"When?"

  "Not actually, shut up."

  All he did in response was laugh, wrapping his arm around me again and laying his head on top of mine. Pulling out his phone from his jean pocket with his free hand, he checked the time and sighed. "We got at least another two hours out here before the office opens."

  I closed my eyes and got comfortable. "Okay, wake me up when we can go in."

  "You're really going to sleep again?"

  "Yup."

  His chuckle was low as he pulled me closer to his body, as close as he could possible get me. I was damn near on top of him by the time he stopped trying to pull me closer. Yet I was letting him the entire time. I just wanted to lay in bed and sleep, but this was all I could get.

  Blake let me sleep on him, which didn't take long for me to knock out. Only thing I was confused about was when I woke up in our room, on my bed.

  I looked around the room with squinted, tired eyes before attempting to rub away the exhaustion. Blake was on his own bed, turned away from me and snoring softly. Of course with the lack of a shirt and pants as well. The only thing he had were his boxers and his blanket lazily draped over his legs.

  Didn't take long to figure out he probably carried me in when he got the chance. With a quick glance at the time on my phone, I realized I only had a couple hours of sleep before I had to get up for class.

  • • •

  "I hate this job."

  "Then quit," I told Blake for the fifth time tonight. He kept complaining about the amount of baggage people have been making him carry tonight. Not sure what he expected when there was a major discount and people were making sure to pack enough for their week-long stays. It was a beautiful hotel after all, with its personal man-made beach and fancy bedrooms.

  He scoffed. "I'm not quitting unless you do."

  "Why in the world would you need to quit when I do?"

  "Because," he leaned against the front of the desk I was working behind and smirked. That damn smirk still irked my soul. "I have to make sure you're safe, you know?"

  The snort that escaped me couldn't have been louder if I tried. "I can handle myself just fine, you know?"

  "I'm sure you can, but I just want to make sure."

  "You're irritating."

  "Irritatingly sexy?"

  "You wish."

  "Alright, you two," Diana snapped us out of our stare off by dropping her bag on the desk between us. I looked up a bit dazed, because I didn't notice when she walked into the building. "Your shifts are over. It's my turn."

  I clocked out in the computer and let her replace my spot so she could clock in for her shift. As usual, Blake didn't bother clocking out and walked straight to his bag in the corner of the room before sitting on one of the chairs. When I went to sit down beside him to switch out of my heels, I watched as he covered his open bag from my eyes and I turned my head to raise an eyebrow at him.

  All he did was smile. Wide.

  Doing my best to ignore him, I looked in my bag for my flats, only to remember I rushed out of the room today and completely left them out of my bag. Groaning, I went to stand up in annoyance when Blake's arm stopped me.

  The moment he got down on one knee in front of me, I grew even more confused about his behavior. Then he pulled out one of my flats from his bag and my heart might've skipped a beat like in those cheesy novels. I always thought it was an exaggeration. Turned out it wasn't. And I hated that it was Blake that made me feel it for the first time in my life. Curse him and his gentleman, thoughtful ways.

  Despite me hating how I felt, I reached out for my shoe while mumbling, "Thank you."

  Except he pulled my shoe away from my reach and set it on the floor beside him, going to grab my foot next. I flinched away from his touch when his fingers grazed my skin, and he waited patiently for me to set it down on his lap as he gave a kind, reassuring smile. With a soft nod, he tried again and rested my foot on his lap as he undid the strap of my heels.

  I looked up at Diana and felt my cheeks flush when I saw her chin propped up on her hands, watching us with a teasing grin. Winking, she gave a thumbs up before going back to work on the computer.

  Blake took off my heel and gave me a short foot massage before reaching back to grab my comfortable shoe again. I kind of felt like Cinderella when he slipped it on, then went straight for my other heel.

  "Don't girls like this?" He looked awfully proud of himself as he freed my second foot. "What's it called? Princess treatment, or something like that."

  I sighed, because I had no words to say. This was quite possibly one of the last things I ever pictured him doing. If anything, I would've never been able to imagine him doing this at all. Not even for Alisson, who he treated like the most important woman in his life.

  Yet here we were, and I was wondering why me.

  Out of every beautiful girl he's been with and literally slept with, how many had he done this for. Of course I wouldn't be the first he did this to. I wasn't special. And this wasn't special.

  I couldn't believe I thought it was for even a second.

  Snapping out of my delusional bubble, I pulled my foot away as soon as he slipped my other flat on and quickly stood up to go around him. I didn't wait for him to follow me out the door before I was walking towards my car. It was windy, and my hands were rubbing up and down my arms in an attempt to warm myself up.

  "Madison, wait up!"

  I didn't. I just kept walking.

  "Madison!" He tried again. "What the fuck, Madison!"

  His loud footsteps weren't hard to miss when he started to run towards me to catch up. Of course, someone as tall as him only had to take a few big steps to reach me.

  "Did I do something wrong?" The genuine concern in his voice made me feel a little guilty. Just a little. "Madison?"

  "No, Blake." I was still rubbing my hands up and down my arms. "I just wanna lay down already."

  My eyes closed and I tried not to think about it when he set his jacket on my shoulders. If he continued to be such a gentleman towards me, I would end up believing I was special to him. I would end up getting hurt because of course someone like me would never be special to him.

  My pride wanted to shrug his jacket off, but my chattering teeth thought better of it. Holding the flaps closed, I let him walk beside me to my car. We were both quiet the entire way.

  And when we reached my car, I shrugged off his jacket and handed it back to him before getting in. When I looked up at him, that was when I realized he had taken off his only jacket to give it to me. His nose was red and his arms were full of goosebumps. And I could tell he was trying his best not to, but he was shaking like crazy. It was evident how much he missed his jacket when he couldn't get back into it quick enough before he started to go towards his own car, which was just a few spots away from mine.

  He also always made sure he found my car in the busy parking lot before our shift so that I wouldn't have to walk alone.

  Even then I didn't want to think much of it.

  CHAPTER 17

  Blake

  "You're scaring her."

  I stopped chugging my beer to look over at Bruce. "What?"

  "You're being too much for her," he thought wording it differently would make it better. Realizing I was still lost, he set down his bottle and focused his full attention on me. "You're doing what are known as boyfriend acts."

  "I'm just showing I care about her."

  "And that's scary for people that aren't used to that type of treatment." I felt like a child in school with the tone he was using on me. "Has she ever mentioned a boyfriend before?"

  Racking my brain for any memory of her mentioning someone of her past, I came up blank. In fact, she'd never mentioned anyone in her life at all. No parents or siblings. Then again, I've never asked. For someone who was trying to show he cared, I was doing a shit job.

  Trying to know more about her should've been the first step.

  "My only question is," Bruce continued as he wagged a finger at me. "Why are you doing all this just to get in her pants? Isn't that all your plan is?"

  All I could do was stare at him.

  "You're okay with getting her attached with all that you're doing just to leave when you get what you want?" The look of disappointment on my best friend's face was a slap to the face. "I thought you were better than that, man."

  My plan wasn't to get her attached, I just... fuck, what was my plan? I was just desperate to bang a beautiful girl. The only girl that's ever rejected me. I liked the challenge. I liked her. But did I like like her?

  Truth was, I hadn't liked anyone in that way in years. Doubt I'd start to fall for someone now.

  "Alisson will hate you if you make her lose another friend. You know how girls are, all they want to do is avoid being around you when you hurt them." The reminder wasn't necessary, but of course he knew how to get me. "Do you see how close those two are becoming?"

  He was right, and damn him for it. Couldn't blame him for trying to look out for Alisson. Our whole lives, she's had to fight to keep friendships, only to eventually realize they were only using her to get close to me or for dad's money. Genuine friendships were hard for her to find, and Madison seemed to be that for her. I couldn't fuck it up for her. I wouldn't.

  Sighing, I chugged the last half of my beer before setting the empty bottle by my feet. "You're right. There's plenty of girls lined up, guess it's time to let this one go." Bruce passed me another bottle and clinked his with mine with a nod. "I'm sure she'd appreciate it anyway. All I've really been doing was get on her last nerve."

  Bruce chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. "I'm starting to think there's not a single person you get close with that doesn't end up with gray hairs."

  "You're the closest one to me and all I see is a head full of brown hair, you lying sack of shit."

  "Hair dye, buddy." He winked as he took another sip of his beer. "Hair dye is a lifesaver for anyone in your life."

  "Fuck you."

  "No thanks, I'm not gay."

  Rolling my eyes, I smacked him upside the head before we both chugged our entire beer in one go. I couldn't help but wonder what Alisson and Madison were up to in her own dorm room. Madison left ours to accompany my sis and her roommate tonight, so I invited Bruce over. His roommate was supposed to come too, but Bruce sucked at convincing introverted people to go out.

  I'd get him to join next time.

  For now, I had to think about the loss I'd have to go through with Madison. It was a shame. The chase was fun, not to mention it was getting easier. Now I'd never know if she'd actually give in to me or not, because I was done trying.

  • • •

  By the time Madison came back to the dorm, Bruce was passed out on my bed, unmoving. He drank more than I did, mixing beer with tequila.

  All I had was beer. I knew mixing would make me regret all my choices in the morning. Bruce was about to regret everything the second he woke up tomorrow.

  And it wasn't until tomorrow that he'd wake up, because even as I poked and punched him to wake up, all he'd do was swat me away before going limp again. I would've been fine with it if he wasn't spread out like a starfish. Where the hell was I gonna sleep?

  "I take it he had too much to drink?" Madison asked as she walked out of the bathroom, already changed into her pajamas. "Looks like you gotta sleep on the floor tonight."

  "Or I can..." I stopped myself from finishing what I was gonna say. Which was suggest to sleep with her on her bed.

  One of her eyebrows went up in question, waiting for me to say it. I wasn't going to.

  With a sigh, I tugged my pillow from under Bruce and dropped it on the floor between both beds. And after trying and failing at grabbing my blanket from him next, I settled for a hoodie from my closet, throwing it over my head before laying on the ground.

  Madison peeked over the edge of her bed at me and just stared at me for a few seconds.

  Wanting to ignore her as best as I could, I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep. Turned out even when drunk, floors were not comfortable enough to sleep on.

  "Blake?"

  I didn't open my eyes. "Hmm?"

  "Come up here."

  Confused, I opened my eyes to look up at her and noticed she had her cute timid smile on her face. The kind of smile that pointed down at the corners. Only reason I knew it wasn't a frown was because of the way her eyes crinkled.

  "What?"

  Suddenly shy, she shook her head and turned to face the wall.

  I knew I said I'd leave her alone, but sleeping on a bed with her on it sounded a whole lot better than the floor. Which was why I wasted no time in getting up and throwing my pillow on Bruce. He snorted awake for a second before grabbing it and hugging it, mumbling someone's name that I couldn't decipher before going back to snoring.

  "Scooch over."

  Without looking back at me, she scooted closer to the wall, leaving enough space for me behind her. Wanting to respect her space even a little bit, I laid down with my back to her and settled for just my hoodie to keep me warm. Even when she lifted her blanket to invite me under it, I shook my head and tried to go to sleep the way I was.

  Too many thoughts were going through my mind to allow me to go to sleep, even if I was drunk. But I didn't want to disrupt Madison's sleep, so I stayed still on my side of the bed.

  She might've thought I was sleeping when she lifted the blanket again and threw it over me. The simple act alone made me realize I didn't want to give up on her.

  If anything, it made me want to turn around and pull her to me so we could both be extra warm tonight. I wasn't going to, though. Bruce was right about the possibility of me fucking up my sister's friendship with her, and I wouldn't do that to her again.

  The one time I did it, she didn't talk to me for a month. She wouldn't even let me be at the same party to make sure she was okay. I had to rely on Bruce to look out for her for me.

  I was snapped out of my thoughts when Madison extended out a leg and threw it over me, pressing her face on my back. I froze, waiting for her to realize what she was doing. Her arm came around my waist next and she let out a sleepy moan when her fingers found their way under my hoodie.

  "Madison?" I waited a moment for her to respond, only to be met with soft breathing.

  Of course she was asleep, she wouldn't do this while she was awake. Her fingers were tracing the abs on my stomach, which was flexed because her fingers were fucking cold.

  Realizing this was my fate for tonight, I pulled out her hand from inside my hoodie and turned around. Right as she turned back around to face the wall again, I pulled her to me and buried my face in her hair. Her entire body relaxed against me and so did mine.

  It would've been fine for me to sleep that way, but the moment she shifted to rub and push her ass against me, I knew I was done for.

  She'd be harder to let go than I initially thought.

  CHAPTER 18

  Madison

  I woke up in a daze and in someone's arms. And despite still being groggy from sleep, I had an idea on who it was. The only thing I was really confused about was the side I woke up on. Pretty sure I fell asleep on the wall side of the bed, but now I was near the edge of the bed. Only reason I wasn't falling off was because of the arms tightly holding me against a warm chest.

  I looked towards Blake's bed to see a leg hanging off the edge and a snoring Bruce scratching his stomach in his sleep. Trying not to laugh, I tried to pry myself out of Blake's hold, only to have him hold me even tighter. He nuzzled his face in my neck and I froze when he inhaled and groaned in delight.

  "Blake," I whispered, of course to no avail. "Blake!"

  Jolting awake, he loosened his hold and backed away from me, mumbling a confused, "Huh?"

  Happy that I was finally free, I hopped out of bed and left him alone to go to the bathroom. I did my usual morning routine before walking back out to see Blake carefully setting Bruce on the ground.

  With a raised brow, I watched him climb into his own bed, getting comfortable under his blanket. As if sensing me, he looked over his shoulder at me and grinned. That damned, beautiful grin.

  "He'll be fine on the ground. He's had my bed long enough."

  With a laugh, I shook my head and let him turn away from me so he can sleep. Meanwhile, I walked over to poor Bruce and poked his arm.

  "Hey, buddy."

  "Mmm Alisson?"

  I laughed again. Alisson had this man in a chokehold. "Sadly for you, no. Come on, get up. You can sleep on my bed, since Blake kicked you out of his."

  As if realizing his uncomfortable position, he sat up and looked down at himself on the floor then turned his head up to see Blake already knocking out on his bed. "Son of a bitch." Standing, he ripped Blake's blanket off of him and smacked his ass.

  I did my best to hold in my laugh. It was hard when Blake quickly turned around and smacked him in the head.

  "Ow!"

  "You had my bed all night, fuck off!"

  "So you dropped me on the floor?!"

  Blake snatched his blanket out of Bruce's hands and rolled himself in it like a burrito to avoid him from taking it away again. "I didn't drop you, dumbass. You would've woken up." His tone was condescending. "I carried you like a baby. You weigh like one, too."

  "Fuck off, no I don't."

  "It was like I was carrying a toddler."

  "Fuck you."

  "Not gay."

  "Not offering."

  "Well, good." Blake lifted his blanket to tuck it under his chin, seeming satisfied with himself. "Wouldn't accept it anyway."

  Bruce took it upon himself to smack him in his groin and left Blake groaning in pain as he winked at me. "Good morning, Madison. See you later." Then he was out of the room.

  I watched Blake roll around in his bed as he clutched his family jewels under his blanket. "That motherfucker!"

  "Um..." Despite the situation and how much I knew it hurt, I was struggling not to laugh. Those two were literal children in their heads. "Are you okay?"

  He was still groaning when he nodded. "Yes, sweet cheeks. I'm fine." He waited a beat or two. "Wait."

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17