Savannah reached for their hand in the dark, lacing their fingers together without opening her eyes.
The gesture was sleepy.
Instinctive.
Dangerous.
Tilly felt their chest tighten.
People didn’t hold hands like that unless they meant something.
Unless they planned to stay.
They squeezed her hand gently before they could stop themselves.
And immediately knew they were in trouble.
Twenty Eight
Savannah’s mind was racing.
She’d expected her nerves to calm once everything slowed down. They didn’t. If anything, the quiet made them worse.
Tilly shifted beside her, adjusting the pillow. The mattress dipped slightly under their weight. Savannah felt it like a shockwave.
She dragged her hand down her face, suddenly too aware of every place her body still hummed from what they’d just done.
Her stomach twisted.
This shouldn’t feel complicated. She liked Tilly. She’d wanted Tilly. She’d practically thrown herself at their hotel room door. But her brain wouldn’t shut up, spinning through thoughts she wished she could stop long enough to breathe.
She’d only ever been with men before. That was the truth she couldn’t escape. Her body knew the choreography of those relationships, the rhythms, the expectations, the way she was supposed to react. This was different in a way she didn’t have a roadmap for.
And she hated how that made her feel.
She wasn’t uncomfortable. She wasn’t confused about wanting Tilly. God, if anything, wanting them was the clearest thing in the room.
What scared her was the way it rewrote something inside her without asking.
She swallowed hard.
“Savannah?” Tilly’s voice was soft. Curious. Almost concerned.
She tensed. “Yeah?”
“You’re quiet.”
“I’m thinking.”
“About what?”
She almost laughed. Hysterical. Sharp. “Everything.”
Tilly didn’t push. Of course they didn’t push. That somehow made the panic swell more.
Savannah shifted onto her side, staring at the bland hotel artwork because she couldn’t look at them while her heart tried to break out of her ribs.
Her voice came out thin. “I’ve only ever done this with men.”
