Denali is nothing if not an overthinker at times, and I see the first moment of hesitation since we started this flash in her eyes as she looks from the door of my room to me, then back, chewing on her bottom lip as she debates internally with her choice.
"I won't keep you if you don't want to be here," I say with a huff. "But I want you to stay."
"I—I shouldn't," she mutters, arms crossed over her chest. She's got an argument for everything, this woman, but if she thinks she's the only person here who knows how to argue, I've got news for her.
"Denali,kara,if you don't lay here in this bed with me and get some sleep, I'll find a way to keep you in it. And I'd hate for you to start thinking of me as a bruteon top ofbeing an asshole."
My body knows the moment she chooses to stay, because she shifts against me and sighs.
I’m pretty sure I’m about to have the best sleep of my life.
chapter twenty-nine
Denali
I wakeup in someone’s arms, and for a moment, I think that I must’ve gotten drunk last night. And then it all slams back into me with a vengeance, and I remember everything.
Every sigh, moan, and whimper of need. Every single touch, taste, and feeling that washed over me.
Kai. I'm in bed with my fucking boss.
I can feel the ghost of his dick inside me still, like an imprint that refuses to go away. And I want it again. I want it so bad it scares me.
In his sleep, he looks absolutely peaceful, nothing at all like his normal self. He’s got a soft smile on his lips, that hair of his curling every so slightly against his ears where the strands dried after our bath last night. His face is bare, so he must've gotten up at some point in the night and washed his face. Devoid of the makeup he’d been wearing for the gala last night, his face is like a painting. Some men don’t look this good with makeup on, but he achieves such perfection effortlessly, like he was born of the heavens and gifted to Earth for adoration.
The temptation to indulge in my wickedest fantasies and lie here a little longer in his arms is strong. Almost too strong to ignore. But I refuse the desire and sneak from the bed, desperateto find my clothes and escape the room to gain a moment of clarity before he wakes and finds me here.
My dress is easy enough to find—it’s right where I left it, in his closet. But it's not something I can put on easily. Still, I slide it on and sigh, wishing I'd thought to bring myself a change of clothes. I don't want to risk putting his loaners back on. I know the second I'm enveloped in his scent, I'll lose all resolve in my body.
I can't go home. All I can do is hope that my mind will put the pieces of my insane night with Kai back together if there's a wall or three between us.
My phone lies on the end table, and the battery is almost dead. It's damn near noon. Kai won't miss me in that bed for long. Hopefully he's unconscious long enough for me to sort out what the ramifications are of what I've just done—what we've just done. All I know is I can't let this mess with my head. I have to put space between us until I get my bearings. If he looks at me with those puppy dog eyes from last night, the ones that screamed out feelings I have no business wanting from him, I’ll be back in that bed all day, and I don’t think my heart can take that.
The floor is cold on my bare feet as I pad my way out of his room and head for the kitchen. Maybe a hot cup of coffee and some space will clear my head, help me figure out what to do next.
I go through the motions in this fancy-ass dress, because my brain is a little fuzzy and I'm not sure what else to do. I can't leave; I don't have anywhere to go. So I treat it like it's another day in the life of Denali Stone, assistant to Kai Kobayashi, idol superstar, and start by making coffee. Which takes not long at all, leaving me roaming the kitchen back and forth, pacing in several thousand dollars of satin and bare feet.
I didn't even bother to find my panties from before my shower. They're in Kai's room somewhere, just like my bra, just like my fucking dignity and sanity and any number of things that I apparently didn't possess last night after?—
"You're up earlier than I hoped you'd be."
Kai.
I spin around, probably a bad idea in this thing, and there he is, wearing nothing but a pair of sleep pants and a smile, cockeyed though it is as he runs a hand through his hair and watches me. I don't know what to do now; the whole point of leaving his room was to gain some space and mental clarity, and with one look, he's already got my insides twisted and my mind a blank.
"Ah, yeah," I try, hoping my excuse doesn't sound flat. "I was—I—you want some coffee?"
I turn back to the pot and start making his just how I know he likes it, because anything is better than looking him in the eyes and telling him I'm a chicken. But I think he already knows. It'd be hard not to, with how I'm acting. Most women in my position don't leave the bed they're in as soon as they're able to run away from their deepest secret fantasies.
"Denali." Hands settle on my shoulders, and I feel his heat radiating between us, against my back. "Hey."
Those words are said so calmly, so quietly, so softly, that it's like a feather against my skin, but somehow, it threatens to shatter the damn wall I've constructed in my head that I planned to hide behind while I sorted myself out. They tease at the edges of my sanity, tug at my heartstrings, remind me of the softness he displayed last night, and I?—
"Do you wanna talk about what happened last night?"
No."Yes."Yes."No."God, why is this so hard?"I don't know."
His laugh is right against the shell of my ear. It's so close, and yet, so far, and I don't know how that's possible. "I hope you're not having second thoughts." He hums to himself and the weight of his hands disappears. "Wait here."
