Wyatt blinks. “You okay?”
“Yep,” she says quickly. “Totally fine. Just… bathroom.”
I set my drink down on the table with a little too much force, shove a hand through my hair, and stand.
“I’m goin’ to bed,” I mutter.
I don’t even know if the guys are listening to me.
I walk down the hall, the dim light from the living room fading behind me, the air cooler here, darker.
The bathroom door is closed. Light spills out from under it.
I stop a few feet away, heart pounding because I’m about to act crazy.
Because I am.
I should turn around. I should go to bed.
I should…
The bathroom door opens.
Abilene steps out, still wrapped in the blanket, hair mussed. She’s been tugging at it in nervous little motions. She freezes when she sees me in the hallway.
“Jesse,” she whispers.
And that’s it. That’s the last thread of restraint snapping.
I don’t rush her.
I don’t crowd her.
I just step forward slowly, approaching a skittish animal, giving her every chance to step back if she wants to.
Abilene doesn’t step back. Her eyes stay locked on mine.
Her breathing changes. Shallower, faster.
“Why are you here?” she asks.
Because I can’t stop thinking about you.
Because you looked at me like you were asking for something you don’t know how to ask for.
Because I’m tired of being lonely.
Because I want.
But the truth feels too sharp to say out loud, like it might cut us both.
“Because I can’t hold back,” I admit. “Not tonight.”
Abilene’s lips part. Her fingers tighten in the blanket, knuckles pale.
“That’s… dangerous,” she whispers, reminding both of us.
“I know.” I take another slow step, stopping close enough that the heat of her body brushes mine through the blanket.
