Page 46 of Hidden With You

ChapterFourteen

Morning comes along with a delicious wake-up call of kisses and sex, and once Jasper has thoroughly used my body, I roll over, cuddling close. “Mmm,” I say, with the same kind of satisfaction as if I’d just eaten a completely rich piece of chocolate cake. “Can’t we just stay here?”

“We could,” Jasper says. “But it might be awkward.”

I prop myself up on an elbow. “Awkward?”

“We have company coming at six.”

I glance at the clock, see that it’s five-fifteen, and bolt all the way up, the sheet falling down to leave me half-naked in the bed. “What are you talking about?”

He reaches out and strokes my nipple. “Never mind. I’m thinking I might cancel.”

I laugh and smack his hand away. “I’m serious. What are you talking about?” Something like horror washes over me. “Oh no, you didn’t.”

He frowns. “What are you talking about?”

“You didn’t invite my mother over, did you? You’re not under some absurd delusion that there’s hope for our relationship?”

He shakes his head. “Absolutely not.”

The fact that he’s so adamant calms me. Most people would have hemmed and hawed. Even if they hadn’t invited her over, they would make some speech about how I should try to reconcile with my mother. The fact that Jasper didn’t do that is even more proof that he’s perfect for me.

Perfect for me….

I suck in air, unable to believe I really just thought that because I don’t want to want to fall for this guy. Not like that. Not really.

My panicked heart pounds in my chest. Yes, I love being with him. Hanging out with him. But that’s all I can handle right now. That’s all I can ever handle.

I can’t get invested, because I know it’s going to be over. It always ends. It has to end. That’s the way the world goes. Things happen,then they end.

I draw a deep breath, trying to calm down. Perfect for me.

Such beautiful words. But so damn terrifying.

I look up to see him staring back at me, his forehead creased with confusion.

“What’s going on in that mind of yours?”

I shake my head. “I’m okay. I’m fine. I just ... it’s just that you get me.”

His eyes widen. “That’s a bad thing?”

I scowl. “Do we get to stay all day in bed or not? If it’s not my mother, then who is it?”

“Friends,” he says.

“You invited friends over?” I study his face to see if this is a joke. Apparently, it’s not. “Your friends?”

“Our friends.”

I start to argue that we don’t have mutual friends, but instead I ask, “Who? And why? Are we just going to sit around drinking and talking?”

It sounded like an awful lot of pressure to me.

Then again, I’m an expert at putting on a bright and bubbly personality. I suppose if I can do it at big events, I can do it at small ones too.

“Jamie’s coming, and she said she’s bringing Ollie, and Leah’s coming, and she said she’s going to bring someone else from Stark Security, although she didn’t know who would be available, but she doesn’t want to drive by herself. I invited Evelyn, but she’s out of town for a few days.”