“That’s perfect! The winner gets to be the big spoon tonight in my bed.”
She tries to hand the controller back but Beck swipes it from her hands and pushes her down onto the couch.
“Here, darlin’, I’ll show you how to use it.”
Savy huffs out a laugh. “Fine, but no bet. I’ll be sleeping on the couch unless you guys have a spare room I can borrow?”
Beck wraps an arm around her waist so he can hold one side of the controller.
“We do but it’s currently filled with gym equipment, sorry.”
They show her the ropes of the game with Jude yelling, “Shoot ‘em in the head!” constantly.
Ash drops down into the chair beside me and leans close so the others can’t hear him.
“Whatever that was, it didn’t just go away. Don’t let her sleep on the couch tonight. She’s bound to have nightmares. Take her to your room. I don’t care if you fake fuck her or not. Just don’t leave her alone.”
Ash leans back in his chair and we watch Savy get slaughtered over and over again by zombies. For someone who’s never played before, she picks it up fairly quickly after the first massacre. After an hour, she’s made it up a few levels and she’s laughing and getting into the game but when she reaches the big boss, she meets her match. I lean back and watch as she jumps to her feet like that will give her an advantage somehow. Her forehead is furrowed in concentration and she’s biting her lower lip in the cutest fucking way as her thumbs fly over the controller. I already know she’s going to lose even with Jude and Beck yelling out tips and moves but when the boss takes her out, her whole body droops and it almost looks like she’s going to cry.
Savy turns away from the screen and sort of whispers, “He ate my fucking face off.”
Jude howls with laughter pointing at her. “Amy just said fucking! I didn’t think you even knew any swear words.”
She tosses the controller at him and throws herself back down on the couch.
“I know plenty of swear words. I just say them in my head instead of out loud.”
Beck leans into her and tilts her chin up. “I bet there’s plenty of things you keep locked away in that head of yours. You should say them out loud, darlin’. It would be way more fun that way.”
Savy’s eyes drop down to his mouth and when her little pink tongue swipes out to wet her bottom lip, I decide the night is over.
“That’s a wrap for us. Come on, Savy. I’ll get you something to sleep in.”
I hold out my hand to her until she takes it and pull her up off the couch and lead her upstairs. I shut my bedroom door behind us and lean against it, watching her take in my room. When she turns to look my way, I push off the door and go to my dresser to get her a pair of boxers and a t-shirt to sleep in. I hand them over and point to the door beside my closet.
“You can change in there, it’s a bathroom.”
She hesitates like she’s going to refuse them but then finally takes them from me and goes into the bathroom without saying a word. I look over at my California King size bed and consider if this is a good idea or not. It fucking isn’t and I know that but Ash isn’t wrong that she probably shouldn’t sleep alone tonight. I just need to keep my hands to myself. Fucking Savy would only complicate everything for me. Things are working out with our deal. The last thing I need is to fuck it up because one mousy girl has gotten under my skin.
I haul off my shirt and strip down my jeans, swapping them out for a pair of athletic shorts, and then climb into bed. I lay on my back with my hands behind my head and wait for her to come out. When she finally does, she freezes in place seeing me already in bed, and then makes a quick jog for the door.
“Thanks for the clothes. I’ll see you tomorrow, Tate.”
“Savy, you’re not sleeping on the couch. Those guys will be up for hours yet with nowhere for us to be tomorrow. You can sleep here. It’s a big bed, I won’t even know you’re in it.”
Her hand is stretched out reaching for the door knob and it hovers there while she plays through all the angles of her choices or lack thereof. After a few moments, it drops back to her side and she turns to look at me. She studies my face and whatever she sees there makes up her mind. Her voice is quiet when she says “Okay” and moves over to the opposite side and sits with her back to me.
I watch as she sets her glasses on the nightstand and then reaches up and starts unwinding her hair. I’m practically holding my breath until all that chestnut silk falls down her back in ripples. When the smell of peaches hits me, I have to stifle a groan and force myself to roll away and click the light out. This is going to be a long fucking night.
SAVY
When I wake up my eyes are sore and gritty, telling me I was crying in my sleep again. It’s been a year since that last happened and I know it was the whiteout that triggered it. It’s been almost nine years since the accident but sometimes it feels like yesterday when I get hit by a reminder of those terrifying two-and-a-half days that changed my life forever.
I snuggle deeper into the heat surrounding me and that’s when I realize Tate is wrapped around me from behind. His front is pressed against my back, our legs are tangled together, one of his arms is under me wrapped around my waist and the other is over top of me with his hand holding my…breast.
I stay completely still and barely breathe as I take stock of how fucking amazing it feels to be held like this. Tate’s face is buried in my hair and I can feel his hot breath on my neck causing goosebumps to raise all over my body. But it’s the hard length pressed against my ass that has heat flaring between my legs. I close my eyes and just let myself feel every inch of his hot skin against mine because I know as soon as he wakes up, he’ll pull away.
I don’t know how long I lay there lost in the feel of him against me but when his big hand flexes against my breast I suck back a tiny gasp of pleasure. He presses harder against my ass and his lips move over the sensitive skin of my neck as he nudges my hair to the side.
