“It does matter,” he says, stepping towards me, but I turn and head into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me.
It doesn’t matter. I refuse to waste any of my energy worrying what he thinks of me. I have too much to unpack about the other parts of my day and night.
“You sure you’re okay?” he asks from right outside the door.
“I’m fine,” I shout, laughing. “I promise. Would you please let me pee in peace?”
“Oh, right…um…” The sound of his footsteps grows farther away, and my shoulders relax.
Massaging my temples, I grab my phone and tap through the steps of deleting Raph’s texts and blocking the douchebag’s number.
I stand and wash my hands.
One man dealt with, but now what do I do with the one still in my bedroom? Part of me wouldn’t be surprised if I opened the door and found myself alone. He and I never spent the night with each other, so why would tonight be any different? Whatever feelings I’m having about this situation are present because he fucked all the sense from my head.
I fix my bralette over my tits and run my fingers through my hair. Exhaling, I open the door, bracing myself for an empty bedroom, but instead I’m met with a half-dressed Everett.
“Oh, you’re still here,” I say.
“Uh, yeah. I was just getting dressed.”
“Oh, okay,” disappointment settles in my chest.
He has no reason to stay, so why do I want him to?
Walking over to my dresser, I open the top drawer and pull out a thong. Looping my legs through the lace, I pull it up over my hips, and when I turn around, he’s standing there, unmoved.
“You know you could stay over,” I suggest, the words spilling from my mouth before I can stop them.
“Really?” There’s an eagerness in his voice that makes me wonder if he’s feeling the same as me. Like maybe he’s wondering where this might go if we gave it a chance this time. Maybe he’s curious too.
“I just meant with the snow storm and the blackout. It’s probably a nightmare out there.”
“Oh, right. The weather.” His hands push into his pockets, and he rocks back on his heels. “You sure?”
Goddammit. Why did I say that?
“Yeah,” I try a little more enthusiastically. I walkover and place my phone on the nightstand and crawl into bed. He starts to walk toward the door.
“Wait. Where are you going?” I ask, snuggling under the comforter and into my pillow.
“I figured you’d want me to crash on the couch. Plus, I don’t want to wake you in the morning. I’m going to need to run by my place before meeting with the team doctor tomorrow for my shoulder.”
“Oh, no, it’s fine,” I say, patting the bed next to me. “I was planning to get to the studio early before rehearsals officially start. We can share.”
Tilting his head to the side, the corner of his mouth tips upward. “Okay.”
Pulling off his sweatpants again, he drops them by the bed and joins me under the covers.
The mattress shifts under his weight, and he fluffs the pillows behind him. “Do you have another pillow?”
“Another pillow?”
“Yeah, I like to sleep with three.”
Three pillows? Is this some primadonna star athlete shit?
“Three?”
