Why does that feel so much worse?
“Goodnight, Li.”
“G’night.”
Chapter 19
Damon
The next morning, I wake up in a sauna. Wondering how in the hell I managed to pass out in a sauna, I roll over and collide with the sweatiest body on the planet.
Jesus, Liam doesn’t just runhot…he runsnuclear.
But despite the sweaty sheets—seriously, how the fuck does he sleep like this—I feel the best I’ve felt in a really,reallylong time. All my secrets are out. Nothing is between Liam and me anymore, and whatever happens from here on, it will happen with both parties having all the facts.
I should’ve known he’d never use my love for him against me. And I could hate myself for not telling him the truth sooner, but he took away all my self-loathing in one sentence.You could’ve told me sooner, but I’m kind of glad it didn’t happen until now.
He gave me everything in that one sentence.
Hope that maybe I didn’t fuck us up.
Joy that he knows and accepts me anyway.
Grace for myself, so the agony doesn’t continue.
I take a minute to appreciate the wide expanse of back muscles before me. God, he’s fucking beautiful. I watch as his ribcage expands with each slow, deep breath, and I am so tempted to lean forward and run my tongue along his spine.
But that would be creepy, right?
Yes, definitely creepy, I decide, rolling out of bed before I lose my last shred of self-control.
Except Liam is awake before either of my feet hits the floor.
“Please tell me you’re not getting up yet. We just went to sleep like four hours ago,” he pouts, burrowing his face in the mound of pillows beneath him, making me laugh.
I smack his ass because that’s how good I feel, but then I freeze, wondering if that was too much.
“Stop overthinking it, and get back in this bed,” Liam mutters.
“Can’t. I’m wide awake.”
“Something is seriously wrong with you,” he groans.
“How can you stand it? You’re sleeping in a swamp.”
“Told you I run hot. You didn’t seem to mind it last night,” he says. With his eyes still closed, he raises his hands in the air and mimics striking drum cymbals, making aba-dum-tssnoise.
I throw my pillow at him, feeling weightless and playful, and hoping like hell after the events of last night, he’s not going to force me to go to the gym.
“I’m going to make breakfast. See you when you get up, Sleeping Beauty.”
I think I’m in the clear until he yells, “Don’t eat too much; you said you’d come to the gym with me this morning.”
“Li, I wasn’t in my right mind when I agreed to that. I agreed under duress,” I whine.
“You did no such thing. Be ready to go in an hour.”
Fuuuuuck.
