MINE
Cash
Half-covered with a blanket I wake on the couch with a stiff body and a redheaded girl on my mind.
Rain hammers the roof with fury, creating a constant background noise. The downpour ended our bonfire sooner than I wanted it to. I hope there will be more like it. For the first time, I was meeting the real Sara, not just the defenses she keeps up.
The smell of coffee and bacon drifts from the kitchen. It’s comfort, basically. I stretch my arms over my head, listening. Upstairs, there’s movement, light footsteps. Then the unmistakable sound of a shower turning on.
I get up. Stix is at the stove, his back to me, pan in one hand, spatula in the other, already working on breakfast with an intensity that belongs in a field operation. I rub the back of my neck and shuffle over, not completely awake yet.
“Morning,” I mumble.
“You’re up late,” he says and motions toward the cupboard. I grab plates, then reach for the silverware. Our movements sync, each of us knowing exactly where to be and when.
I glance toward the ceiling. The water is still running. “She’s been in there forever.”
“Guess she needs a moment.”
“So,” I say finally, reaching for the mugs. “Quite the story she told last night...”
He lifts the bacon from the pan and sets it on paper towels to drain. “The one about almost biting some stupid guy’s tongue off?”
I huff. “That’s the one.” I’ve never been this aware of my tongue, constantly pressing it against the roof of my mouth, imagining what it’d feel like with part of it missing. Would I still taste all the flavors in a tomato sauce?
“Forget about it,” he warns.
“Like you could?” I set the mugs down harder than necessary. “I mean, come on, that was her first and last experience? Ever?”
He gives a slow nod, eyes on the eggs. “Yeah, apparently.”
The sound of the rain and the sizzle from the pan blend together. I think about the firelight from last night, how it lit up her face, how she leaned in, absorbing everything she heard. Hungry. Not necessarily for us, but definitely for something more.
“Just one kiss gone all wrong,” I think out loud.
Stix doesn’t respond. Probably chanting She’s a job in his head. I don’t get why he’s fighting it so vehemently. Well, I do, but fuck it.
“She’s eighteen,” I say eventually. “And she’s never—”
He shoots me a look. “Don’t make it weird.”
“I’m not. It’s... fascinating.”
“Hey,” he says, his voice low as he pours coffee. “Don’t be a jerk with her today.”
I roll my eyes. “Relax. I’m not gonna mess with her.”
“Flirt all you want, but no crossing lines. If she lets you teach her, that’s a success.”
I hold up my hands in mock surrender. “Scout’s honor.”
Stix rolls his eyes and shakes his head, tending to the stove again.
A few minutes later, Sara pads into the room, hair wet, eyes wide awake. She’s wearing that same hoodie again, teddy-bear sketch and all. Cute.
Stix frowns. “Didn’t like the sweater I gave you?”
She tugs at one sleeve and wrinkles her nose. “Reeks of smoke.”
“Want one of mine instead?” I offer.
She tilts her head, amused. “Depends. Does yours smell better?”
I grin. “Infinitely,” I say, already heading outside. “Be right back.”
A wet chill wraps around me as soon as I open the door.
My boots squelch in the mud as I sprint through the rain to my truck, wrench the passenger door open, and start digging through the duffel on the seat.
I find a clean hoodie and slam the door shut again.
I’m soaked by the time I make it back to the cabin.
When I enter, both of them stare at me in disbelief.
“You’re an idiot,” Stix says, sipping his coffee, barely hiding a laugh behind the rim of his mug.
I shrug, dripping water across the floor as I hold the hoodie out to her. She takes it with a smile cutting through all this gray and disappears out of the room. A few heartbeats later, she’s back.
And it hits me. Hard.
The hoodie hangs off her in all the wrong ways that somehow make it perfect.
The sleeves swallow her hands, the hem skims her thighs, pulling every thought out of me.
She wears it better than I ever did, and for a second, it’s easy to imagine she’s mine.
Just like that, my whole damn universe shifts.
Now I know the real reason Stix started that sweater thing. She’s just a job, my ass.
“Comfy,” she says, settling into her seat.
“Looks good on you,” I blurt out.
For some reason it earns me another one of Stix’s glares. What did I do now?
Sara smirks but doesn’t comment.
We eat. It’s the kind of meal that feels complete without words. I think I could grow used to this.
Stix finishes first and reclines in his chair.
“I’ve got some errands to run today,” he says, his tone casual. “You need anything from the store?”
“You’re going shopping? Can I join you?”
Bold move.
Stix gives her a deadpan stare.
“Okay, it was worth a try.” She raises her hands briefly, palms up, a hint of humor in her eyes. “No, I‘m good.”
Nothing? Didn’t see that coming.
“You good with training with Cash while I’m out?”
She freezes, her grip tightening around the fork. Her gaze flicks to me, then back to Stix. A brief pause follows as she considers it.
“What type of training?” she asks carefully.
I shift my weight forward slightly, letting my charm loose. “Knives.”
That gets her. Her face comes alive with interest. “I get to train with knives?”
“Stix thought you should master the art before using the one you hid under your mattress.”
Color hits her cheeks fast. She gapes at him. “You knew?”
He tips his chin, an obvious yes.
“Why’d you let me keep it?”
“Figured it gave you a sense of security, and if I didn’t give you a reason, you wouldn’t use it.”
She absorbs that for a moment, posture straightening, eyes thoughtful, as if she’s just realizing he can still watch her. Then she surprises us with the smallest smile and an okay.
Stix gets up and rinses his dishes in the sink. On his way out, he bends down so only I can hear, while my eyes are locked on Sara’s. “If she walks away with blood on her hands, it’d better be yours.” He grabs his jacket and steps out the back door into the rain.
The door clicks shut behind him, and I glance over at Sara, who’s now lounging in my hoodie, looking out the window with an expression I can’t quite read yet.
This day just got a hell of a lot more interesting.