AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The last time I was in that bedroom, we almost had sex. I heard her say my name in a way that I wouldkillto have spoken again. But when she shot me a look of confusion and her eyes flicked from me to the hallway, I knew what was coming.
“Don’t be stupid, Jax. You can sleep in my room.”
I did my best to swallow around the lump in my throat.
“Come on,” she coaxed quietly. “We are totally not needed here.”
* * *
It feltweird being back in Maci’s bedroom. Even though I was still coming over to chill throughout the week, I never had a reason to make an appearance here again.
As soon as I shut the door behind me, Maci crawled into bed and wasted no time getting comfortable. She tucked herself snugly under both of the comforters and adjusted her hoodie.
“How do you sleep like that?” I snapped playfully.
“Like what?” Maci asked.
I took a few steps closer and pointed to all of the bedding. “With all of thisnonsense. I woke up sweating the last time I slept here.”
Maci’s eyes met mine and I knew she was thinking about the last time I was in this room with her. She blinked a few times as if it would reset her memory and allow us to start over.
She cleared her throat and pointed to her desk. “There’s a charger over there if you need it.”
I stripped off my shirt and slid in next to her. The more words we exchanged, the more awkward this revisit would be. I kept my basketball shorts on and made sure there was a little bit of space between us. The silence was somehow incredibly loud, and the minimal light that her only window provided amplified the silent exchanges happening between us.
“Is Connor a good guy?” she asked after a few minutes.
I was relieved to hear her voice. I turned my head and found her lying on her side and staring at me. I raised my arm across her pillow, opening the invitation for her to come closer if she wanted to.
“He’s a great guy,” I admitted.
“He seems like Katie’s type.”
My eyes narrowed. “Wasn’t the guy just trying to break into your apartment, Katie’s type?”
“Yeah.” A small smirk appeared in the corner of her mouth. “But Tyler was her hookup type.”
“What’s the difference?” I said, intrigued to hear more. I wanted to keep her talking. I missed this, listening to her explain all of the thoughts she had going on inside her head.
She stared at my chest and I held my breath. It felt wrong to be this close to her and not touch her. I wondered if this only felt weird because I had never shared a bed with a girl without having sex. I had never actually justsleptwith someone.
Thatwas a fucking lie. I actuallyhaddone this before. It was back in October and it was in this same bed. That seemed like a lifetime ago.
“Hookup types are guys you don’t really care about.” She met my gaze, and her half-smile resurfaced. “They are temporary. When a girl meets a guy who is actually her type, she knows. It becomes so obvious that even her best friend can tell.”
We both looked toward her bedroom door when Katie’s laugh echoed from the living room. When I looked back at Maci, she was biting the inside of her cheek, her eyes locked on her hand that was resting on the bed in front of her. She was in her own head about something.
I brushed my hand against hers to bring her back. “What’s up, Mace?”
Her eyes darted back up to mine. She took a deep breath, preparing for what she was about to say next.
“Shoot,” I coaxed.
“Is Bryson a good guy?” she whispered.
I rolled over on my back to hide any reaction that might have appeared on my face. I knew this part was coming. This was what I wanted to avoid when I stopped us from having sex that night, Maci asking these questions but instead of them being about Bryson, they would’ve been about me.
I rolled back onto my side, my face only a few inches away from hers. “Kennedy is Kennedy.” I took another breath and chose my next words carefully. “Bryson is . . . Bryson. Bryson and I are a lot alike, Mace. There’s a reason I didn’t sleep with you that night.”
