: The Space

la

he kiss tha

y he looked a

rn something

as the w

e way his fingers curled into my hair. The warmth of his breath on my lips. The way our mouths

couldn't ha

hand trembled to

o the dark, my heart pounding like it had forgotten how to rest. And every sound from dow

the house wa

hing had

everyth

op open, mug in hand, pretending to read something. The secon

Restrai

sed up l

aid, forcing m

ed. "Mo

are of the silence. Of the four feet of til

end," I said casually, pouring coffee I wou

ust clicked something on his l

nally said. "

was far away. And

meant that kiss hadn't been a mistake to him. But he didn

re sharply than I intended. "Unless

nched

like he was balancing on a w

not an

y looked. Like he was peeling somet

a kid,

eight

ill my ste

. "I'm your wife's daughter. You came into my life. I didn't

ened, but he

op, shoving the chair back like the

ken up in the middle of the night, fists clenched, trying not to remember the sound

eath

ying not to ruin what little good is left in this house. But y

I wanted to touch him again. To erase the fear from his voic

red. "I didn't mean t

d, hesitated, the

" he said inste

ugh every part of

itchen withou

on the counter until

-

entire drive

extra blankets. I lied through my teeth, said I just needed a break, that my mom was b

someone else's house, in someone el

s voice. His

have kisse

't have w

I

me, I s