It was a little strange considering the energy she had already expended. Just on the other side of the wall, just past the secret door that led into her bedroom, was a gorgeous man in her bed. It pained her to leave Jordan there. He looked so peaceful, and she had thought about just snuggling closer to him. But when Charlotte needed to write, she needed to write. She couldn't help that she was motivated to work through the next chapter of her book because she was inspired by a hockey player in her bed.
She looked out the window, watching the lights twinkling in the dark night as she wrapped her arms around herself. The soft cotton under her fingers was soothing, especially considering it was the t-shirt Jordan had discarded on her bedroom floor. She couldn't stop herself from grabbing it when she got up, and technically it was his fault for leaving it there.
But she had to focus again, trying to gather her plans for what to do with the rest of this chapter. She thought writing a sequel toHarper's Fairwould be easy since she had already developed the character in the first book. But writing 1,500 words in the middle of the night would only work if she didn't get stuck.
"Charlie?"
She turned to see gorgeous blue eyes staring at her from her closet door. "Hey."
Jordan came out of the shadow wearing his tight black boxer briefs and nothing else. Charlotte blatantly stared, but she couldn't help it. He definitely had the toned muscular physique of a professional athlete, and she appreciated it.
"I would ask you if you see something you like," he said with a smile. "But I'm a little worried about your answer since you seem to have abandoned me."
"Sorry." She yawned and stretched her hands above her head, her shirt riding up to expose the skin underneath. At least that's what she assumed happened by the way Jordan looked at her, the hunger back in his eyes from earlier that night. He came over and leaned against her desk, looking down at her instead of trying to sneak a peek at her screen.
"Is there a reason you're awake at whatever time this is?"
She glanced down at the clock on her desk. "3 a.m." He gave her an intrigued look with his eyebrows perking up as he stared down at her. "Just a writer thing. This chapter suddenly came together in my head so I had to get it down."
"Ah," he said with a slight nod.
"But now I'm stuck."
A mischievous grin spread across Jordan's face as he leaned closer, his hand lightly grazing her arm. "Would you like some inspiration?"
"Maybe," she teased with a smile on her face. "Just give me a minute to save this and I'll be back in."
He kissed the top of her forehead, whispering "Don't make me wait too long," before heading back for the bedroom. Charlotte couldn't complain about the view as he left. Hockey players were notorious for having strong glutes from skating, and Jordan was no exception. His choice of attire, or lack thereof at that point, only enhanced her appreciation of his assets.
She quickly saved her work and shut down the computer. There was no way she wanted to lose what she had written already and at least some of the pieces could be messed with in the morning. But she also didn't want to be sitting there anymore after she had been reminded of what was waiting under her covers.
Her secret door closed easily behind her as she quietly padded across the floor to her bed. But apparently, she had made Jordan wait too long after all because he was already asleep. So much for his nighttime inspiration. Charlotte slid under her sheets next to him and flipped her pillow over to the cold side. She was about to fall asleep when she felt his hand slide across her waist as he pulled himself closer to her.
Then he started snoring in her ear.
She couldn't help but smile. What kind of person falls asleep after what he promised her and then takes the extra step of snoring? But there was something so endearing about it. Here was a man so comfortable in her bed that he felt the instinctive need to be closer even as he slept next to her. Charlotte closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She doubted there would be anymore inspiration interrupting her when she was next to Jordan, and she had no objection.
So much for sleeping next to a warm body, she thought, rolling over to find an empty space next to her where Jordan had once been. The man she snuggled up against in the middle of the night seemed to have been replaced by a cold lonely bed and she wasn't sure why. Did she scare him off with her talk about being inspired to write? Was he embarrassed that he fell asleep before she could join him back in bed? Maybe the warm haze of last night had burned off with the harsh sun that now filtered through the blinds in her bedroom and he left before it got more awkward.
Then she smelled fresh coffee.
Charlotte stretched out, making sure each limb was fully extended before finally climbing out of bed. She still had on his t-shirt that she had found last night, and another check confirmed it smelled like his cologne. She grabbed a pair of black leggings, pulling them on before taking a quick look at herself in the full-length mirror. Luckily, she had a few things in her walk-in closet — an extra hair brush, some tissues, and lip gloss — so she could sort of pull herself together. She figured Jordan knew what she was like in the morning considering he was already awake, but Charlotte wanted to at least look a little more presentable than that.
The hardwood floors were cold under her feet, but she didn't seem to notice as she walked into the kitchen to find an empty mug waiting for her next to the coffee pot.
"Morning," came a voice at her kitchen table.
She turned to see Jordan sitting there with a cup of coffee in front of him. He had on his gray pants from the night before with the belt undone. His white button-down shirt hung open with nothing underneath. Her SundayNew York Timeswas still neatly stacked on her kitchen table, but a section of it seemed to have found its way into his hand.
"You do know today is Tuesday, right?"
"Yeah."
"And this is Sunday's newspaper."
"I also know that, but it's going to take me at least a week to get through all of it." She smiled and took a sip of her coffee, noticing the Mont Blanc pen in his hand. "Are you marking up my newspaper for a particular reason?"
Jordan flashed her the page he was working on. "Crossword puzzle. I was hoping this was Monday's paper since those are easier, but I can assure you that I'll still finish this thing."
