Brother's Betrayal

Chapter Fifteen {Doubts}

An hour after Dillan had fallen asleep beside me, making it past five, Fletcher had demanded we swapped places so he could sleep along the back seats. Initially, it felt like a bad idea. At this point, trusting Fletcher was the highest point on my list of things not to do. The way Dillan was unsure of his brother then automatically made me unsure, as did most things between us after plenty of time spent together; clearly, the short time apart had no impact on the intense bond we shared. It took me less than a second to jump upright and ask, "Can I drive?"

Fletcher laughed. "Of course not. Wake up Dillan then I will pull over. He can drive."

Dejected, I looked back at Fletcher. He was resigned yet smug, sitting up highly in the driver's seat. I caught his eye and for a moment I held his gaze before darting away, the glimmer in them scaring me.

"Are you going to wake him?"

Shocked, I slowly turned and studied Dillan. He had occupied the middle seat and with every turn we made, he slowly inched closer. His head was leaning against the low head rests and somehow his hand still remained on my thigh, occasionally tightening before he snored and shifted.

"He looks so peaceful..." Although I could lie to Fletcher, I couldn't lie to myself. Waking up Dillan made me freeze stiff. What if he woke up and I had interrupted a good dream? What if it was a nightmare and he was still imagining it? What if he hadn't been dreaming but was content sleeping? No, there were too many outcomes that would end in my suffering.

"Anya, just wake him up. I'm tired. Do it soon because I'm starting to swerve." For emphasis, he drifted over slightly until I yelled out, causing him to right the car again. It was an exaggerated demonstration but he had made his point.

Waking up Dillan was going to be an interesting task, especially as gently poking him and muttering his name wasn't going to work (I had already tested that theory). First, I decided to carefully remove his hand from my thinly covered thigh (I was glad that it was the side not concealing my phone else he would have felt it) and as I dropped it onto his lap, he shot out to grab my hand. Speechless, I waited for him to stir and speak but his fingers wrapped in mine and then he relaxed again. The curious trait in me began to shine for the first time in a long while as I decided to prevent any and all skin to skin contact. I dodged his first, slow grab and narrowly managed to miss his second and third, which was when he suddenly propelled himself upright, reaching out towards me with both arms.

"Anya," he mumbled. Uncomfortably, I was pressed tightly against his front. His arms pinned me against him uselessly and I couldn't move. Faintly, Fletcher was laughing; *bastard*. "Sweetheart, why did you wake me up?"

"Fl-Fletcher-"

"Sh," Dillan grumbled. He licked his lips and an abrupt tremor spiralled along my spine as his tongue perilously brushed against the skin of my shoulder. I shivered against him as Dillan's breath was warm against me. "Let me sleep again, lovely."

Dillan began to lay back down across the seats, dragging me on top of him but Fletcher interrupted. "You're driving now. Swap with me, I'm extremely tired."

I felt more than heard the grunt of annoyance that Dillan gave out. "Pull over," he grumbled. Heaving a sigh, he sat upright again and leant on me. His face was burrowed into my neck and I remained poised, ready to escape when I was first able to. "Do you mind this?" He asked, referring to our position. Maybe he didn't notice my frozen stature.

I wrapped my arms around my stomach tightly, nails digging into my side to distract me from our close proximity. Dillan was beginning to run his hands across my back and soon enough they would be travelling even further. "No," I whispered.