The Secret of Ella and Micha(12)

I shut my eyes and for the first time in eight months, I fall into a peaceful sleep.

Ella

I sleep horribly for half the night, tossing and turning, like the princess sleeping on a pea. Only I am far from a princess and the pea is my guilty conscience. I don't know why I feel guilty about blowing off Micha. I've done it breezily for the past eight months. Although, he wasn't living right next door with his sad puppy dog eyes and charming sexiness.

My sleep deprivation only got worse when my dad stumbled into the house in the middle of the night, bumping over cups and bottles, drunk off his ass. Later, I heard him crying in the bathroom my mom died in. It still hurts to hear because his tears are my fault.

Once I fall asleep, I am out and it ends up being the best night's rest I've had in ages. When I wake up in the late afternoon, I feel refreshed and calm. Until I realize why.

Micha is in my bed and has me in his long, lean arms. His body is curved into mine, so every single part of him is touching me. I know it's him by the smell of his cologne mixed with mint and something else that only belongs to Micha. I pretend to be asleep, engulfed in a wonderful dream, refusing to wake up until he leaves.

"I know you're awake," he whispers in my ear. His voice is hoarse and his breath is stale with booze. "So open your eyes and quit avoiding me."

"You know it's illegal to walk into someone's house without permission," I say with my eyes shut. "And sneaking into someone's bed - that's the move of a pervert."

"I didn't walk in. I fell in," he says, amused. I pinch his firm chest and he laughs. "Now there's my feisty girl." He brushes his soft lips across my forehead. "I've missed you, Ella May."

Opening my eyes, I wiggle in his arms. "Please don't start. It's too early."

His eyes are guarded and his hair is a mess. He chuckles lowly, a sound that ripples deep inside my core. "Pretend all you want, pretty girl. You and I know that deep down you're secretly glad to be pressed up to my body." He urges our chests together as he snakes his legs around mine.

My eyelids flutter against his warmth. God, I've missed this so much. Way too much and so has my body, evidently.

"So where did you go?" he asks, crushing my moment of bliss. "To school in Vegas? Because it kind of surprises me. You never really liked school."

My mind snaps back to reality. "I don't want to get into this right now. I just want to have a relaxing summer and then I'm headed back to campus."

He blinks, his eyelashes fluttering against my forehead. The feel of him sends a warm tingle up my thighs and I seal my lips to keep from moaning.

His eyebrows knit. "It's like you've been kidnapped by a bunch of nuns or something."

"Maybe I was," I say submissively. "It wouldn't hurt anyone if I was."

He considers this and an artful smirk curves at his lip. "That's not true. Nuns can't have sex and I still haven't fulfilled my lifelong dream of having sex with you."

I open my mouth, my tongue locked and loaded with an equally perverted comeback, but I bite down, remembering I'm not that kind of a girl anymore. "I need to wake Lila up. She's got a long drive ahead of her."

With one swift roll, he has me pinned down beneath his body and my arms trapped above my head. His aqua eyes search mine and it's like staring at the endless ocean. He sucks on his lip ring, lost in thought. "You're going to tell me, pretty girl," he asserts, tilting his head so his lips are next to my cheek. "You always tell me everything."

"Micha, please...." I despise how breathless I sound. "You know why I left. You were there that night... you saw me... I can't do it again." Anxiety claws up my throat and my muscles tense beneath the weight of his body. "Please let me up. I can't breathe."

He props up on his arms. "You could have talked to me, instead of running away. You know that."

I shake my head. "No, I couldn't. Not that time. That time it was different. You were part of the reason I had to leave."

"Because you kissed me?" he asks, dipping his voice to a husky growl. "Or because I found you that way... that night."

I swallow the giant lump in my throat. The kiss was part of it. It was an earthshattering kiss, one that stole breaths, stopped hearts, and scared the shit out of me because it surfaced feelings I'd never felt before, ones that rendered me helpless.

"I don't want to talk about it. Now get off of me." I wiggle my arms between us and push on his chest.

He sighs and rolls off me. "Fine, don't talk about it, but it doesn't mean you can run away from me again. I'll chase you down this time," he threatens with a wink as he climbs off the bed, and the chain hooked to his studded belt jingles. "Get dressed and meet me out in the driveway. You have to go visit Grady today."

"No, thanks," I decline and tug the blanket over my head. "And I told you last night I have stuff to do today. Besides aren't you hung over from last night? You were pretty wasted."

"Don't do that," he says, aggravated. "Don't pretend like you have some deep insight into me anymore. You've been gone for eight months and a lot has changed."

I'm speechless. "Micha, I... "

"Come on, get out of bed. You're going to see Grady, whether you like it or not." He yanks the blanket off me and tosses it on the floor, so I'm lying there in my plaid shorts and skin-tight tank top with no bra on underneath. He gives me a prolonged once over, with a dark, lustful glint in his eyes and goosebumps sprout all over my skin.