Sins and Reborns

Chapter twenty-two

GRACE

I peeked over my book. Right at him. He looked sweet as he concentrated on his laptop screen. His eyebrows furrowed with his tongue seeking out every so often to wet his lips. His shoulders were hunched so horribly that I almost laughed.

But when I peeked again, he caught me. So he grinned.

"You keep staring."

I gaped. "No! I'm reading as you can see."

Connor chuckled and closed his laptop. "No, no, you're staring. I get it. I'm so dashingly handsome."

You are.

"I'm trying to read. I just took a little break." I went back to my book but stopped at the heavy weight on my legs. Connor had braced himself forward, so he laid on my legs. His arms crossed under his chin as they rested on my thighs. I giggled and tried to kick him off but he wouldn't budge.

"Read to me. I want to know what it's about."

I arched an eyebrow. "I thought you hated books? You said so yourself that reading is for people with nothing better to do."

Connor rolled his eyes and pushed a bit forward. We were holding eye contact so I couldn't face away to blush. "That was a joke. Besides, I don't hate it when you read. Your voice just might make me start to love books. My mind wanders off when I read, but when you read to me... I can listen for hours."

"So, if I read to you right now then you might lend a few books yourself."

"Yep. We can read together, even."

I laughed and shifted a little. His eyes were intense and needy as he waited for me to start. "If I was an artist, I'd paint you every day."

His eyes widened. And this time the blush hit.

"Told you I'm dashingly handsome."

I shrugged and started reading out loud. The book that usually made me sob my throat out. The story about the girl who was left alone at a young age and had to figure out the world on her own. The girl who was made fun of by the whole town and made to feel less. It spoke about her loneliness but also her strength. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens.

"She sounds lonely," he said.

"Sometimes it's better to be lonely than surrounded by bad people." My hand cupped my mouth as soon as I said it. "I mean, the people around her weren't that great. So maybe it was better for her that they left. Would you rather stay with the bad and live to accept it, or live on your own and learn to fend for yourself and not rely on others?"

Connor adjusted himself and wrapped his legs around mine instead. He was holding the back of my thighs. "Alone. It's always better to be alone."

I nodded and continued reading. With each page, he tightened his hold on my legs. I was still in one of my dresses and his warm weight did nothing to ease any aches. But in a way, it also felt good. Too good to be true.

"Jared likes you."

My gaze went to him. He had his brows furrowed again. "No, he doesn't. Why would you think that?"

"He looks at you for too long. It pisses me off. And he keeps asking about you. He thinks he's being sneaky, but he's not."

Oh. I hadn't even noticed. Sure, he had looked at me, but I didn't think there was much to it. Besides, he was Connor's friend, so he must have known there couldn't be anything between us. Jared was nice and all, but I harboured no feelings for him. The one guy I harboured everything toward was right there in the very same room. The guy with the protective hold on me.