Callahan narrowed his eyes, suddenly leaned over, and gave Leilani's lip a light, vindictive bite. "Laugh at me again, and you can forget about sleeping tonight."
Leilani's ears burned. She quickly pushed him away. "...You rogue."
She clutched the photo album to her chest like it was the only thing protecting her. "I haven't finished looking at the photos yet! Keep your hands to yourself!"
Callahan chuckled softly, pulling her closer as he stayed by her side to look through the rest of the pictures.
Relieved that he had let her off the hook, Leilani enthusiastically continued flipping through his childhood photos.
Halfway through the album, her finger paused, stopping on a certain page. "Is this..."
Callahan frowned defensively. "What is it?"
Stifling a laugh, Leilani pointed at the picture. "Is this you?"
Who would have thought Callahan had a moment like this?
In the photo, a boy of about seven or eight was wearing a pink ballet tutu and a swan headband, standing in the middle of a stage with a look of utter despair on his face.
Callahan's face fell instantly, and he reached out to snatch the album. "This one doesn't count."
He remembered this photo not being in the album before. His mother must have secretly slipped it in without his knowledge.
Leilani nimbly dodged his grab, laughing so hard tears formed in her eyes. It was rare to find photographic evidence of Callahan's embarrassing past; she was definitely going to save this one.
"You danced in Swan Lake when you were a kid?"
"My mom forced me into it."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Prison-Made Queen