She releases me, and the sounds of a party are already starting off in the distance. Normally, I’d be the first one at that party, but tonight, I have no desire to be there. Just here,with her, if she’ll let me. What is happening that I would rather hang out with Regan Brady than party after a race?
“I’d rather hang with you,” I admit. “If you’re okay with it.”
I hope she’ll say yes. I don’t want to have to stay alone in either Taylor or Chase’s RV while they’re partying. Though I borrowed a fan from Chase, I’m sure that my RV is still wet from all that water getting in. I hadn’t planned on staying with Regan another night, I was just going to sleep in my truck. I’d rather be with Regan, she makes me feel seen in my emotions about Daniel. She doesn’t pity me or feel sorry for me, mainly because she understands, and that’s all I could ask for out of a friend.
Friend? I guess we are friends now. My rival becoming a friend, who would have guessed that? Even with what happened the previous night, not just the kissing, but when I woke from my nightmare, she’d only listened and comforted me. I’ve never had that before. That’s what friends are for. Friends and maybe something more.
“I’ll be on my best behavior, I promise. And I need to know howBridgertonends,” I say with a smile, allowing my dimple to show through.
She lets out a small giggle. “I need to get cleaned up. Meet me in, say, an hour? Looks like you need to do the same.” She gestures to me still in my fire suit, myself.
I completely forgot that I came straight here, not even bothering to shower or change.
“Yeah, sounds like a plan.”
An hour later, freshly showered and changed, I head back over to Regan’s place and knock. When she opens the door, I immediately get a whiff of her vanilla scent. Her hair is still wet from her shower, but she’s in leggings this time. That doesn’t stop me from remembering what her legs looked like in those shorts.
Easy, killer. You promised to play nice. These thoughts are not nice.
The couch has already been pulled out into a bed, like she’s expecting me to stay. I guess we had the same thoughts for that part.
“I figured your mattress would still be wet, if you still want to stay here that is. You don’t have to or anything, it’s up to you, really. You don’t—” I stop her rambling by placing a hand on her shoulder. She stiffens but then relaxes.
“Thanks, this is fine. Great, actually.” She smiles and gestures for me to sit. I noticeBridgertonis already cued from where we left off last night.
“I made popcorn and have drinks. No beer, but soda and water,” she says, passing me the bowl of popcorn that I’m now noticing the smell of and not just her scent of vanilla.
“Water is fine.” She hands me a cold bottle and grabs one for herself. She positions herself as far from me on the pull-out as she can with the bowl of popcorn between us.
She presses play and we start to watch. We are both engrossed in the show and not saying too much. I glance over and she looks more relaxed now, not as tense as when I arrived.
We finish the last two episodes ofBridgertonand I’m in shock at the twist. “You’re telling me Penelope is Lady Whistledown?!” I shout at the screen.
She giggles at my reaction. “What a reveal, huh?”
“Yeah, you’re telling me. I never would have guessed that.”
“We can start season two, if you want,” she says. I look down at my phone. It’s only eight, might as well.
“Sure,” I reply enthusiastically, and her face lights up. “I need to know who the next couple is,” I declare, because now I’m fully invested in this chick show. I’m not sure if it’s because I truly like it, or because I get to spend more time with Regan and enjoy it with her.
She cues up the next episode, but doesn’t hit play. “Want more popcorn or another drink?” she asks as she starts to get up, but I stop her.
“Let me get it.” I get up to make popcorn, and I realize I don’t know where anything is. I’m so used to being in Chase or Taylor’s place, where it’s almost like a second home.
She notices my dilemma when she says, “Popcorn is in the pantry to the right of the fridge.” I hear a soft giggle, but ignore it. Putting the popcorn into the microwave and setting the timer, I can feel her watching my every movement. I like the fact that she’s checking me out; makes me feel less bad about doing the same to her.
I open the fridge to grab two more waters, and hand her one. The microwave beeps, and I pour the popcorn into the bowl and sit back down next to her. I intentionally sit cross-legged with the bowl in my lap, so that she will be forced to sit a bit closer to me to get the popcorn. One of the oldest tricks in the book, but still a good one.
She doesn’t seem to notice or care about my sly move to have her sit closer, or the fact that she has to reach into my lap for the popcorn. She just leans in to grab a handful and sits back. She does it a few times, then she finally scoots a little closer, so she doesn’t have to reach as far. I reach in for my own handful of popcorn, then I feel her warm hand on top of mine.Okay, maybe this could work after all.
She pulls her hand back, her cheeks heating a bright pink. “Sorry, I didn’t see you reaching for the bowl.” Her cheeks are still bright pink as she eats a few more bites of popcorn.
“It’s fine,” I say with a laugh. Because it is fine. More than fine. I want to feel her skin against mine again. Feel her lips crashing onto mine, nipping at her bottom one when she pulls away. I’ve wanted more ever since I got that first taste, and now it’s all I can think about.
We continue to watchBridgertonseason two, and Kate andAnthony remind me a lot of myself and Regan—minus the heavy breathing at each other.
I notice that Regan has moved even closer to me now. We are almost touching shoulders. I take a risk and reach for her hand and weave my fingers through hers. To my surprise, she doesn’t pull away, she doesn’t stop me. She lets our hands rest together intertwined as my stomach continuously flips inside me.
