Defining Normal | EMBRY CALL

Kairos

"I've missed you," she whispers, leaning in close to his warm embrace.

He curls his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in tighter until their bodies are pressed together. "I don't want you to leave again."

"I won't. I promise."

"Prove it. Stay tonight."

"Hmm, I think that can be arranged," she giggles, swinging one leg over his lap.

Embry swallows, trying to focus his attention on something more innocent. "I have an English assignment due Monday."

She curves her neck to nip at the soft flesh of his jaw, skimming her nose along the thick stubble. "Mhmm. Maybe if you help me, I'll help you," she breathes, resuming her trail of kisses.

Her mouth leaves little pin-pricks of fire in its wake, as if all the cells in his body are suddenly awakened after years of slumber. She's pleasure and pain all in one, alluring and yet so off-limits -

"Em, are you going to kiss me, or do I have to make the first move?" she hums, briefly pausing her ministrations to gaze up at him through her thick lashes.

Everything within him is screaming touch her , and between the erratic pounding of his heart and the uncomfortable tightness in his jeans, he can come up with zero reasons to deny her. Embry turns his head to face hers, lifting his broad fingers to tangle in the curls at the base of her neck. Her mouth is mere inches from his, and if the tantalising scent of honeysuckle and charcoal isn't tempting enough -

Honeysuckle and charcoal.

Charcoal.

Embry snaps bolt upright in his bed, the sheets pooling at his waist. A quick sniff confirms his expectations - yes, his kitchen is on fire, and yes, that was definitely a dream - as his brain reorients itself back in reality. It doesn't make any sense; he could practically feel her touch, for Christ's sake, and yet, there he is, alone in his double bed. He sighs as he twists the sheet around his waist as a makeshift covering, hurrying down the hallway to try and determine who's actually burning the house down.

"Fuck," a low voice hisses, barely audible over the ear-piercing shriek of the fire alarm.

Embry reaches up and flicks the battery out of the contraption in one easy swing. "Okay, who's destroying the house this time?" he yawns, rounding the corner.

He has to rub his eyes a few times before he begins to believe what he's seeing.

Quil's dousing a burnt waffle in the sink, clad only in a hauntingly short pair of plaid pyjama shorts. That part of the picture makes sense, at least. Female company definitely doesn't add up, though , he thinks, squinting through the haze of smoke at the figure perched on the counter. Her face is turned towards Quil, giving Embry a fleeting chance to skim his eyes over her figure. She's wearing only an oversized hockey jersey, stretching her bare exposed legs out on the counter he'd painstakingly cleaned the day before.

His eyes freeze on her ankle.

It's the glimmering silver chain that gives her away.

"Leah?"

Her head whips around suddenly as if spooked by the additional voice. "Jesus, Embry, I didn't hear you coming," she mutters, her eyes darting between the two men. Her cheeks are flushed a deep red, a hue that's almost as dark as the flesh of her chin.

"I'm losing my mind," Embry mutters, squeezing around her to grab his favourite coffee mug. "I thought for a moment the two of you were hooking up."

"Ugh, no-"

"Hell yeah!"

The ensuing silence makes his skin crawl. He allows himself one quick glance up from the cutlery drawer, but it's a moment too late - Leah's already slid off the counter, headed towards the back door without a second's hesitation.