Stepping out of the shower into the steamy bathroom, I kicked myself that, in my haste, I hadn’t grabbed any fresh clothes. Wrapped in a fluffy, white towel, I cracked the door open, popping my head out and checking that the coast was clear before darting down to the hall closet where I’d stored my bag of clothes. I pulled out a T-shirt and clean panties, then shut the door and found a scowling Austin on the other side of it, making me jump and let out a girly scream.

“Christina,” he taunted, and the evil glint in his eye told me he knew he’d been sneaking up on me. Asshole.

“What?” I snapped, grabbing my towel a bit tighter to ensure I wasn’t flashing anything. His eyes narrowed, and he sniffed in my direction, a frown creasing his beautiful face. “What do you want, Austin?” I repeated, uncomfortable standing here with him while wearing nothing but a towel.

“Caleb sent me to tell you to sleep in his room tonight. We’ll all be in debriefing for hours yet to explain this fuck-up of a mission.” He wore an irritated look, as though it was all my fault he’d had to kill people tonight, and it was. I nodded tightly, sure that if I spoke, I’d say something bitchy.

“Oh, ah, that’s okay. Cole said to take his room.” I waited for him to leave, but he continued glaring at me.

“Why?” he challenged.

“Why… what?” Not entirely sure what he was asking, I played dumb.

“Why did Cole tell you to take his room? We’re all home tonight, and he physically can’t sleep if anyone else is in the room.” He narrowed his eyes, and inexplicably I found myself not wanting to admit to him what had just gone down in the gym.

“No reason…” I croaked, and he gave me a triumphant look.

“Well then, take Caleb’s room.” He paused a moment longer, his gaze lingering on my neck. “I guess you don’t heal everything, then.” He smirked then brushed past me to return to the living room. After his weird remark, I lifted a hand to my neck. Oh, Cole’s vicious bite. Sure enough, I could feel the indent of teeth and a raised, puffy bruise. I couldn’t help grinning at the reminder.

After gathering my dirty clothes from the bathroom, I retreated to Caleb’s room to get ready for bed. At the last minute, I swapped my sleepshirt for the T-shirt Cole had loaned me. His was soft and baggy and smelled like him, like campfire embers.

It was almost dawn by the time I crawled into Caleb’s cloud-like bed, and I fell asleep almost before my head had even reached the pillow. I woke from a nightmare to a room flooded with bright sunlight.

Caleb must have come to bed after their debrief because he curled tightly around me, his face against my shoulder. He patted my face with his free hand as he shushed me. My nightmare must have woken him, too.

“Shhhhhh Kitty Kat, back to sleep,” he mumbled, and I had to stifle a giggle.

“Caleb,” I whispered as he continued stroking my face. “Caleb!” I prodded him when he didn’t respond to my first call.

“What?” he mumbled as he lifted his head, looking confused and sleep-tousled.

“You were patting my face,” I answered, smiling at his confusion.

He raised an eyebrow, unapologetic. “You were having a nightmare. It seemed right.”

I chuckled at his logic and snuggled in closer, as the air outside the blankets was freezing. He tucked his face back into the crook of my neck, breathing deeply, and then paused.

“Why does your hair smell like my brother?”

“Oops, I guess that’s who owned the tasty-smelling shampoo. Mine had run out.” Damn. Of course it was Austin’s one that I would use.

Caleb snickered quietly. “Oh, he’s going to kill you when he finds out! That stuff costs him megabucks. And is this Cole’s T-shirt?” He slid his warm hand under the garment in question, clasping my waist.

“Um, I think Austin already knows.” Maybe that explained his weird sniffing. “And Cole’s T-shirt is comfy...” I didn’t want to admit he had torn mine in half.

“Mm hmm?” He murmured, his lips against the bite mark on my neck. “Sure that’s the only reason?” The tip of his tongue traced the edges of the bruise gently, and I shivered in pleasure. Damn obvious erogenous zones.

“Shh, Caleb. Back to sleep,” I huffed, snuggling tighter and shutting down the conversation. He chuckled, but tightened his grip on me and within minutes was breathing deeply. To my disappointment, sleep was harder-won for myself as my brain started churning over the events of the night once more. One face kept flashing in my mind, over and over. The girl who looked like me. Who was she?