Page 48 of Broken

Something deep within me stirred at having her snuggled against me so late in bed. Something primal. Wanting her near after that scare earlier tonight. I ran my fingers through her hair, hearing her content sigh. “You could stay, you know…”

Her lips curled into a smile.

Chapter 14

ISABEL

I woke the next morning to a faint ringing, the sound chipping away at my dream until I slowly became aware of the warm body I was lying against. I bolted awake, the room spinning as I sat up. Tucker’s. I was at Tucker’s.

My heart swelled. Last night had been the best sleep of my life. I laid back down, my head in the crook of Tucker’s shoulder, and I stared up at his face, at his long blonde lashes and the way his hair flopped messily over his brow. The way his brow shifted when he started to sense someone watching. His eyes opened, and he treated me with a slow smile, his arm reaching above his head in a long stretch that had his legs shaking the bed.

I laughed. “Is this how you always wake up?”

“Next to a beautiful girl? Hardly.”

I mentally rolled my eyes. Please. We both knew he’d done that before. But it wasn’t like this. “I meant the way you stretch. It’s quite dramatic.”

“It’s satisfying is what it is.” He reached for my hand, lacing our fingers together. “Did you sleep well?”

“I did. You don’t think your parents know I stayed, do you?”

He shook his head. “I locked my door after you passed out. They really don’t bother checking if they think I’m already asleep.”

My chest eased, but then we jumped at the sound of his phone.

“Shit. It’s still in my shorts.”

I shifted so he could pull his arm free, and Tucker got up, butt naked in all his muscular glory, his dick at full attention. He ran around the bed to the bathroom.

“Crap. It’s your sister. Hey, Annie.” He held the phone away from his ear like he’d just been assaulted by the sound. “Calm– Ann– She’s here,” he finally got out. He held out his phone, and I moved to my knees, clutching the covers to my bare chest. I sat on my heels.

“Hey, sis.”

“What in the hell, Izzy? Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been? You couldn’t bother to let me know you weren’t coming home?” I winced, instantly feeling bad. Tucker crawled back in behind me, and I grabbed his hand as he snuck it around to my thigh.

“I’m sorry. We had such a great night, and then Tucker asked me to stay, and… I’m a complete jerk for not thinking to at least text you. I’m so sorry.”

“Yeah, well, I hope so. I about had a heart attack. You weren’t even answering your phone.”

I cringed. “It’s still in my bag in Tucker’s truck. We kind of didn’t stop to get anything out last night.”

Annie paused. “I want to be mad at that, but I can’t. I probably would’ve done the same if Jet wanted me to stay. Not that we ever can in his house. Okay, sorry. I’m rambling now. Come home before you get caught so we can dish. And you owe me about a year on my life.” She hung up, and I lowered the phone, dropping it down on the bed. I looked over my shoulder at Tucker, wishing we were the only ones here so I could jump his bones one more time.

“I’ve got to go.”

“I figured.” He sighed, getting up, and went to pull on a pair of gray sweatpants. I drooled for a minute before he tossed on a hoodie. “It’s chilly out.” He handed me another one from his closet, and I pulled it over my head, tucking my nose into the material to suck in his scent. It was seriously like crack. “I’d offer you sweatpants or something, but they’d never stay up.”

“That’s okay.” I crawled out of bed, the sweatshirt falling to my knees. “I’ll throw my leggings back on and shower as soon as I get home.”

He nodded, waiting for me to finish getting dressed, and then we tiptoed down the long hall upstairs before reaching the marble steps. Thankful they wouldn’t squeak like wood, we hurried down, the sound of the sports channel bleeding out from Chuck’s den as we darted outside. We grabbed my bag, and Tucker walked me home, stealing a long kiss before finally letting me slip inside my house.

I found Annie waiting upstairs, the rest of the house still quiet. She put her book down when I came in.

“Oh, you look like you had agoodnight. Thoroughly fucked and everything.”

I blushed. “Well, Tucker’s stamina definitely doesn’t hurt,” I blurted out, rushing into the bathroom for a shower.

After dishing and spending time playing video games with Archer and watching a movie with him and Mom, Annie and Iheaded out, making it a girls’ day for the few hours I had until I needed to meet Leo. We always met later on Sundays, doing the church and family thing the first half of the day.

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