Page 67 of Forsaken Trail (Runaway 4)

The words woke me from a dreamless sleep.

I sat up, remembering just in time that I was naked in Brody’s bedroom. I clutched the sheet to my chest and blinked the fog from my eyes. Then I squinted at my sister, who stood in the doorway to Brody’s bedroom.

“Clara?” My voice was groggy and my head fuzzy. I glanced at the clock on the nightstand, doing a double take at the time. Eight thirteen. When was the last time I’d slept past five?

“I was just looking for Brody.” Her eyes stayed fixed on the floor. “We always meet at eight. I didn’t see him in the office and the door was open so . . .”

Beside me, Brody stirred. “Bump it to nine.”

“Okay.” She spun around too fast, nearly colliding with the doorframe as she scurried down the hall.

I fell back onto a pillow. Brody’s was the most comfortable bed I’d slept on in my life. Maybe that was why my internal alarm clock had taken the day off, even though I couldn’t.

I was due at the flower shop to meet Marty when it opened at ten. It was taking some getting used to, not arriving at work before dawn. The hours would get longer as I learned more, but for the first week, I was easing into my new routine.

Today, he was introducing me to the bookkeeper who’d come on to do the accounting after Brody had purchased the shop. Then we were going to do a walk-through of the store and prioritize redecoration.

But first . . . there was a man in my bed.

Or I was in his.

“Now should we talk about this?” Brody asked. His eyes were still closed, and he was hugging his pillow. The sheet had fallen low, nearly to his ass, and the strong, wide plane of his back was on full display.

The responsible decision would be to discuss this and agree on how sex would or would not fit into our relationship.

“No.” I whipped the covers off and kicked my legs over the bed. Then I stood, hurrying to tug on my sweatshirt and pull on my leggings. “Later. I need to get ready for work.”

And I needed to think this through.

Without another word, I tucked my bedhead hair behind my ears and aimed my feet at the door.

“Aria.” Brody’s voice stopped me before I could disappear.

“Yeah?” I turned.

He’d sat up. His hair was mussed, his face sleepy. But his eyes were alert and commanding. “See you at dinner.”

I nodded, then ran.

By a miracle, I managed to avoid Ron when I walked through the kitchen but the smell of bacon told me he was close. Escaping to my side of the house, I thought I was home-free when my bedroom door came into view—until I walked in and found my sister sitting on the bed with a smirk on her pretty face.

My face flushed and I kicked the door closed behind me. “Don’t look at me like that.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Like what?”

“You’re all . . . smug.”

“I’m not smug.”

“Then you need a mirror.” I walked to the bed, plopping down beside her. Then I covered my face in my hands. “This is a disaster.”

She giggled. “Dramatic much?”

“I had sex with Brody.”

“Duh. You’re pregnant.”

“Last night, Clara.”