Vivienne is beautiful, kind, and smart. The woman I’d been waiting for all these years without really knowing it. It’s my luck, or lack thereof, that we get to know each other under these circumstances.
One time. Just one more brush of her skin against my lips.
Despite the alarms blaring in my head, I bend down and kiss her forehead, reveling in the heat that erupts in my chest. And with one last look at her, I take her place on the floor.
My head hits the flat pillow, and my hands instinctively find themselves underneath my neck as I stare up at the ceiling, contemplating what my life has come to. Something I’ve done increasingly more since meeting her.
Sheets rustle quietly from the bed, and a soft groan breaks the silence. I squeeze my eyes shut in denial—she can’t ever know what I did.
“Nate?” Vivienne whispers, her voice laced with a heavy dose of uncertainty. “Are you still up?”
To ignore, or not to ignore?
I settle on the first. Whatever I’m feeling for this girl needs to be swept under the rug—or more accurately, the baby maker—and kept there until the end of this arrangement.
It’s what we agreed on.
It’s what’s right.
“Nate?” she whispers again. “I know you can hear me.”
I let out a sigh, not knowing what I’ll say to this girl when she brings up the topic of me kissing her forehead.
“Nobody makes those noises if they’re asleep. I know you’re ignoring me.”
“I’m not ignoring you,” I mutter under my breath.
“That’s exactly what someone who’s ignoring would say. Not to mention, it’s very defensive and indicative of a fragile male ego.”
I bite down my smile. God help me with this girl.
“I can see you,” she singsongs.
I turn my head to see her long brown hair cascading over the edge of the bed. There’s a twinkle in her eyes as she looks at me, and an even softer smile on her lips.
“Come up here. I can’t let you sleep on the floor.”
“I’m alright over here.”
It’s mighty uncomfortable, but it’s better than being in proximity to the girl I can’t control myself around.
“What will it take to get you up here?”
“Nothing.”
She hums, as if lost in thought. “We can put a pillow fort between us?”
“No.”
“We can sleep with our heads opposite each other?”
“Absolutely not.”
Vivienne nods in agreement. “You’re right, I wouldn’t want your stinky feet all up in my business, anyway.”
I roll my eyes, but the slight smile taking over my face speaks for itself.
“If you don’t get up here, I’ll sleep next to you on the floor. So in the end, it’ll be the same outcome. Only then, we’ll both be cold and waking up with back pain.”
