“Dear God, i am so sorry for whatever i did, but honestly, was my sin that bad?”

“Dear Lord, I think I broke something, like my liver.”

“She revealed her pale face and sniffed again. One red curl clung to her tearstained cheek. My hand reached out to release it, but I hesitated a mere heartbeat away from her skin. I swear to God she quit breathing and even blinking, and for a second so did I. In a deliberate movement, I freed the curl.~Noah”

“Ashley waddled back into the room and dropped into the seat next to me. "What did i miss?" I'd honestly forgotten she existed. Oh, if only dad would, too.”

“I stared into his eyes and waited his response. Neither one of us moved. Dear God, Lila and Natalie were right. He was hot. How could i have missed a body built like this? His unzipped jacket exposed hit t-shirt, so tight i could see the curve of his muscles. And those dark brown eyes...”

“Normal. She wanted normal and so did I.”

“No, baby, no," i whispered into her hair.She pushed her palms against my chest, then became a blur as she ran past. "I'm sorry.”