Warmth presses along my back, and a hand grabs mine.
“Is it bad?” Lip asks, his smell and touch making me shift on my feet. I pull my hand from his and hiss.
“It fucking hurts, I know that,” I state. I look at my finger and notice a small cut.
“First-aid is in the bathroom in the main hall,” Tom Cat tells me, grabbing a tomato.
Lip grabs my wrist and pulls me around the island in the kitchen and out of the double doors. He drags me down the hall and opens the main bathroom door.
“Sit,” he instructs, pointing at the sink.
“I can put a Band-Aid on myself.” I roll my eyes but still sit on the sink’s counter.
He leans down, pulls the kit from under the sink and takes a Band-Aid out. He grabs my wrist and surveys the pad of my finger.
“You nicked it pretty good,” he mutters.
“It’s your fault,” I whisper. His brown eyes flick to mine and I scowl.
“I’m pretty sure you were too busy checking me out and forgot what you were doing.” He smiles wolfishly.
“Yeah, that was it,” sarcasm drips from my voice. “Pretty sure I just suck at cooking.”
Lip’s mouth lifts at the corner into a small smile. “Not arguing that.” He winks. My mouth falls open, and I give him a slap to the arm.
“Hey, I’m getting better,” I defend, laughing.
He turns on the faucet and slowly places my finger under it. The cool water splashes into the cut, making it sting. I hiss and yank it from the stream.
“Ouch, that hurts!” I yell. An evil grin fits his face and he pushes my hand back under the water.
“You gotta clean it.” He chuckles. “Stop being a baby.” I furrow my brows and roll my eyes.
He dries my finger off with a clean cloth and gently wraps it with a Band-Aid.
“There, all fixed up.” He smiles, holding my finger up to display a Spongebob Band-Aid.
I laugh. “Thanks.” Spongebob makes me think of Piper, a small sting in my chest resurfacing.
“Shadow will be back tomorrow with details on Eric and everyone involved,” Lip states. It’s crazy how he can still read my mind, even after this many years.
His hands rest on my knees, and the simple touch of his palms sends shivers up my thighs. I slowly shift my gaze from his hands to his face. His eyes are hooded, and his mouth is parted. Silence fills the air, and the tension becomes thick. I bite my bottom lip and hop off the counter. Just as I’m about to walk out, he grabs my arm, stopping me. His forehead wrinkles, and his eyes display a sense of sorrow, like he wants to apologize but doesn’t know how. Almost as soon as they arrived, the wrinkles disappear, and he lets go of me. I bite my cheek, feeling a little defeated, and walk back to the kitchen.
***
I wake from my sleep and feel heaviness on my waist, something rubbing against my clit. I moan and slowly open an eye. The weight across me is Lip’s arm. He’s lying in bed with me. I shift my ass, rubbing my clit along whatever is causing me so much pleasure in my sleepy haze.
A moan escapes Lip’s mouth in my ear. I lower my hand and grab onto whatever is gliding along my panty-clad pussy. The unmistakable barbell in Lip’s dick greets my palm.
“Fuck, I love you, Cherry,” Lip groans into my neck. My eyes widen, my fog of sleep lifting at once. I turn on my side and see Lip waking up at the same time. His hooded eyes find mine and we just stare at each other. He must have slept in the bed beside me, and our bodies found each other in the midst of sleeping. He pulls the sheet up and looks under the blanket, I assume at his dick. He shrugs in an apologetic way and grabs a spare pillow, shoving it between us. I shake my head and laugh, and he laughs with me.
“You’re in my bed,” I mutter, my mind playing back and forth if I really heard him say he loved me or if I dreamed it. Lip tilts his head to the side and a sly smirk crosses his face.
“Technically, you’re in my bed,” he counters.
“Technically, you’re on my side of the bed,” I smart.
He chuckles and pats the pillow. “I’ll stay on my side. Promise.”
Silence falls between us, and he brushes the hair from my face before cupping my cheek.
“Before my mom left, she told Tyler and I that ‘dishonesty condemns you, sinning betrays you’,” I whisper.
Lip shrugs. “What the fuck does that mean?”