7
I kicked off the covers and hopped out of bed, frustrated I couldn’t fall asleep. It was close to three in the morning, and I started my workouts at six. I needed my rest before I put my body through the rigorous training Trevor had planned for me.
Part of me wanted to blame my restlessness on my new neighbor, who was the woman I couldn’t stop thinking about for some reason. Yes, she was beautiful, but I was used to being around attractive women. So why did she have me all twisted up? Was ither? Or was it the fact I hadn’t gotten laid in three days?
Yeah, that must be it. I was simply pent up.
Taking care of myself wasn’t doing the trick, however. I’d jerked off twice last night, and I was still dangerously on edge. I needed the real thing.
Sending off a text to Lance and instructing him to have someone ready for me after my workout later this morning, I yanked open the fridge and reached for a bottled water. I was mid-swallow when I heard a noise coming from next door.
A muffled moan penetrated my thin walls, and my first thought was there was someone in Sophie’s apartment with her,possibly engaging in what I needed to. But when her moans morphed into terror, a sound I recognized all too well, I froze. Was she having a nightmare? If so, it was something I was all too familiar with. Next, I heard sobbing.
The last thing I wanted to do was get involved, so I wandered back toward my bedroom, taking another swig of water and almost choking when the echo of her scream reverberated through me.
After rushing into the small hallway, I banged on her door, the vibrations traveling through my hand. I had no idea what I would say if she answered, and while a few ideas rattled around inside my head, I couldn’t land on any one specific phrase.
A safe bet would be to ask her if she was okay. Keep it short and simple. But when a small beam of light appeared under her door and the handle turned, my heart decided to beat double time. My reaction didn’t make a lick of sense to me, and I never had the time to dissect it before she suddenly appeared in the doorway.
Her hair sat on top of her head in some sort of haphazard bun, and her eyes were red and swollen. Had she been crying in her sleep, or had she been awake when her tears ran down her cheeks?
I had no idea why I even cared.
We stared at each other for a beat before I asked a misplaced but pertinent question.
“Did you check the peephole before opening your door?”
She sniffed and rubbed at her eyes. “Yes.”
“Smart.” I paused before speaking again. “Are you okay?”
As I waited for her to answer, my gaze briefly lingered on her face before cascading downward, the appearance of some of the tiniest pajama shorts I’d ever seen stealing my attention before I noticed her toned legs. As my focus traveled back toward herface, I couldn’t miss the pert nipples straining against the white top she wore. She crossed her arms when she caught me staring.
I waited for her to reprimand me, but she didn’t utter a single syllable. Instead, her gaze traveled over me, much like I’d done to her. It was then I realized I’d rushed out of my place dressed in nothing but a pair of gray boxer briefs. Not that Sophie hadn’t seen me naked before, but I should’ve been more aware of my lack of clothing before I knocked on her door.
The air shifted when her attention lingered on my chest.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
I could’ve told her there was no need to apologize, but I simply repeated, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” A tentative rush of air left her mouth. “Just a nightmare.”
“I’ve had plenty of them.” I snapped my mouth shut after uttering those five words, baffled that I’d say such a thing. There wasn’t a single part of me I wanted to share with her, and I made a mental note right then to make sure to keep myself at a distance. Physically as well as emotionally. I inwardly laughed at the ridiculous notion. Not of trying to safeguard myself but because I didn’t share anything with anyone except for the select few people in my life. They knew the deep dark secrets, and I trusted them.
“Thanks for checking on me.” She shifted from one foot to the other, her arms still tightly crossed over her chest.
I curtly nodded before I turned back toward my apartment.
Minutes later, as I laced up my sneakers preparing to go for a run to rid myself of the adrenaline coursing through my blood, I wondered if our early morning encounters were going to become a regular occurrence.
And if so, I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I wanted to keep her at a distance, but if more instances occurred that evokedmy concern, no matter how small, I feared she’d start to weave through the carefully constructed wall I’d built for myself.
8
Losing myself in my work should’ve been enough to take my mind off my earlier encounter with Jackson, but I couldn’t stop thinking about him. About the fact that he was concerned enough about me to knock on my door to see if I was okay. About how when I did answer the door, he stood there practically naked. To be fair, though, I wasn’t wearing much more than he was. But he’d startled me when he’d knocked, and I hadn’t had the good sense to throw on a robe.
The justification was laughable. Who else did I think was on my doorstep?
