Page 28 of Camera Stays On

Not that I’d ever really gotten past that. I had been living in a ten-by-ten closet, for Christ’s sake.

As the sun drifted downward, I opted to turn back, making it to Sawyer and Asher’s home just as night settled in. Sawyer’s car was in the drive, but no lights were on. Quietly, I used my key to go inside, tiptoeing around, trying not to bump into things.

Though I had never lived here, I remembered the layout enough. There was no way in hell I’d be sleeping upstairs with that musty comforter, surrounded by all my old shit from high school. Instead, I went to the downstairs closet, where a neatly folded stack of blankets sat on a shelf. When I pulled one out, I was wafted by a familiar smell. Suddenly, my heart rate shifted, and my belly fluttered.

Asher.

Taking the blanket, I went to the couch, where I lay down and begged for sleep to take me. I wasn’t even remotely tired—I couldn’t sleep, even if I wanted to. I was too scared of Sawyer popping up from somewhere to surprise me, shoving a camera in my face. Instead, I wrapped myself in the blanket that smelled of his brother and closed my eyes, remembering that drunken night.

I hadn’t really allowed myself to think about it much. It felt wrong. But yet... right. Which was even more odd to me, because not once when I was with Sawyer romantically did it ever feel... right. It was dutiful, obligatory. Sawyer had claimed me as his when we were teenagers at that theater. I’d never really felt I had another choice. But that night, with Asher, in the hotel...

What a choice that had been.

Eventually, I drifted off to sleep, but I awoke sometime later to the front door opening. I bolted up with a loud gasp. My mind was slightly disoriented for just a brief moment until the shadowy figure spoke, and I knew who’d just walked in.

“Andi?”

Chapter 12

Asher

THE DOGS BOUNDED into the house, shoving me out of the way. I flicked the light on, and Andi screamed as Blair and Toby caught sight of her and leaped onto the couch.

“Down!” I yelled, storming over and swatting their backsides. Not hard enough to hurt but enough to get their attention. Toby, my Rottweiler, let out a low yip and tilted his head. I repeated my order, and he climbed down. Blair, my Basset Hound, hung her floppy little head and dropped off the couch, as if she’d done something deeply wrong. I crouched and pulled her into my arms. Blair was a sensitive soul.

“It’s okay, girl. She just wasn’t expecting you.” I looked up at Andi, who was staring at me with wide eyes. “I wasn’t either. How are you?” I swallowed. The stiffness in my question was uncomfortable, but... I didn’t know what else to say. The last time we’d spoken, I was inside her.

“I’m... okay. How’ve you been?”

“Fine.” Blair’s muscles relaxed, and I stood. “I didn’t realize you were coming today. We’ve still got a week or two before shooting starts.” While it was a surprise, it was a nice one. We could use this time before filming to talk and get used to each other again, unless… My happiness was doused with a sharp pang of worry.

Was she here early to spend time with Sawyer? It was on the tip of my tongue to ask—accuse, more accurately.

“I didn’t really have a whole lot of options. Did Sawyer tell you what happened?”

I shook my head. “No—hold on.” I took in her surroundings. She was wrapped up in my camping blanket. “Were you trying to sleep?” I realized the question was kind of stupid, as the room had been completely dark when I’d come in.

“Trying, not really succeeding. New place and, well... Sawyer.” She sighed. I turned toward the coffee table and grabbed the remote, turning on the TV.

“I’ll keep you company. Do you...want some pajamas?” I noticed she was dressed in jeans and a fitted shirt. “I can give you one of my larger shirts to sleep in.”

She nodded eagerly. “Yes, please. Sleeping in jeans is not ideal.”

I patted my thigh, and the dogs came to attention. “I’ll be back.” Heading upstairs, dogs at my heels, I went past Sawyer’s room. There was no light underneath the door indicating he was still up. It was odd, considering he was not an early sleeper. I changed into lounge pants and nothing else. I considered a shirt, but I never slept with one on, and it was my house. Admiring myself in the mirror briefly, I smirked. I’d worked hard to have my muscles, and I paid well for the tattoos that covered them. If Andi so happened to look, well…

Before I left my room, I grabbed a T-shirt for her and went back down, pausing at Sawyer’s door to listen. The dogs’ panting overshadowed any sounds I may have been able to hear, so I continued on.

I found Andi with the remote in her hand, scrolling through Netflix. I handed her the shirt, and she left to change in the bathroom.

“Your dogs are super cute,” she said when she returned. They heard her talking about them and quickly leaped off the couch to go to her, wagging their tails. Standing up, I moved to shut the lights off and pointed to their dog beds.

“Go lie down,” I told them sternly.

“Oh, they’re fine,” Andi said, sitting down and patting the couch. Their ears perked right up, and they leaped onto the couch, leaving little room for me. I held in a huff, knowing that as much as I wanted to be frustrated about being potentially cockblocked, they didn’t know any different. Joining them all, I squeezed in where I could, which unfortunately left two dogs between Andi and me.

“When did you guys pick these two up?” she asked.

“I got them both as pups from the pound about two years back. They’d been surrendered by separate people. I saw Blair first and couldn’t help myself. The ears, you know.” Blair, hearing her name, perked up. Even when lifting her head, her ears still dragged on the pillow. “I had her in my arms, heading toward the door, when I heard a tiny bark. I turned around and saw Toby sitting there, looking like a stern little gentleman. His previous owners had gotten him, not realized he was a Rott, and got scared. I scooped him up, too, and we all left the same day.”