Page 41 of The Eleventh Hour
Rafael’s smile falls, but Dane’s eyes turn molten, fiery blue fury, and it sends a spark of pure pleasure to everything feminine inside me.
I smile back at him. Sweet as pie. Suck it, Galbraith.
“So, you’ll meet us tomorrow morning?” Rafael asks.
“Sure. I guess. Might as well,” I say. The waitress comes over, and I order a plate of fries. River shakes his head and changes my order to a burger, fries, and a chocolate shake.
“I’m an adult, River.”
“And I’m only looking after you.”
I push off him and growl. Outside, a rainbow halo flashes past, and the dream comes back to me. Love is blind, such a common saying. What did it mean? Did it mean anything? A week of sulking should have given me more peace of mind. Instead, I feel more torn up than ever.
I look at Rafael, and he’s forcing me to face the truth of my feelings for Terrance, for Louis. Everything I buried in those hectic weeks is coming back to bite me. And Dane, he’s forcing me to see my part in all of this. I own some of what happened. That is the truth. No matter how painful it is or how much it hurts me. I was always going to have to face it.
Just why now?
And why with these two?
I sit quietly while they talk. When my burger arrives, I pick at it and nibble until I’ve eaten half.
“Right, you have successfully fed me, got me out of the house, made sure I have a job. Can I go home now?”
River sighs. “You are so much work.”
I scoff. “It takes you three hours to get ready for a date.”
River blushes. “It was one time.”
“Sure, sure.”
Rafael’s expression clears with a look of intense relief. It makes my stomach flutter, and I look away from him quickly. What did he just read in our conversation?
“Please, River. I just want to go home.” Apparently, I’m not above begging.
River sighs and stands up. “If you don’t show tomorrow, I’ll come over and drag you out myself. If you still refuse, I’ll ring Eddie.”
I narrow my eyes. “Careful,” I say to him. He folds his arms over his chest in a move that just screams he’s done pretending what we aren’t.
Rafael leans across the table and touches my hand. “We can pick you up.”
I shake my head. “I’ll meet you at the library.”
“Right, thanks for doing this, guys. See you later,” River says and slaps my back hard enough that I stumble forward. Dane rolls his shoulders and sits stiffly. For a second, it looked like he was reaching out to catch me.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I say quietly and leave without a backwards glance.
River unlocks the car, and we climb in.
“I’ll walk you up.”
“No need, I’ll be fine.”
“Nope, not getting out of it that easy. I’m walking you up.”
I trudge up the stairs and open my apartment to find it immaculate.
“Wow, Dad’s people work fast.” I turn to River and see his throat bobbing as his face slowly turns red. “River, what’s wrong?”