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“I don’t want to,” Charlie whispered. “Why don’t you sleep for a bit? I’m going to hop in the shower.”
“Can I join?”
“Don’t do this.” Charlie dragged herself off the bed. “If you join, there’s no way the shop’s opening up.”
Mack shuffled to her side. “Can’t Ben do it?”
“He’s not starting until seven.”
Mack fell onto her back in defeat and watched Charlie’s naked body tiptoe out the door. As the shower ran in the distance, Mack dragged a gentle hand over her fevered inner thigh that hadn’t stopped pulsating since last night. Every part of her tingled with the memory of Charlie’s mouth on her.
She’s perfect.
Was this too fast? Probably. But right now, all she wanted to think of was Charlie beneath her, the roundness of her hips, the silkiness of her skin. She replayed everything from the previous night, from how Charlie buried her face and giggled during their conversations, to the sensation of her fingers gripping Mack’s.
She didn’t come clean, though. What was she supposed to do? Charlie said she’d feel violated if she knew a writer used her for intel. The date until that point was magic, and the idea of hurting Charlie felt worse than withholding the truth. But Mack’s insides burned with guilt.
She had to tell her, eventually.
Shewould.
Just not right now.
The shower stopped, and Mack raised her arm over her head, purposely leaving the sheet down to her waist until footsteps padded near the door. Charlie’s wet hair fell and framed her face. The sunrays poked through the blinds, illuminating her like a sun goddess, and Mack couldn’t breathe. “Sure I can’t change your mind?”
Charlie bit her smile. “Unfair advantage. You cannot show me all of that… gloriousness… and expect me to function normally.”
“My evil plan is working.”
With her fuzzy pink towel wrapped around her body, Charlie crouched onto the bed and gave Mack one gentle kiss before she backed up and got dressed. “You should go back to sleep. Preferably for the entire day so I can come back up and find you just like this during my breaks.”
“Will you bring me hostage scones and caffeine?”
Charlie slipped her dress over her head. “Always.”
Mack rolled onto her stomach and rested her head in her hand, her body both tired and relaxed. No other place existed at this moment that she wanted to be at more. In Charlie’s room, watching her get dressed, smelling her vanilla perfume.
“Stay?” Last ditch effort. Couldn’t hurt.
“I hate this. I want to stay. You know that, right?” Charlie clasped Mack’s hands. She rubbed the tips of Mack’s fingers and kissed each one. “I’m not running from this. I’m not freaking out. I just have to work.”
The words nestled somewhere warm and deep. “I get it. I should probably go home and do the same. I have a ton of writing to do.”
Charlie nodded, and moved toward the door. “I left an extra towel for you if you want to shower. Come say goodbye before you go home?”
“Of course.”
Once the front door clicked, Mack stumbled to the shower. A miniature yellow duckie towel folded on the counter with a duck head attached to it.
A duck head.
She grinned and tiptoed into the shower. Good God. Why did one person need so many products? The pink-tiled built-in shelf held at least a dozen bottles. She twisted a few caps off, sniffed various shampoos and conditioners, and made a silent vow to never tell Charlie she sometimes used body soap for her hair.
The heated water beat down on her, and she closed her eyes. This was impossible, right? To feel so close to someone she had known, what, not even a month? Someone she actually had sex with? Beautiful, incredible, heavy, passionate sex. And long.My God, that woman had more stamina than anyone Mack had been with before. Even her calf muscles were sore. Every ache and tingle amplified her feelings. She didn’t want Charlie downstairs. She wanted Charlie next to her. She wanted to taste her body in her mouth, feel her in her fingers. To learn how her mind worked.
…no one could replicate the flavor of her tongue, a combination of fire and sweetness, and I scream inside…
She was not writing romance, obviously. But these emotions stirred everything inside. She was alive. Energized.
