my brother, Sutton,” she finally said, shaking her head slowly. “He’s the only one who protects me, the only one who loves me.”
“Oh, Mads,” I whispered, watching all of this, feeling so powerless.
Emma wrapped her arms around Madeline’s shoulders. “I’m here for you,” she whispered. She might not be able to put herself in Madeline’s shoes exactly, but she’d had her fair share of family drama, too, and she knew what it was like to be scared.
I wrapped my arms around both of them, wishing desperately that I could make everything okay.
Hours later, Emma woke with a start, her throat burning. It was 3 A.M., which Becky used to call the witching hour. Becky had been a night owl, and without fail, Emma would hear her pacing their apartment at 3 A.M. on the dot.
A tear-shaped night-light on Madeline’s wall cast an eerie blue glow across the floor. The house was silent except for Mr. Vega’s snores, which were audible from down the hall. Emma wanted to close her eyes and fall back asleep, but it felt like her mouth had been stuffed with cotton.
She pushed back the covers as carefully and quietly as she could. Earlier, while they’d watched TV and gossiped, Mr. Vega had stuck his head in, looking enraged. “Where are your physics books?” he’d seethed. Madeline had jumped nearly a mile. “Um, we’re taking a break,” she’d said. After that, they’d turned the TV off and barely spoken. Emma hoped Madeline wouldn’t have to pay for that when Emma left in the morning.
The hallway bathroom was right next to Mr. and Mrs. Vega’s room, so Emma decided to head to the kitchen instead. The stairs creaked beneath her weight. She froze for a moment, sure Mr. Vega would come screaming for her. Just keep going, she told herself, staring straight ahead and creeping toward the kitchen. You aren’t doing anything wrong.
At the end of the hall, a curved wooden vase held skinny brown branches blooming with yellow flowers. An antique silver platter sat on a coffee table in a small sitting room. Emma crossed a Navajo-style carpet and rounded the corner into the kitchen, which still smelled faintly of spices from dinner. Just as her bare feet hit the cold tile, she saw something and gasped. Thayer stood at the black granite island. He was staring at her.
Emma jumped back. “Oh!”
“What are you doing here?” Thayer whispered. He’d been in his room with the door shut tight when Emma had arrived earlier.
He was wearing navy boxers and no shirt, and even the darkness couldn’t cloak his muscular shoulders and stomach. She averted her gaze fast. “Um, Mads and I are having a sleepover.”
My pulse ratcheted up. What I wouldn’t give for a few more minutes—alone—with Thayer Vega and those shoulders.
Thayer’s golden brown eyes traveled over Emma’s flimsy tank top. “That’s cool.”
As hard as it was to watch Thayer look at Emma like that, a part of me wanted my twin to be even closer. I wanted Thayer to pull Emma to his chest so I could remember what it felt like to have his arms around me.
Then he stepped toward Emma. “It’s been a long time since you slept over,” he said, his voice rough around the edges.
Emma swallowed. Thayer was standing so close, she could smell his deodorant and the mint of his toothpaste. He glanced at the clock on the oven. “Three A.M.,” he said in a low voice. “That was our old meeting time, remember? Is that why you came?”
“I—” Emma said haltingly. She wanted to tell Thayer no, but something was stopping her. It was like he was a magnet, yanking her toward him. “I just needed a night away from my dad.”
Suddenly, his arm was around her waist, and his lips were just inches away.
“Thayer,” Emma said, turning her head.
“Sutton,” Thayer breathed into her ear.
“I-I’m with Ethan now,” Emma blurted. She stepped away from him. “I should go.”
Thayer held up his hands. “So go.”
Emma knew she should leave. She really did. But something kept her there, staring at him for a moment too long. His hazel eyes drew her in. She could practically taste how much he wanted her.
“I—” she whispered, but the rest of the sentence evaporated on her tongue.
Don’t, I begged silently. Please. Give me a few more seconds. But then I felt the heartbreakingly familiar snap as she fled back upstairs to Madeline’s room, dragging me behind her, away from the boy I still so desperately loved.
26
CALL THE