Her reply is a little delayed, but it pings through just as I’m turning the water on.
Alex:Wait… was that you trying to get me flustered by casually dropping the fact that you’re naked, Matthew?
I raise a brow at her message. Didn't expect that. But hey, friendly fire is still fire, right?
Me:Me? Never. I’m just innocently about to get hot and wet. Why, is that a problem for you, Alex?
I hesitate over the send button, but figure, fuck it, we’re just fucking around anyway. So I hit send and laugh to myself as I place my cell on the counter, then hop into the shower. The warmth of the water cascading over my back as I step in issuperb. The massive drops beat on my skin almost in a rhythm, and my mind skips between thoughts of Alex and Jaci, mingling the two together in a chaos of complete opposites.
The water beats down on my shoulders, hot enough to turn my skin pink, and I brace one hand against the tile wall, letting my head drop forward. Steam fills the shower, thick and heavy, and for a moment, I just stand here, allowing the heat work into my muscles.
But my mind won't settle.
It keeps circling back to Alex. To the way she looked this morning, sleep-rumpled and soft in the early light. To the way she admitted she never lets anyone stay over, never feels safe enough to fall asleep with someone else in her space—and then she fell asleep with me.
With me.
I close my eyes, water streaming down my face, and try to redirect my thoughts to Jaci. To the woman I’m supposed to be excited about. The one who just texted me about booking a hotel room for our date.
But it's Alex’s voice I hear in my head.Wait… was that you trying to get me flustered by casually dropping the fact that you're naked, Matthew?
The corner of my mouth twitches despite myself. The way she called me Matthew—playful and just a little challenging. Like she was daring me to push back.
So I did.
I know exactly what I was doing. I was thinking about the way she slapped my ass this morning like it was the most natural thing in the world. The way she made breakfast with me, moving around her tiny kitchen like we’d done this a hundred times before. The way she looked at me when she woke up—startled at first, then… something else. Something warmer.
The way we’d started this whole dance, the night we began flirting via text.
I shift under the spray, trying to shake off the thought, but it clings to me like the steam.
I think about her tattoo. That stunning peacock stretching across her bare back, colors so vibrant they seemed to glow in the morning light filtering through her apartment. I’d promised not to look, but God, I looked. Just for a second. Just long enough to see the curve of her spine, the way her shoulder blades moved as she reached back to clasp her bra, the three feathers sitting alone beneath the peacock’s tail.
Beautiful. Heartbreaking.Completely her.
My hand moves down my torso without conscious thought, water gliding over my skin.
Stop. Think about something else. Get your shit together!
Because this is Alex—my friend, my brother’s employee, someone who’s quickly becoming important to me in ways that have nothing to do with this.
But my body isn’t listening.
My fingers wrap around my cock, and I let out a slow breath, my eyes still closed, head bowed under the spray.
Just once, to get it out of my system.
Just so I can move past this and focus on Jaci, on the date, on the life I’m supposed to be building.
But as I start to pull on my cock, pleasure rolls through me, and images of Alex are the only thing invading my mind.
Not the Alex from this morning, half-asleep and vulnerable. But Alex from last night, curled up against me on the couch, her body tucked perfectly into my side like she belonged there. The weight of her head on my shoulder. The way her breath had evened out as she drifted off, trusting me enough to let go.
My grip tightens, my breath coming faster now, mixing with the steam, as I tug harder. “Oh fuck!” I groan.
Images race through my head of what could have happened if we had stayed awake last night. If I’d turned to her in that moment and seen those dark eyes looking up at me. If she’d lifted her head just slightly, lips parted, giving me permission I didn’t even know I wanted.
Would she have pulled away?
