Page 36 of Wilder

CHAPTER 9

Asher

My phone chimed early the next morning, the sound piercing through the heavy fog of sleep and dragging me back to reality. I groaned, running a tired hand over my face, trying to scrape together some semblance of awareness.

Judging by how dark it was outside of the windows, I’d only been asleep for a few hours, passed out after Dexter had wandered off to my room and I’d crashed with Grey in his. Now, my body protested as I pushed myself upright, sore from the cramped pretzel I’d somehow twisted myself into after finally falling asleep.

Beside me, Grey let out a soft grunt as the blankets dragged with me, his hand immediately batting at my side before he ripped them back, rolling over and pulling them tight around his body like a damn burrito.

I shook my head, exhaling sharply.

If he hogged them all night, he was going to wake up on the damn floor.

Standing up from Grey’s full-sized bed, I stretched my arms high above my head, sighing in relief when a few satisfying pops ran down my spine and into my shoulders.

My phone lit up again across the room, another text incoming.

I frowned. That was weird. Usually, the only people who texted me were currently asleep under this roof.

My gaze flicked toward the phone, catching the soft glow from where it sat on the desk across the room. Heading over, I swiped it off the surface, unplugging the charger before flipping it over and leaning a hip against the desk.

The screen lit up, instantly blinding me.

“Ugh,” I muttered, squinting hard, blinking the floating spots out of my vision.

When they finally cleared, I focused on the contact name scrolling across my screen.

Laken.

My frown deepened.

Why the hell would he be texting me at... God, 4:22am?

Swiping my finger over the passcode screen, I opened up the message.

‘You up?’ it read.

That was all the text said.

I stared at it for a second, brow furrowing.

Then, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I typed back: ‘I am now.’

I barely had time to set my phone down before the screen lit up again, this time with an incoming call.

I didn’t hesitate.

Grabbing my phone, I quickly pushed away from the desk and made my way toward the door, slipping out of Grey’s room as quietly as I could. The last thing I needed was him waking up and demanding to know why the hell I was taking a call at four in the goddamn morning.

Padding lightly down the hall, I kept my steps careful, moving past the guest rooms, past the kitchen, and straight for the front door.

The second I stepped outside, the night air hit me like a slap—humid but cooler than the usual sweltering Louisiana heat, carrying just enough of a breeze to send a shiver up my spine.

I pulled the door shut behind me, leaning against it as I finally swiped my finger over the screen. Bringing the phone up to my ear, I exhaled, voice still heavy with sleep as I muttered, “Hello?”

“Hey.” Laken’s voice came through the line, annoyingly alert for it being an hour and a half before he was even supposed to be up for chores. “You got a second?”

I ran a hand through my hair, still half-asleep as I leaned back against the front door. “Kind of do now that you woke me up.”