I didn’t have anything to change into.
Of course I didn’t because I hadn’t planned for this.Hadn’t planned forhim.
Jude stepped back, running a hand through his hair like he was trying to reset himself.“Let me get you a shirt.”He crossed the room to his dresser, pulled open a drawer and grabbed something without overthinking it.When he turned back, he held it out to me, his gaze softer now but still focused.“There,” he said, nodding toward the bathroom.
I took it from him, my fingers brushing his for just a second, and that tiny contact sent another spark through me.I slipped into the bathroom and shut the door behind me.
The quiet hit immediately.
Too quiet after everything that had just happened.
I turned toward the mirror.
And froze.
My lips were flushed, slightly swollen, like they didn’t quite belong to me.My eyes looked wider, darker, my pupils blown in a way that made me look… different.
Not like the girl who had walked in here earlier.
Like someone who had just been kissed like that.By him.
I lifted a hand and touched my bottom lip lightly, like I needed to confirm it was real.
It was.Every second of it.
“Okay,” I whispered to myself, trying to calm the way my heart was still racing.
I changed quickly, pulling off my clothes and slipping into his shirt.It hung on me slightly, was soft and warm, and smelled like him in a way that made my chest tighten again.
I used the bathroom, splashed some water on my face, and took one more look at myself.
Still me.
Just… not exactly the same.
I opened the door and stepped back into the bedroom.Jude was sitting on the edge of the bed, elbows resting on his knees, like he was giving me space without leaving.
God.
How was this happening?
I had imagined this moment so many times over the years, and now that it was actually real, I didn’t trust it.Didn’t trust that I wasn’t going to wake up in my own bed and realize it had all been a dream.
“Uh… if you’re not tired, you can go hang out with your…” I trailed off, unsure what word to use.“Friends?”
Jude shook his head, reaching down to pull off his boots.
“I’m good right here.”
Of course he was.
I nodded and moved to the other side of the bed, trying not to overthink every single step.
Trying not to spiral.
Trying not to ruin this.
I sat down slowly, then pulled the covers back and slid in, the fabric of his shirt brushing my skin.
