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Chapter nine

Cecilia

Who knew spiderwebs and butterflies could go so well together?

I’ve never been more embarrassed in my life. The fact that Emma would outright say that in front of him blew my mind. Now all I can do is look at him from the corner of my eye, examining every part of him as I wonder what may be hidden below his waistband.

The smirk resting on his face as he guides me to the elevator tells me he knows exactly where my mind has traveled. Emma will pay for that later.

He’s wearing dark blue jeans, white sneakers, and a white t-shirt that hugs his muscles gloriously with a brown jean jacket thrown over it. His beard is a bit longer than I remember, but it simply gives him a more rugged appearance that I love.

Sexily tousled hair frames his face as if he’s been running his hands through it all day. His look is entirely casual, yet he could easily pull it off at any formal event. That’s just how good he wears it. The man looks edible.

I don’t think he’s noticed yet that we somewhat match, and I’ll never admit that I may have done that on purpose. We’ll blame it on a happy coincidence.

We enter the cab and Silas presses the ‘G’, sending us sailing down to the underground garage. Once out, I follow him to a beautiful and sleek black Range Rover Sport. Ugh, it’s nice to have money.

Beside it is a huge black pickup truck, and as I see it, I immediately think about how much more fitting it is for Silas.

That thing is so tall and massive, I’m surprised it even fits through the garage door.

Thank God it’s not the car we’re taking, because I would definitely need a step stool to get into that beast.

As I stand beside the SUV, Silas opens the passenger door for me. Once I’m seated, I expect him to close the door and head to the driver’s side, but to my surprise, he leans in, grabs the seatbelt, and buckles me in. Then he pulls on it for good measure and presses a kiss to my cheek.

“Can never be too careful.” He winks before closing the door, finally heading to the other side.

I’m frozen in my seat, completely stunned by his actions as he folds himself into the car, starts the engine, and exits the garage.

I never knew men actually did this; it’s just one of those things you read about in romance books and wish it would happen to you, knowing full well it doesn’t exist. And yet, it just happened to me.

We drive through the city for about five minutes when his phone rings through the speakers, the name ‘ SPENCER ’ taking up the touchscreen on the dashboard. Silas groans and runs a hand through his hair before looking my way. “It’s my brother.”

I give him a smile and nod my head in the direction of the screen. “That’s okay, answer it.”

He holds my gaze for a moment, determining if he should do as I said or not. In the end, he accepts the call. “Hey.”

“Yo! What is this? You holding out on me? I thought we were close.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Silas says with a puzzled look in his green eyes.

“Mom told me you got a girl,” Spencer responds, sounding smug.

Silas’s eyes instantly widen at the comment, his head shooting my way quickly, then turning back to the road, not saying a word. Judging by his reaction, I can tell he’s afraid of what his brother might say, which makes me wonder what his mother knows, and I can’t contain the blush from growing.

He told his mother about me?

“Your lack of response is a great indication that it is, in fact, true, Brother.”

Silas groans loudly, his knuckles turning white as he squeezes the steering wheel while his brother’s laughter echoes through the car.

“I’m not discussing this with you right now.” Silas works his jaw, making the muscles in his neck pop out.

“That’s all right, we’ll just talk about her at dinner tomorrow with the folks,” Spencer replies matter-of-factly.

We’re stopped at a red light when Silas talks again. “Please just stop talking,” he says, closing his eyes and pushing the back of his head into the headrest.

The light turns green and the cars before us start advancing, but Silas remains in his position. I delicately place my hand on his arm and give a little squeeze, gaining his attention. He opens his eyes and looks at me with an expression I can’t quite place before refocusing on the road.

“Fine, I get it, you’re not in the mood. I’ll let it slide for now, but tomorrow we are having this conversation. See you then. ”

“Yeah, yeah. Bye.” Silas ends the call the moment the words have left his mouth and lets out a defeated sigh. “I’m sorry about that, I shouldn’t have picked up.”

I lean back into the seat, facing him and offering him a sympathetic smile. “It’s okay, although I do have some questions now.” My smile turns into a smirk.

“Of course, you do,” he says as he places his right hand on my thigh and starts rubbing little circles with his thumb.

“You told your mother about me?” I ask hesitantly. This is only the second time we’ve seen each other, isn’t it a bit too soon to be telling our parents? Although it’s something I personally wouldn’t know.

His hand lifts from my thigh to rub the back of his neck as he lets out a suppressed laugh, his beautiful smile returning to his lips.

“Well, not exactly. I may have answered her call last night thinking it was you... let’s just say that calling her by another woman’s name was not the right thing to do. ”

I laugh when he wrinkles his face with a slight shake of the head, recalling the moment. It must have been something worth filming.

“Fair enough. As long as you aren’t taking me to meet her right now, I’d say all is good. But on that subject, where are we going?” I ask as I look out the side window, noticing we have exited the city and are entering New Jersey.

His hand returns to my thigh, beginning its circling journey all over again, and by the cautious look on his face, I can tell whatever he’s about to say may bother me.

“See, here’s the thing, Clay’s wife has this tradition where she sets up all her Halloween decorations on the first of the month. And well, I kind of forgot I promised to help.”

He’s taking me to his friend’s house? That can’t be right, we just met. We haven’t even been on a proper date. “You’re taking me to meet your friends...?”

“Yeah, I’d like you to meet them. If that’s okay with you?” He peeks my way. “I just wasn’t sure how long it would take, and I really didn’t want to cancel our date tonight.” He squeezes my thigh in a reassuring way.

“Um, yeah. I guess that’s okay,” I tell him, not sounding sure at all but hoping to convince myself. He watches my features closely, clearly noticing the hint of panic coursing through me.

“Are you nervous?” he asks.

“A little, yeah,” I tell him sincerely, chewing the corner of my bottom lip.

He offers me a genuine smile. “Don’t be, they’ll love you.”

When he turns his gaze back to the windshield, I stare at his profile. The outline of his jaw, that well-defined cheekbone, the green in his iris vibrating with the sun’s rays shining our way. His hair looks lighter with the outdoor light, that rogue curl falling over his forehead.

On instinct, I reach up and pass my fingers through his hair, putting the strand back in its place. As my hand lowers to the back of his neck, his focus turns my way, jaw locking while his pupils dilate.

The look he sends me is pure desire, and I find myself leaning in, my lips parting slightly, eyes wide, our breaths getting heavier. It feels like we’ve been stuck in this trance for an eternity, but in reality it’s only been a few seconds.

I drop my gaze to his pink lips, wondering what they would taste like against mine, before coming out of our moment. “You should probably focus on the road,” I whisper over to him, caressing his nape.

He looks back at the road, shifting in his seat and clearing his throat. “Right.”

I let go of him and slip my hand beneath his, still resting on my thigh, intertwining our fingers. His smile grows wide, pearly white teeth showing through. Contentment pours from him. I turn back to the window and smile, feeling pure happiness for the first time in what feels like forever.

It takes us a little over thirty minutes to arrive at our destination as we enter a wealthier community, the homes growing in size as we drive farther down the street. My nerves start to spike despite Silas reassuring me that everything will be fine.

We near the end of the street when a ginormous house comes into view, and Silas turns into the driveway, parking the car behind a similar SUV. He looks my way, giving my hand one final squeeze and a smile, then lets go and steps out of the car.

By the time I’ve gathered myself, he’s opening the passenger door and holds his hand out for me to take. I unbuckle my seatbelt, take a deep breath, then put my hand in his as I exhale.

Stepping out of the car, I look up at the beautiful home in front of me.

It’s breathtaking and intimidating. Made with red bricks and large windows along the facade, five steps lead to two white columns separated by a huge black front door.

The front lawn is perfectly manicured, with multiple storage bins labeled ‘ HALLOWEEN ’ lining the small portions of grass.

As we head toward the entrance, the front door flies open, and a massive, raven-haired man comes flying down the steps. He rushes up to Silas, stopping barely one foot away.

“You’d better have a good explanation for why you’re so late!

Morgan has been pissed at me all morning!

I tried to help, but every time I did, she’d tell me, ‘If Sy were here, he’d know what to do’ .

She even yelled at me! And you know my wife never yells, she’s like the poster child for serenity.

Now she’s in there sorting through boxes, looking on the brink of tears. FIX. THIS.”

Oh, he’s mad. He may not be yelling as he speaks, but his tone is harsh. His jaw works as he tries to rein in his anger, and his fists are clenched.