“I should walk you guys out.”
“Stay here with your lady friend.”
“I’m not his lady friend,” Grace murmured, using my arm as leverage to sit up. “And I’m awake now.” She uncurled her leg from over mine and wiped the corner of her mouth, glancing back at my chest to see if she’d drooled on me. I smiled and wiped my fingers against an imaginary spot on my shirt just to tease her.
She narrowed her eyes at me, but it turned into a smile. I wouldn’t care if she drooled on me. And I loved that she’d grown comfortable enough to make it a possibility.
Molly reached down and hugged Grace. “Just so you know, it was your brother and sister-in-law’s idea to sneak out without waking you two up. And they left their popcorn explosion. I don’t know why, maybe to keep you here longer helping Dean clean. I’d disown them.”
Grace stood. “They know me too well. I’ll stay and help clean up, I’m just gonna check on Piper first.”
After she left, I pulled out the vacuum and took care of the popcorn. Maybe she could help me with the dishes. She came back a few minutes later to a clean room, looking around in amazement. “How did you do that?”
“Central vacuum system. It’s whisper quiet.”
“I wanna see.”
I should have known Grace would actually want to see the inner workings of my vacuum system. Of all the things to impress her with, this was it. I showed her the panel in the wall that opened, hiding the vacuum hose unless it was in use. She pulled it back out and flipped the button, testing out the suction on my carpet for a few seconds before putting it back. “So, this is how the rich live.”
“With our fancy vacuums.”
“Exactly.”
“When did you fall asleep?” I asked. “Did you miss the epic movie kiss?”
“No. You did, though. You missed all of them. There was this one kiss where Bastien was in dragon form with his wings out, about to land, and Malisia runs at him and they meet in the middle right when he shifts, and she wraps herself around him like an eager starfish.” She fanned her face. “I’ll admit. It was pretty hot.”
“You better show me what you mean. So, he starts like this…” I climbed up and stood on the couch putting my arms out like wings.
Grace raised an eyebrow. “Nice try, Dean. You can dare me into a lot of things, but kissing you while reenacting a scene from a dragon shifter movie isn’t one of them.” When I continued to slowly fan my arms and stare her down, she dropped her head and laughed. “Holy heck, do you save this side of yourself only for me?”
“Yes.”
She glanced up at me. I was serious, and she knew I was serious. Yes, I would do just about anything for her attention, but I also felt safe doing it. There was something pretty magical about having a secret friend. Isaac and Carmen knew we were comfortable hanging out together now, but they had no idea what that actually meant for us. And they probably never would.
My risk paid off. Grace couldn’t stand to leave me standing on the couch being the only one looking like an idiot. She walked to the other end of the sectional and climbed up. “One of us is going to end up with a broken nose.”
“We won’t actually kiss. I just kinda want to investigate this eager starfish move.”
“I hate you right now.” She shook out her shoulders and stretched her neck from side to side, warming up for whatever this was. “Don’t drop me.”
“So, I’m catching you?”
“Yes, right after you shift, when your wings become arms.”
“Okay, on the count of three.” I gave us a countdown and then jumped off the couch, running at her, and she did the same. But there was so little space, she didn’t get time to leap, and instead ran into my chest. Her arms came around my waist after the fact, along with one leg.
She looked up at me with her chin resting on my chest. “That didn’t quite work.”
“We need more room.” I separated my part of the sectional and slid it against the wall, and then I did the same with her section, moving it to the opposite wall, giving us a lot more space.
Without talking about it, we both climbed up on our couch cushions to try it again. I wasn’t sure if this was the dumbest or the smartest thing I’d ever done, but I couldn’t back down now. That was the problem with dares. Once you had a partner in crime, you were committed.
“Ready?” I asked.
She nodded, and I gave us the countdown.
More prepared this time, I hunched down a little bit right before she got to me and caught her up, supporting her weight when she wrapped her legs around me. Her hands clung to my shoulders. This was less eager starfish and more like a starfish hanging on for dear life. She laughed, and I gave us a little spin.
