Shivering in my arms, she looks at me through her eyelashes. “Well, you took care of the second half of the sentence.”
“And I’m trying to take care of the first half.” Hooking my finger under her chin, I bring my lips to hers, sweetly kissing her, not diving too deep, and not pressing too hard. “Go on, go get some sleep. I’ll text you in the morning, okay?”
She nods and pulls me into a hug. I wrap my arms around her slight shoulders and breathe her in one more time. “Thank you again for the past two days. It was exactly what I needed.”
“You’re welcome, baby.” I want to talk about our future. I want to tell her we need to have a serious conversation. The words are on the tip of my tongue but I push them down. If I tell her we need to talk, she’s going to worry. She’ll want the conversation now instead of getting the sleep she desperately needs. So I keep my mouth shut. We have time, and it doesn’t have to be discussed right now.
“Dinner tomorrow?”
“I’ll cook. Come to my place after work?”
“I’ll be there.” Reaching up she presses a gentle kiss on my chin and steps away. “Have a good night.” Winking, she takes her suitcase and unlocks her door. Hands in my pockets, I watch her every move until she waves and shuts the door on me.
Hopping off her front porch, I jog to the waiting car the whole time wishing I was snuggling next to Adalyn rather than going back to an empty cottage.
One night, that’s all. One night isn’t going to change anything.
Chapter Fifteen
ADALYN
Oh that feels so good.
I love it when the water is so hot in a shower that it feels like it’s blistering my back. I once saw a piece onThe Today Showthat talked about taking cold showers in the morning to wake you up, get you started for the day.
What a load of crap.
I tried it once and I was miserable. Such a bear. All my coworkers steered clear of me that day, because who in their right mind wants to take a cold shower in the morning?
Sadists, that’s who.
I go for the opposite, and you know what, a blistering hot shower is better.
There I said it, I put it out in the universe.
Hot showers wake you up if you do them right. Turn them scorching, singe your skin, and then you are good to go. Trust me on this.
Turning the shower off, I wring out my hair and reach for my towel just as my phone starts to ring on the bathroom counter. I always bring my phone into the bathroom with me so I know how much more time I have to fuck around before I actually have to get ready for work.
Stepping on the yellow bathroom mat, I glance at the screen and see Emma’s face pop up. Smiling, I answer it.
“Hey girl.”
“Ugh, I miss you,” Emma groans. “We haven’t had our morning chats in so long.” It’s been a ritual of ours when getting ready for our early shifts, we call each other at least twice a week to catch up. It’s been a while.
“That’s because you were on a little mini vacay with Tucker. Not my fault.”
“It was worth it, but I don’t want to talk about that, I want to talk about your New York City getaway with the famous Hayden Holmes.”
Needing to dry off, I put the phone on speaker and set it on the counter. “It was amazing. I got to hang out with his friend, Calder, who is also his teammate along with Calder’s girlfriend, Rachel. They were so much fun—”
“Not as much fun as me.”
“Never.” I chuckle. “No one is as much fun as you.”
“Good answer. You may continue.”
Just a little friend reassurance break. Like anyone could take her place. Emma is my girl. We’ve been through far too much together, especially during our first year of nursing school.
