eight
I keep my eyesclosed as I snuggle deeper into the warmth beneath me and release a content sigh.
Luke’s bed is much more comfortable than I would have imagined, although firmer than I expected.
Hmm, come to think of it, I don’t even remember coming to bed. Did we even finish the movie? I’m sure I would have remembered teasing him about the infamous handshake scene.
I struggle to recollect any of those memories when I notice that the bed is moving. Rising and falling slowly.
“Morning. Are you aware that you’re a very aggressive cuddler?” Luke’s chest rumbles beneath my cheek as his voice comes from somewhere above my head.
I squeak as I bolt up, quickly discovering that I was indeed cuddling Luke. More like I koala-latched and pinned him beneath my body, really.
We’re still on the couch, but the morning sun lights up the entire cabin, letting me know that we’ve slept here the entire night.
Well, I slept. Apparently, Luke was held hostage.
“I’m so sorry.” I scramble to my feet and cover my mouth with my hand.
Luke offers me an easy smile as he stretches lazily. “What are you doing?”
“I have morning breath. And I was mouth breathing on top of you.” I scrunch my face and try to remember if I did anything embarrassing in my sleep, which is fruitless, since I was knocked out like the dead.
He crosses his arms, looking way too good for someone who spent the night on a couch with a feral cuddler. His eyes crinkle softly as he runs a hand through his beard.
In pictures, the beard makes him look tough and unapproachable. But I’ve been up close and apparently much too personal with Luke lately. I know for a fact that his beard looks soft, and I wonder what it would feel like beneath my fingers.
Or maybe even somewhere else.
I shake my head, immediately banishing the inappropriate thought. When I look back at Luke, his eyes are zeroed in on me, as if he caught what I was thinking about.
But that’s impossible, right?
“You okay there, D? You’re looking a little flushed.”
Was that a mocking tone?
I move my hand to my cheek, and sure enough, it feels like I’m burning up.
“Oh yeah. Totally fine. Just your average day. Waking up on my friend’s chest after probably spending the night drooling on his shirt and all that.”
He makes a show of running a hand down his shirt and back up. “No drool detected.”
“Small mercies,” I mumble.
“But you do snore quite a bit. Reminds me of a chainsaw I have in the shed that needs replacing.”
I clap my hands and hook a thumb over my shoulder. “Okay. Great. Cool. I’m gonna go for a walk. Down that dock, and I’ll keep going until I hit the bottom of that lake, where my dignity currently lies. So if you don’t mind…” I turn to face the back sliding door.
I don’t even make it a step before Luke is behind me, placing a hand on my stomach and pulling me toward his laughing chest. “I was joking, Daisy. You don’t snore.”
I huff. “Never figured you as a chipper morning person, Coach.”
“Yeah, well, I guess I never had a reason to be,” I turn in his arms. Somewhere in the back of my mind there are muffled words about putting space between us, but I find myself getting lost in the twinkle in his light blue eyes instead. This close I can see that one of them has a bit of green near the bottom of the iris.
“What? Runaway brides pinning you down on the couch is what Sunday morning dreams are made of?”
He shrugs. “Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it. Now, c’mon, we’re going on a field trip.”
