“I’m not mad.” I smiled and shook my head. “And thanks, it was very sweet of you.”

“I’m a sweet guy.”

“Yes, you are,” I confirmed, laughing.

“I gotta run, Nat. I, um. I…” He paused, the only thing I could hear was his breathing on the other end. “I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too,” I whispered.

The call ended and I was filled with so much self-loathing that I wanted to pull over and cry. He was such a good guy! Why did I have to have such a strong connection with Alec too? It wasn’t fair.

Driving home proved tedious when the rain started coming down in sheets. Exhausted, I almost forgot to turn off the lights to my truck when I slammed my door and began running to the house.

With a curse I ran back to the truck and reached inside. I looked up and glimpsed the brothers’ house. Alec was watching me.

Shirtless.

I gulped, my hand slid against the switch, and rain pelted my legs. Finally, the lights turned off, I slammed the door and ran into the house tucking the dress bag as far under me as I could.

Rain dripped off my clothes as I stomped up the stairs, a little irritated that my mom still hadn’t come out of her cocoon of an office to say hi and congratulate me for making it home in the rain and not dying. By the time I made it to the top of the staircase I heard my mom’s office door click open.

“You home, Honey?”

“Yup,” I called.

“Okay.” The door clicked shut again.

Not another sound from downstairs. Figures. Once in my room, I walked over to the bathroom and turned the shower on.

With a sigh I turned back around. “Holy crap, what are you doing here?”

Alec stood, still shirtless, his eyes menacing, and arms crossed on his chest. “What am I doing here?” He ran his hand through his hair.

“In my room,” I clarified. Shirtless.

“Do you realize how worried I’ve been about you?”

“Worried?” My heart lurched. Nobody worried about me. “Why?”

“You disappeared, Nat! When I came back to the house your truck was gone. You weren’t at work, you weren’t downtown… I waited for hours!”

“I don’t understand?”

“Haven’t you seen the weather report?”

Dumbly, I shook my head no.

“A huge storm is coming in tonight, they’re telling people to stay inside, and here you are driving around as if the damn sun is shining!”

I gulped. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Where’d you go?” he demanded as he paced in front of me.

I looked away and shook my head. “Not that it’s any of your business, but Lincoln City.”

Alec cursed and turned away from me, stretching his arms behind his head like he wanted to hit something but thought better of it. He whipped back around. “Listen, Nat. I’m only nineteen. It’s not good for my health to be thinking about all the awful things that could happen to you in the rain.”

“It’s just rain.”

He looked disgusted. “No, it’s not. Things happen, you can lose control, your car can slip, people die.” His eyes suddenly broke away from mine and I knew.

“Was it raining when—”

“Yes.” His voice was hoarse.

“I’m sorry.”

“You should be.”

Irritation pumped through me. I approached him, hands on my hips. “I was getting a dress.”

Confusion filled his eyes and then realization. He looked down. “For Homecoming.”

“Yes.”

“May I see it?”

“No.”

Alec scowled. “Next time, will you just tell me where you’re going? So I don’t have a heart attack before twenty?”

I sighed. “Yes, but why didn’t you just text me?”

“I think your phone died.”

I pursed my lips, then walked over to my purse and pulled out my phone. Sure enough, it was dead. Must have been on low battery when I talked to Demetri. I plugged the charger into it and turned back around to face Alec. “Satisfied?”

A smile played at his lips. “Sure.”

“Put on a shirt or something, you’re making me nervous, and I’m already edgy enough what with having to drive two hours through the rain.”

“Sorry,” he mumbled then looked around the room, clearly he wasn’t thinking about anything but shimmying up to my window and punishing me for being irresponsible.

I rolled my eyes. “Here.” I still had one of his old shirts that I had washed after I was sick.

He turned around to put on the shirt. I have no idea why. Boys. But as he turned I caught a glimpse of his tattoo. It truly mirrored his brother’s.

“Hey.”

He paused mid-air.

“Doesn’t Demetri have that same tattoo?”

Alec continued putting the shirt on and turned to face me. “Yup. You should take a shower, Nat. Warm up a bit.”

“And what are you going to do?”

He shrugged. “Make you dinner.”

“My mom will freak if she sees you downstairs.”

“Nat, your mom won’t even know I’m here.”

I still wasn’t convinced.

“Nat. Shower. Now.”

I rolled my eyes and stomped into the bathroom.

The warm water felt heavenly against my skin. I didn’t realize how cold I was until I kept turning the shower hotter and hotter.