“Where is Casen? Isn’t he usually assigned to Rose?” I ask, looking around. Casen is like Rose’s shadow, always close by.
“Right here,” Casen says. He doesn’t look impressed, walking in behind Jonah with his own bag. The deep frown on his face makes me wonder what has upset him.
“Are you moving in?” I ask Rose.
I raise a brow, now looking at the amount of luggage she has brought with her.
“No,” she says as Casen walks over to her. Her curtness doesn’t go unnoticed. “Put it in Marabella’s room,” Rose says, and Jonah glares at her.
“I am not your slave; why do you need all this stuff? You are staying for two days and one night,” Jonah huffs and then kisses my mother’s cheek on his way past as he heads for the stairs.
“Eziah, where are you hiding, pretty boy?” Rose calls out, stalking past me toward the kitchen.
Oh God, what is she up to now?
“Uncle Mateo!” Rose squeals and greets him with a slap on the back. My father arches his back, and Rose chuckles. She sure is a combination of rainbows and hell.
“God, help us all,” he mutters. Right there with you, Dad, right there. I watch as Dad walks over to shake Casen’s hand. They both shake their heads like it’s a secret code.
“Mara,” Jonah hisses, nodding toward the stairs. A smile slips onto my face, and I rush to follow.
“Doors remain open!” my father calls to me as I trudge up the stairs after Jonah. I hate how I am treated like a flipping teenager. And now, everyone will have suspicions. Ugh, I hate this.
“We aren’t doing anything!” I hiss, annoyed. Why can’t he just mind-link me?
“Yet!” Jonah calls over his shoulder. A mischievous grin grows on his handsome face while my cheeks heat up like someone poured lava on them.
“You little – big, ah, 1. 5-meter rule Jonah, whatever you do to her, I will do to you!” he calls out, and I can hear the satisfaction in his tone like he just got the last word in.
“Oh, la la, daddy kink,” Jonah taunts with a smirk, winking at my father, and my father growls as we disappear around the corner. Does this guy fear nothing? Does he have a death wish? Walking down the hall, I spot Eziah peeking out one of the spare bedroom doors.
“Psst,” he whispers at me as I pass him. His eyes scan the area. He has a worried expression on his face and seems tense.
“What are you doing?” I ask him. Eziah glances over my shoulder.
“She’s still down there,” he nudges his head downstairs.
I frown. “Mom? Yeah, she is talking to Casen and Dad.” Why is he acting so strange?
“No, Rose,” he whispers, glancing about like she will pop out at any minute. And it still baffles me how he can be scared of someone like her, up to the point that he is hiding from her.
“Oh my god, what did you do?” I ask as my eyes widen in both fear and disbelief. They are always giving each other shit. They have more of a brother-sister, love-hate relationship than we ever have had. Or could have.
“I visited Uncle Andrei last week; I sprayed her and her friends in mud and puddle water when I took off,” he snickers, and then, Eziah suddenly shrieks. His eyes grow wide as saucers as he takes off and nearly knocks me off my feet.
I turn my head to see the rainbow-haired devil heading our way, an evil little smirk on her face. “There you are. You wanna run Eziah?” Rose says and takes off right after my brother. May the chase begin.
It’s all but a mere moment until Rose catches up with him and tackles him into the wall, placing him in a headlock.
“Mom, mom!” Eziah squeals like a damn girl, as she bends his arm back while wrapping her legs around his torso. Jonah shakes his head, continuing to my room. And I snicker at their antics.
“Be nice to your cousin, Eziah,” my mother calls out from downstairs, and Rose laughs at him, knowing she has got the upper hand.
“Don’t just stand there, help me,” Eziah hisses as she starts yanking on his hair. Eziah bites her leg, and she wails, punching his arm. “No fair, I can’t hit you back,” he yells at her.
“You punch like a pussy anyway,” Rose taunts, putting him in a chokehold.
“Casen, fetch the brat,” Jonah calls over his shoulder, and I hear a groan downstairs before Casen stomps up the steps toward us. He reaches for Rose. Why is he in such a foul mood today?
“You little turd, you fucking covered us all. That was my favorite shirt. You embarrassed me,” Rose says while Eziah squeals, trying to untangle her limbs, squirming on the ground like a slug. I hurry after Jonah, knowing a brawl is likely to start when Casen grabs her.
“Thank God she is staying with you for the night; she is already driving me nuts,” Jonah says, dumping Rose’s bag on the end of the bed.
“She is alright, she is just,” my words are suddenly cut off by Jonah’s lips as he grabs me, rips me toward him and crushes me against his chest, his lips crashing against mine.
“Jonah, Kyan,” I mumble against his lips, despite kissing him back. I find myself relishing in the feel of his touch.
“He will get over it,” Jonah says, pecking my lips and squeezing me tightly. A moan escapes me when he shoves me against the dresser. His hands grip my thighs as his lips maul mine. I giggle when he lifts me, my legs wrap around his waist and arms around his neck. For once, I don’t care that the contents of my dresser fall to the floor.
“Jonah!” I mumble against his lips.
I know that we need to stop. We must. But despite that thought, I don’t push him away. I don’t even try to. Jonah has always been my safe place, and nothing feels better than his lips moving against mine. His tongue, playing with mine. He presses his body closer when the door opens, and we quickly pull apart.
My cheeks heat, but Jonah doesn’t let me go. Instead, he sits on the edge of my bed and pulls me onto his lap, while my brother collapses on my floor. I can hear Casen and Rose arguing in the hallway.