Amber kept walking.
He caught her up quickly. “Will you stop?”
“You think our life together is a mess?” she asked, stopping to yell at him.
“No, I don’t think it’s a mess. I made it a mess.”
“You’re not making any sense.”
“Do you think I don’t know that?” He looked around him to see they were secluded in a darkened alleyway. “I could have had you at eighteen, Amber, and I didn’t. We both walked away, and for the last seven years we’ve been having these moments together that were so fleeting, they might as well be a joke.”
He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to find the right words to convey what he wanted to say.
She didn’t speak or dispute him, which he took as a good sign.
“We’re good together, Amber. Even without the fucking sex we’re that good. You can’t tell me you don’t feel it?” He moved toward her, and she took a step back. “Don’t pull away from me.”
“You’re not making any sense.”
“I’m making perfect sense. I love you, Amber, and Erika means nothing to me. The mess I mentioned was the mess I’d caused with me giving her the wrong impression about my attention.”
She stared down his body. Her hand touched his chest. “Why did you caress her, Elijah? If she meant nothing, why did you do it?”
“You’re always so closed off around me. Heather gets a part of you I’ll never see, and I’m jealous of her. I’m jealous of my sister because she gets a chance to have you in ways I can’t.”
He dropped his head, panting for breath. Elijah was opening himself up in ways he never thought he could. Amber left him no choice but to open up.
“I’m yours, Elijah.”
“Are you really?” he asked.
“I’m yours. You’ve told me enough times that I’ve got no choice but to believe it.”
He chuckled, caressing her cheek. “We’re not a mess. We’re the best we’ve ever been together.”
“Will you take me home?” she asked.
“You’re not going to shout at me?”
“No. I’m not going to yell.” She offered him her hand, and he took it.
The walk to her apartment was slow, and he took her the long way around to her apartment. He wanted all the excuses he could find to be around her.
“We’re a strange pair, right?”
“Yeah, we’re strange.”
“I was thinking we could tell Heather soon. I don’t like lying to my friend. You’re her brother, and I want her to know I’m seeing you. Sneaking around and lying is so not my thing.”
“I thought you’d never ask.” He snaked an arm around her waist and took her back to her apartment.
“Does this mean we get to have sex?” she asked.
“Not yet.” He wanted to fuck her more than anything. First, he needed to make sure Amber held no doubts. Heather finding out about them was a good sign.
“Do you want me to tell her?” he asked.
“Do you think she’ll take it better coming from you?” she asked.
“You talk to her,” Elijah said. He’d give Heather the truth but tell her to give Amber some time to admit it. His sister was a little matchmaker in the making.
He left her at her apartment door and dialed his sister’s number on the way out of the apartment.
“Elijah, I’ve got good news. I’m pregnant.”
Heather’s news took him by surprise, halting all of his thoughts. “Wow, congratulations.”
She talked and talked until he heard Julian complain about some attention.
“Sorry. I’m excited. I’ve got a human inside me, and I’m amazed.”
He laughed. “It’s all good.”
“What did you want to talk to me about?” she asked.
“Amber wants to tell you the truth about us.” He’d been talking with his sister for some time. They were slowly coming together, and Heather had started calling him by his given name rather than the insults she sent his way.
“Okay. I’ll be gentle with her. It’s about time she opened up to me. I’ve hated all this lying.”
He talked with Heather for several minutes before finally ringing off. Staring up at the moon, he wondered if this would finally be the year when he got his heart’s desire.
Chapter Ten
Telling Heather about her relationship with Elijah wasn’t as hard as she thought it was going to be. Her friend was understanding and comforted her even though Amber didn’t think she deserved the comfort. For a long time she’d been deceitful to her best friend. She felt better that everything was out in the open.