrow. “He’s yours?”
I nodded and clutched him close to me. “He’s special.”
His eyes cased down my body. “Twinkle Toes, huh?”
I nodded as I wrapped my arms around the stuffed animal that was practically falling apart. “My parents got him for me when I was first born.”
His gaze ran down my body. “You didn’t have these things at Doc’s place.”
Fuck.“So?”
“Soooo,” he said as he took a step toward me and used his finger to bounce one of the bunny’s ears. “How did they get here if you didn’t bring them from Doc’s?”
I placed Twinkle Toes back onto my bed and tucked him in with the little blanket that I had bought him a very, very long time ago.
“King went and got some of my?—”
“Don’t lie to me,” he said, lowering his voice. “I always know when people are lying to me.”
“Oh, come on, Bee,” I said as I stepped out from underneath his intimidating shadow. “It’s just a couple of pictures and?—”
“You already had a room picked out when we got here,” he said.
Suddenly, I regretted letting him into my room. “It’s just?—”
“And you didn’t take the grand tour, like the other girls, when we first got here,” he said.
