Page 200 of The Storm

“Give me a sec; I’ll get dressed,” I murmur against his lips.

“You don’t have to rush. There’s nobody here. Bridge is out of town, and I heard Dia leave earlier. You can take a shower and lock up after yourself.”

He walks backward toward the door, mouth still sealed over mine. We bump into walls and furniture the whole way to the front door.

He pats the door with one hand behind him, searching for the knob, still kissing me, before he lets out a sigh when he finds it and pushes the door open.

“Later?” he asks. His lips are swollen from my kisses.

I nod.

“I’ll be home.” It’s a promise.

He has to go.

One more kiss.

A heated look.

He’s out the door.

I stand in the hallway for a moment longer before I go back to the bedroom, grab a pair of clean underwear from Blue’s drawer, and head to the bathroom.

I’m just drying off when I hear the front door slam shut and hurried footsteps coming down the hallway.

I push the door open and step out. “Did you forget something or just?—”

The words die an abrupt death when I come face to face with Dia instead of Blue.

We stare at each other. Dia frowns.

“Nick? What are you—” Her eyes go impossibly wide and impossibly round as she draws her conclusions.

I back away into the bathroom, hands covering my junk, and grab the towel off the hook, wrapping it around my hips quickly before I step back out there.

Dia’s eyes fly back to me. Her shoulders slump and she rubs her hands over her mouth.

“Oh, shit,” she says weakly. “Shit.You’rethe guy with too many teeth.”

I blink at her. “The what?”

She motions toward her neck like it’s supposed to make sense of that, then waves dismissively when I don’t get it.

“Okay,” she says. “Okay. Okay.” Each okay sounds slightly more hysterical. “Shit.” She turns around and starts to pace, throwing me an occasional look.

I wait.

“You caught me off guard.” She glares at me.

“My bad.”

“Kind of is, yeah.” She holds her arms out. “Who do I even threaten here? Go’s my brother. You’re my twin.” She presses the heels of her hands against her eyes. “Oh my God, my brothers are fucking.” She whirls around. “I need a drink.”

She disappears into the living area. I hesitate for a moment before I go and get dressed. My own clothes are strewn around on the floor of Blue’s bedroom, so I thinkfuck itand grab more of Blue’s clothes. Once I’m dressed, I take a deep breath before I make my way to the living room, where Dia is sitting on the couch with her hands stuffed under her thighs, waiting.

I go to the window opposite the couch, lean my ass against the sill, and cross my arms over my chest.

Silence descends between us for a bit before Dia presses her lips together and aims her gaze at me.