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When I slid under the covers on my side of the bed, I could see the whites of Nolan’s eyes and hear his harsh breaths. I was dying to feel his warmth against me, but this was not the time nor the place.
We were both lying on our backs when I felt his foot slide against mine. My skin tingled, and my dick perked up, but no way I planned on doing anything about it, and obviously, neither did he.
I looked over at him, and he at me, and just breathed in the small space between us. When his hand found mine under the covers, I shook my head but still held on.
“Night,” I said in a gruff voice.
Nolan’s fingers tightened briefly. “Night.”
We fell asleep with our fingers knotted together, but soon enough, I was tossing and turning as usual.
“Aw, look at the two of you snuggling,” Anthony said close to my ear, and my head sprang up. Fuck, it was already morning.
“What the hell?” There was surprise in Perry’s tone, and I could see why. I had my arm and leg thrown over Nolan, who was snoring soundly.
“Shit,” I said, rolling away from him.
“Huh? What’s happening?” Nolan muttered, starting to stir.
“You didn’t notice you were practically pinned to the bed by Ellis?” Perry’s terse expression made my breath catch.
Why the hell did he even care?
Nolan rubbed his face. “When I’m asleep, I’m out. An earthquake won’t wake me.”
Or maybe he was so used to me sleeping with him that way that it didn’t register anymore. Fuck, maybe sleeping in the same bed was not a good idea.
I teased, “That’s a good thing because I was obviously holding on for dear life. I had a dream I was clinging to the side of a mountain.”
Anthony cracked up, but Perry’s eyebrows scrunched together like he was trying to figure us out, finally saying, “Again, must be why she divorced you.”
“Whatever. Gotta take a piss.” I scurried out of bed in an attempt to hide my morning wood.
“Well, hurry up because so do I,” Nolan replied.
By the time we got back on the road, everything seemed back to normal. Plus, we were all dragging, so there wasn’t much conversation. We stopped at a breakfast place and stuffed our faces, then continued on to our practice spot to unload.
“Fucking hell,” Nolan said as soon as we got back in his car to head home.
I winced. “I know. Close call.”
It felt tense the rest of the drive, and I didn’t know what that meant.
“Got some errands, then heading to my mom’s for dinner,” Nolan said as we got inside our building.
“I’ve got a ton of laundry to do,” I replied as he kept walking to the elevator. “See you later?”
Nolan turned to look back as the doors opened. “Hope so.”
Back at my place, I sank against the door like some lovesick puppy, hoping my crush still felt the same despite almost getting caught.
15
Nolan
“Hey, Mom, just got back into town. I’m gonna shower, straighten this place up a bit, and then head over.” Annabeth and I tried to make it to Mom’s at least one Sunday a month for an early dinner, but this weekend was a bit tight because of the road trip.
“Annabeth’s bringing the new guy she’s seeing,” Mom said in an excited voice.
“You’re kidding!” I tried thinking of the last time we met anyone she was dating.
“Might be getting serious.”
“It would certainly surprise me.” This was sure to be interesting. I’d try not to ride her too much. Especially since she’d never given me a heads-up.
“Invite Ellis too. We’ll have plenty of food.”
Why would she say that? Did she suspect something between us?
Okay, I was losing it. Mom had extended an invitation plenty of times.
“Maybe. I’ll see if he’s busy.”
Once off the phone, I showered and cleaned the apartment, remembering how hard it had been to sleep near Ellis last night with our friends just a few feet away. But damn, I wanted him, and I wanted to march down there right then, pin him up against the door, and take his mouth. Who knew kissing Ellis Bloom would be one of the best things ever?
But I needed to keep a level head about this. The conversation in the van on the way to Cleveland had made me consider some other factors when it came to Ellis, but mainly that we’d always wanted different things. So I needed to be sure about my intentions when it came to him. And maybe he needed to be sure as well. We were already worried about our friendship as it was, and no way I wanted to hurt him.
So why did it feel different with him? I was jealous when he went out with Shana, and I couldn’t seem to stop wanting him—and not only in the physical sense. I loved spending time with him, doing everyday, mundane things. So maybe the mature thing to do was get some things straight before we continued.
