She wasn’t kidding. That couch had zero padding, but still…
“I can’t have you giving up your bed for me,” I interrupted.
She gave me an amused look.
“I have no intention of giving up my bed,” she said firmly. “No offense, but you invited yourself to stay over here, remember? I warned you that you’d be more comfortable in a hotel.”
“So what are our options?” I asked curiously, hoping she wasn’t going to suggest that I sleep in the bathtub like one of those old movies.
“Your options are the couch, which as I said, is kind of uncomfortable. Or we could spread the cushions on the floor. I think I have a sleeping bag around here somewhere.”
She paused, and I thought she wouldn’t say anything else.
I debated texting Pepper to see if she could send over an air mattress or something. Hailey appeared to be having an argument with herself before she finally said, “I have a queen sized bed. I suppose we could share. It’s only for one night.”
And there went my panties. Although if she thought I was letting her go after only one night, she was nuts. I wasn’t sure how wewould work it out, but after kissing her I knew one thing for certain: I was going to spend the rest of my life with this woman. I just needed to figure out how to make that happen.
“Sure, we can share,” I said, going for casual. “No problem.”
“I just want to be clear on the expectations,” she said, giving me some assertive eye contact that only made her seem hotter. “I’m inviting you to sleep with me, notfuckme. No touching or kissing, just sleeping.”
“Understood. Although that kiss before…”
She held up a hand. “You’ve been through a lot the last twenty-four hours. How about you just get some sleep, and we’ll figure out what’s happening between us later.”
This woman never did what I expected. She spoke her mind plainly, didn’t give me any special treatment, and wasn’t afraid to put me in my place.
I was pretty sure I was in love with her.
I used the toothbrush I always kept in my purse to brush my teeth, then washed my face and put on a pair of loose cotton shorts and a tee shirt that Hailey loaned me. They both hung on my thinner frame, but the shorts had a waistband that tied, which helped me keep from losing my bottoms as I walked to the bedroom.
It was a little chilly in the apartment, so Hailey added another blanket to the bed, spreading one out on each side so we didn’t have to share. Why that disappointed me, I couldn’t say. Well, I could say, but I wasn’t going to think about it.
“Do you have to work at the coffee shop tomorrow?” I asked as I slid in between the sheets.
They felt different, the material soft and worn, but still a little less substantial. I realized it was because I was used to the high thread count sheets I used at home, the same kind I had on set or in the high-end hotels I occasionally stayed at.
I lay on the bed, staring up at the ceiling while Hailey went into the bathroom to do her own preparations. Thanks to the thin walls, I could hear the water running as she moved around in there. It felt incredibly intimate. When she returned, fresh faced and smelling of minty toothpaste, I had to clench my hands into fists to keep from reaching for her.
“No funny stuff,” she admonished when she got into bed.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“I can’t believe I’m allowing a total stranger to sleep in my bed,” she said so softly I was pretty sure she didn’t realize she’d said it out loud. “It’ll be my own fault if I wake up with my throat slit.”
I turned to face her. “If I was going to kill you, I wouldn’t slit your throat. That’s way too messy. I’d hold the pillow over your face tosmother you, then the cops would probably think you just died in your sleep.”
I knew this from a movie I’d done.
She whipped her head in my direction. “You are seriously disturbed.”
“I know. Good night Hailey. And thanks for everything. Truly. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”
“I don’t want anything from you,” she said. “Sometimes people do nice things for nothing in return, you know.”
“Not in my world, they don’t.”
She sighed deeply. “Your world sounds sad.”
