Page 85 of The Rookie

Avery freezes, eyes wide, and my heart lurches as I finally form a sentence. “Wait, I?—”

She cuts me off with a smirk, her cheeks flushed. “I meant, you love me in the way you love the Kansas City Chiefs. Don’t worry. Not getting all gushy on you. Loser.”

I let out a relieved breath, forcing a laugh. “Exactly. Totally the same.”

She shakes her head, still grinning as she crawls closer, a pillow clutched against her chest. “So…I guess we kind of ruined the moment now,” she says.

“Sorry,” I mutter, feeling a faint flush creep up my neck. “That’s on me. Didn’t mean to get us all side tracked there.”

“It’s okay.” She shrugs, flopping down beside me and propping herself up on her elbows. “This was a big deal for you, huh?”

I nod slowly, my throat tight. “I was trying to make itnota big deal.”

For a while, neither of us says anything. We just lie there, the soft hum of the air conditioner the only sound in the room. And somehow, that silence feels… nice. Easy.

I glance over at her, the curve of her shoulder visible in the faint light, and I feel it again—that ache I can’t explain. The one that’s been building since this trip started, like something I didn’t even know I wanted is finally within reach.

This is Avery Sinclair. My sister’s best friend. The girl who’s been driving me insane since the moment I met her.

“Hey,” she murmurs, breaking the quiet.

“Yeah?”

She turns her head to look at me, her hazel eyes warm, her smile soft. “Thanks for telling me.”

I swallow hard, my heart thudding in my chest like it’s trying to break free. “Yeah. Anytime.”

And for the first time all night, I don’t feel nervous anymore. She leans her head on my shoulder, and the gesture is so simple, so unguarded, it feels like a victory I didn’t know I needed.

I wrap my arm around her, pulling her closer. “Hey, this isn’t breaking the rules of cuddling, is it?”

She rolls her eyes, reaching forward to tug the covers over both of us. “Shut up, Griffin. It’s fine. We’re breaking it.”

“Right,” I grin. And I do. I let myself relax, sinking into the moment, a quiet vow forming in my head: to enjoy whatever time we’ve got left on this wild trip.

Whatever ridiculous luck I had to get Avery Sinclair as my roommate, I’m not going to push it. I’m not going to question it. I’m just going to hold on to this.

We fall into a lazy, sun-soaked siesta, naked under the covers, and I have no doubt I’m the luckiest man in the world right now.

And we’re already breaking the no cuddling rule.

twenty-five

. . .

Avery

There’snothing like that deep, sweaty slumber you fall into during a late afternoon nap—the kind that pulls you under, heavy and dreamless, making it impossible to tell what time it is when you wake up.

And there’s definitely nothing like waking up after finally hooking up with your best friend’s brother.

Except, technically, we havn’tcompletelyhooked up.

Not yet.

I’m floating somewhere between sleep and awareness, my body warm, heavy, content, tucked into something solid and steady. There’s a distant part of me that already knows what’s happening, but my brain isn’t fully catching up yet—like I’m hovering in that sweet, hazy space between dreaming and waking.

Then I feel it.

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