“Who won the chess game this morning?”
It looks like Beau doesn’t want to argue with me either. I happily take the change of subject.
“Quinn. I was distracted.”
Beau chuckles. “Of course, you were. Or maybe Quinn’s just a better player?”
I smile, pick up the king, and roll it between my thumb and forefinger. “According to him, we’re evenly matched.”
“I suppose you do beat him on occasion.” Beau nudges my knee. “Are you sure it wasn’t him who was distracting you?”
I smile.
“What? No eye-rolling and head shaking?” Beau folds his arms. “What have I missed?”
“We went out for a drink last night.”
“A date?”
I bob my head from side to side. “A drink. But I am taking him out on Wednesday.”
“What happened? How did you go from secret pining to a date?”
I roll my eyes and shake my head, which makes Beau laugh. “We got talking on Saturday night.” I purse my lips. “Sunday morning and decided we should get to know each other better.”
“You ‘decided’?” Beau makes air quotes.
I feel my smile get bigger. “Quinn suggested we should.”
“I’m glad the feeling’s mutual.”
“I think it is. Do you want to play?” I gesture at the chessboard.
Beau laughs. “So you can beat me? No thanks. We both know I’m awful at chess. But hey, if you want any relationship advice…”
“I know who to ask.”
Beau smiles at me for a good thirty seconds before patting his thighs and standing. “I’m going to make dinner with Fraser. Do you want some?”
“No, thanks.”
“Do you know where you’re taking Quinn on Wednesday?”
I turn back to my laptop. “Yes.”
“Ah, my brother, the man of mystery.” Beau gives me a swift hug from behind. “I’m sure he’ll love whatever you’ve got planned.”
“I hope so.”
5
QUINN
There’s a crushing weight on my chest when I wake, and I swear a dark form is sitting there for a moment. It’s hard to breathe, and none of my muscles responds to my pleas for them to move so I can shove off my invisible assailant. There’s a moment of panic where I try to gulp in air and shout for help, but I only manage the barest squeak. Then my fingers twitch, and my body can move again. The weight on my chest vanishes as if it was never there. The truth is, it wasn’t.
I roll onto my side and fumble for my phone to check the time. Thankfully, I haven’t slept through the time I’m meant to be going out with Stefan. Despite having woken from my third nap of the day, I’m exhausted. Sometimes I’m lucky enough to wake refreshed. Now is not one of those times. Would it be shitty to cancel our date? It’s not the first time I’ve had to blow someone off because I felt too drained to be sociable.
I don’t want to cancel. I’m sick of being a slave to sleep.
