“Talking, we were just talking.”
“Sure, whatever.” He doesn’t sound convinced. “Come on, you’re awake now, you might as well get going.”
“Nope, call me in a couple of hours.”
“Hey Tyler,” Mr. Roberts calls from the hall. “Everyone else wants to sleep in. Why don’t you and I go get a few runs in, just the two of us?”
I can’t see his face, but I can imagine Tyler rolling his eyes when he calls back, “Sure, Dad.” To me, his whispers, “Thanks a lot.”
“No problem,” I reach down and grab the covers and wrap them around me. Mr. Roberts confirmed what I already suspected. Jess is still asleep in the next room.
After Tyler leaves, I run my fingers over the wall that separates us; six inches of two by fours, plaster and drywall. Six inches I would gladly remove with my bare hands if I thought the reception on the other side would be a good one. Last night was a good night. Even if all we did was talk. Friends again, at least. I’m almost ready to hope we can be something more. If I could just figure out how not to spook her.
I close my eyes and think of Jess; how good it felt to hold her last night. The smell of her hair. The softness of her body. The sound of her voice.
A knock on the door brings me out of a deep sleep. My dreams and reality merge as her voice comes from the other side of the door.
“Jacob, are you decent? Can I come in?”
“Just a minute,” I call back.
I look around the room. It looks and smells like two guys have been sleeping here. I have a sudden urge to clean things up. Make it look okay for her. I pull on a shirt and stumble around, moving Tyler's smelly socks and my coat out of the way. I stub my toe on the edge of Tyler’s bed and catch myself mid-curse.
She’s laughing. “What are you doing in there? C’mon. Let me in. I brought breakfast. It’s going to get cold.”
I can smell bacon, eggs, and something sweet. I imagine her outside the door, in her pajamas, waiting. Breakfast in bed, won in a card game ages ago. I didn’t think I’d ever be able to collect on that bet.
I open the door. She’s already dressed. Her hair is pulled back in a ponytail and she’s holding a tray. “It’s about time.” She walks past me. “This is heavy.”
She looks around for a place to set the tray. It's a small room and cluttered with Tyler's stuff. There isn’t anywhere to put it. “Back in bed,” she orders.
I obediently climb into the bed. She tries to set the tray over my legs, but the sides aren’t long enough. She takes the tray away, kicks aside a pair of Tyler’s pants and sets it on the floor. She puts a napkin on my lap and then puts the plate on top of it.
“Can you reach this?” She points to the the tray on the floor.
“I’ll manage.” That was the wrong thing to say. She heads for the door.
“You want to share?” I pat the side of the bed. “There’s plenty here.” Three stuffed crepes, bacon, scrambled eggs, milk and juice. I could down it by myself, but I don’t want her to leave.
She hesitates. “I already ate.”
“C’mon Jess. You’re in for an athletic day. You need a hearty breakfast.”
“Okay.” She sits beside me on the bed.
I cut a piece of the crepe and offer it to her. She shakes her head. Halfway to my mouth, a strawberry slice falls out and slides down my chest and into my lap.
She laughs. “You need help with that.” She tucks another napkin into my T-shirt and then takes my fork away. She cuts a piece of the crepe and feeds it to me. “Is that better?”
“I’m pretty sure I can feed myself,” I say, but I don't take the fork back. There’s something incredibly sexy about her sitting on the edge of my bed, feeding me breakfast.
“Shhh, just eat.” She shovels another bite into my mouth.
“You have a bite too.” I reach for the fork to feed her. She holds it out of my reach and then cuts another piece. She leans over the plate and slides it into her mouth. A bit of whipped cream gets on the edge of her lips. She licks it off.
She feeds me another bite. “I’m getting good at this.”
“At feeding me?”
