Chapter 10 #2
I really shouldn’t be rifling through Leo’s things, but I can’t help it. Theoretically, I’m his girlfriend…it would make sense for me to wear his clothes every once in a while. Right? I mean, it would be rude not to when this fabric is simply begging to be worn.
Rafael’s deep baritone snaps down the hall, so I stop thinking about it and slip my tight shirt over my head, sending my hair static before I reach behind my back and free myself from my bra. God, that feeling is unmatched. (Even if I am a part of that certain committee.)
I quickly pull the sweater on and replace my jeans with the oversized sweatpants, rolling the waist down three times before my feet can comfortably poke out the bottom.
I catch a glance at myself in the mirror hanging on the wall and giggle. I look ridiculous, but I kind of love it.
I slip back out the door, and Leo and Raf are surprisingly quiet.
When I make my way to the end of the hall, I see that the previously harsh lines of Rafael’s face have softened.
He looks over at Leo and chews on the inside of his lip as they sit on opposite couches.
“Thank you, Leo,” he says. He doesn’t even sound like he’s forcing it. “I’m glad you were there.”
“I’ve got to say,” I say as I make my way into the room.
“I half expected my boyfriend to have at least one black eye by the time I came out.” I try not to stutter on the word boyfriend.
Leo spins in his seat, a smirk pulling at his lips when he sees my attire, his gaze glittering with assurance. “This is all very civilized.”
It’s almost concerning.
I jump over the back of the couch to sit next to him, and Rafael assesses us as Leo’s hand lands on my thigh almost automatically.
It’s odd. Every time Leo touches me, I feel completely comfortable.
I mean, it’s Leo.
But every now and then, a little spark of electricity sneaks in. Like now, as his thumb slides back and forth, and at the charity auction when he slipped his hand around my waist. I swallow as I settle into the plush cushions, attempting to appear as natural as possible.
It’s merely nerves, bred out of hope that we can really pull this off.
Rafael’s eyes narrow. “So this is…real?” He points between us.
“As real as the ground you’re walking on,” Leo says, overly chirpy. I have to stop myself from snorting.
Rafael gestures to the couch he’s splayed over. “I’m sitting, dumbass.”
“Okay, well, you’re about to be walking on some very real ground all the way out to your truck.” Leo gets up to escort my brother out of the house.
“Okay, okay.” He holds his hands up in surrender, even as his eyes stay wary. I conceal the sigh of relief at the fact that Rafael is indeed moving toward the door. Lord knows his interrogation is far from over, but I’ll take any reprieve we can get.
“Well, how long are you here for?” He sends his question over Leo’s shoulder at me.
Leo looks back, meeting my eyes that flit between Rafael and him.
We haven’t quite ironed those details out.
“You’ll be here for at least a couple of days, won’t you?
” He keeps his gaze locked on mine, knowing I never stick around too long.
But this time, I’m supposed to be here to spend time with my boyfriend, so theoretically, I’ll be here at least for the weekend.
“Yeah,” is all I say with what I hope is an assuring nod.
“Okay, good.” I see the way he swallows his grin. My brother—always the stoic grump. “So we’ll see you both tomorrow night for Miles’s match then?”
“Oh shit,” Leo mutters under his breath.
“What?” I ask, and my hand accidentally—or instinctively—brushes against his.
His gaze lingers on where our skin connects before his blue eyes meet mine. “No, nothing.” He shakes his head. “Just, in all of this”—his brows raise as if I don’t know what “this” he is talking about—“I completely forgot about the match…I was supposed to train with Miles.”
“He didn’t say anything?” I ask, not taking my eyes from his.
Leo shakes his head. “No, I—”
“Okayyyy.” Rafael turns toward the door, his voice excessively dramatic.
“Well, this was fun and all, but I think I’ll leave you two and your intense eye contact to figure that out.
” And with the fakest smile I’ve ever seen, he shuts the door behind him, leaving Leo and me and our intense eye contact in silence.
I nearly giggle at the way my brother escaped so quickly, as if all of a sudden, he couldn’t stand to be in the same room as us when all we did was share a glance.
As if we haven’t ever done that before, when in reality, Leo and I have always looked at each other.
Although my eyes were usually rolling in his vicinity.
“I see you found something comfy.” Leo tugs on the rolled-up sleeve of his sweatshirt hanging over my wrist, the corner of his lips tugged up in a smirk.
There’s that spark.
I take a clumsy step back as I clear my throat. “Yeah, uh—I’m sorry, I just…” Any reasoning falls away.
“Don’t apologize, covergirl.” He strolls past me. “It suits you.”