Chapter 15

The door clicked shut behind Rowan, leaving the hallway empty and my chest painfully full. I stood there for a moment, still hearing her voice in my ear, before I forced myself to breathe and turn back toward the living room.

I didn’t even make it three steps inside before Simone bolted upright on the couch. “WELL?!”

Lila’s blanket dropped to her shoulders as she squinted at me like she was ready to interrogate a suspect. “What did she say?”

Naomi just sat back, calm and steady, her hands folded in her lap. But her eyes gleamed with quiet curiosity.

I froze under their stares, heat rushing to my cheeks. “She said… goodnight.”

Simone gasped like I’d confessed to a crime. “Goodnight?! That was not just a goodnight. You look like you’ve been set on fire.”

Lila groaned, dragging her hands over her face. “This is insane. She’s dangerous.”

Naomi tilted her head, calm but sharp. “Or maybe she’s just honest.”

My pulse still pounded as I dropped onto the couch, hiding my face in my hands. “I can’t do this. I cannot do this.”

Simone flopped down beside me, grinning ear to ear. “Oh, babe. You already are doing this.”

Lila peeked out from under her blanket, suspicious and sharp. “Yeah, because you two were gone long enough for more than a peck.”

Naomi just sat back, calm as ever. “Tell them, Celeste. Better to say it once than have them hound you all night.”

I groaned, covering my face, but they weren’t letting up. Finally, I sat forward, exhaling hard. “Okay. Fine.”

Their eyes lit up instantly.

I twisted my hands in my lap, words tumbling out in a rush. “She asked me to close the door, said she wanted a private moment. Then she told me she wished she could kiss me outside of a script—just so she’d know what we were feeling was real.”

Simone clasped her hands to her chest like she was hearing a love confession in a movie.

“And?” Lila pressed.

“And…” My face burned. “I told her to do it.”

Three gasps hit the air at once.

“She froze for a second, but I didn’t let her think her way out of it. I kissed her first. And it wasn’t like the script. It was… raw. Messy. Real.” My voice dropped lower, softening. “There were no stage directions. Just us.”

I swallowed hard. “It got… heated. I picked her up and carried her to the bed—”

Simone screamed.

“—but we stopped before it went further,” I finished quickly, glaring at them. “I told her I was intersex. She already knew. She said it didn’t matter. She said I didn’t need to hide from her.”

Naomi nodded slowly, her calm gaze sharp. “That explains the look on both your faces.”

Simone squealed into a pillow, kicking her feet like a teenager. Lila groaned, shaking her head, though her cheeks were pink.

The room went quiet, laughter finally dimming. Naomi leaned forward slightly, her voice softer than usual. “And how did that feel, hearing her say that?”

I bit my lip, my chest tightening. “Like I was safe. Seen. Wanted.”

The silence stretched, heavy but warm.

Then Simone broke it with a dramatic sigh. “Okay, I’m officially shipping you two harder than any movie couple I’ve ever seen.”

Lila groaned again, dragging the blanket over her head. “God help us all.”