“You were supposed to laugh,” I said.
“This isn’t funny.” He put his hand flat on my stomach and tucked my back tight against his front. Heat from his hand spread across my skin, like a balm. “You can talk to me.”
“Can I just cry and then sleep instead?”
“Yes,” he said. “As long as I can stay while you do both.”
I nodded and he nestled me even more snugly against him, wrapping his leg around mine as well. Considering how much my mind was spinning, I was surprised how calm I felt. How safe. “Thank you,” I said.
“Any time,” his deep voice said in my ear.
I turned over in his arms and buried my face in his chest while hot tears continued to stream.
CHAPTER 27
I opened my eyes. I always seemed to wake up at the same time, no matter what hour I’d gone to bed. Six-thirty. I didn’t need to look at my watch that was resting on its charger on the nightstand; the soft light filtering through the window told me that would be the time. Sometime during the night, I had turned over and my back was against Elijah’s chest once again. His arm was draped over my waist, heavy, which told me he was still asleep. His deep breaths in my ear verified that fact. It had been a while since I’d woken with the weight of someone against me. I didn’t hate it.
The night before had been a lot. For anybody. I knew this. So much for being fun. I’d turned the sext into a cryfest instead, at some point drifting off to sleep as he held me.
I carefully slid out from beneath his arm, not sure how deep of a sleeper he was.
My mom usually didn’t wake up until seven-thirty or so, but with her late-night fall, I wondered if she’d sleep a little longer today.
I peeled off Elijah’s T-shirt and draped it over the back of my desk chair. Then I pulled on my pajama shirt, buttoning it up as I headed for the door, phone in hand. I would let him sleep until I heard my mom, then I’d wake him and send him on his way before she realized he’d been here. Again, like a sneaky teenager.
It wasn’t about that though—her scolding me. It was that I didn’t want her to be embarrassed that someone else had been here last night when she’d fallen. Okay, maybe it was a little of both.
I shut the door quietly behind me and went to the bathroom, where I brushed my teeth and hair and used the toilet. Then I headed to the kitchen to start some coffee. I checked my phone for any messages. There was one from Mac, the food delivery guy.
Need to change to 6:45 in the am.
He’d sent that last night around nine. How had I missed it? I immediately called Raya. She answered with a sleep-deep voice.
“Emergency?”
“No, Mac changed the time to six forty-five for today.”
“He did not. That’s in like ten minutes.”
“Can you get there?”
“No. I’ll be there at seven, like every time he comes.”
“Please, try. I’ll call him.”
“Ugh. He’s doing this on purpose.”
“Hurry,” I said, then ended the call and dialed Mac.
“Hello,” he answered, the engine noises in the background let me know he was already on the move.
“I just got your message. You know she has a hard enough time being there at seven.”
“I do know, because she’s late every time, Sutton. Every. Time.”
“So are you just saying six forty-five so she’ll be on time today, or do you really need her at six forty-five?”
He laughed.
