Page 61 of Love in Development

My stance softened, and his grip loosened.I reached up to touch his face.It was smooth, and the skin-to-skin contact sparked along my fingers and traveled down throughout my body.This was the guy I had fallen in love with.Both mind and body.I suddenly became aware of the fact that he was still balancing on one leg because he had broken the other playing football, and my temper snapped again along with my concern.IK—Ni made me feel.That was for sure.

“C’mon.Let’s go find you a place to sit so you can get off that leg.I hope you’ve been following doctor’s orders.”

Keeping a hand on me for balance, he bent over and scooped up the crutch easily.The liar.He could give Charisse acting lessons.I tried to suppress a smile.He straightened, bracing the crutch on his free side and wrapping his other arm around my shoulders.It was a very proprietary movement on his part.Rather bold of him, and this time I didn’t even try to stop the grin that covered my face.

“I swear.It was just a coincidence.I wasn’t waiting here for you or anything.I’d dropped it just before you showed up.”

“Uh-huh.Why IvoryKnight?”

“I like keys, both computer and piano.Hence the ‘Ivory.’”

“You play piano?You never told me that.”

We crept along the sidewalk, walking in and out of overhead spotlights.

“I’m sure we still have lots of secrets to discover about each other.”The wordsecretssent a shiver down my spine.We were the only two people in the world.“And ‘Knight’ because all my friends call me Ni and I like to play paladins, which are basically knights.What about you?The Scarlett it obvious.”He tugged softly on one of my curls, and my stomach did a little flip.

Stop that, stomach.

“Why Saber?”

Heat crept into my cheeks, but I hoped the shadows covered it.“Sword was the obvious choice as it is my favorite weapon and it has good alliteration, but it didn’t roll off the tongue well.So, I went with saber.That’s all.”His gaze landed on me, and I turned my head.His eyes were stuck on my mouth.My face was on fire.How could I mention the wordtongue?I stumbled slightly on the even sidewalk and pressed my lips tightly together, looking forward.The moment quickly passed, and he continued forward with the click-clack of his crutches.

“Are you sure you don’t have a collection of sabers or a deep interest in World War Two?”

“Nope.”

A car’s headlights blinded me as it rumbled by.

“Where exactly are we going?We’ve passed two benches and a low wall.”

OMG.I was going to die of embarrassment being with him.I gotten so distracted by the conversation and his touch that I wasn’t thinking.I looked around.My feet had taken the route they knew best.I had made the guy, fresh out of a cast, walk over a mile.

“My house.I mean, the one Lin owns and is sharing with me and Charisse.”Great, now I was babbling.IK—I mean, Ni—already knew about the situation.It would take some time to get used to the idea that Ni knew everything that IK knew.I gestured to porch swing.“Why don’t you have a seat?”

“Am I too scary to bring in?”

I took his crutch to set it against the wall as he lowered himself into the swing.“What?No, we aren’t allowed to have guys inside.”

Just then, Charisse came out the front door in her sequined aqua mermaid dress, and a hearty male laugh followed her.

“Molly.Ni.What are you doing here?”

My brain died.All thought and human language deserted me.I met Ni’s disbelieving gaze.