Page 62 of Uniquely in Love

She hummed, her dark ringlets bobbing as she popped another piece of apple into her mouth. “Whatever you say, homegirl.”

I laughed. But as much as Iwasfine by myself, it was also true that I missed Owen. Already. He’d been gone for a few hours—hours that I didn’t normally see him—and I already wanted to text him.

Undoubtedly, I knew what I’d be doing tomorrow night. I had a date with Owen’s giant flatscreen TV. Again.

The other night, I’d fallen asleep on the couch after watching the post-game interviews, hoping that Owen would appear, but he hadn’t. Which he must have noticed, considering he’d picked me up and carried me to bed when he got home. But he hadn’t mentioned my TV activities, and I hadn’t mentioned how warm and cozy I’d felt in his arms. At first, I’d thought I was dreaming when I’d nuzzled against his hard chest, but nope.

Owen Harper had tucked me into bed, and I had barely been awake enough to appreciate it.

Sometimes, it all felt like a dream. Maybe I’d hit my headon something when my apartment flooded, and I was going to wake up and find out I’d hallucinated all of this.

“Ellie.”

“Huh?” I looked up from my desk at my friend. She looked amused, and I frowned. “What?”

“You’ve got a bit of drool…” Maggie pointed at my face. “Right there.”

My cheeks warmed, and I batted her hand away. “I do not.”

She giggled. “You really like him, don’t you? Like, I know you said you two dated when you were younger, but…”

“Yeah.” I looked over at her. “It’s different now, but he’s still the same Owen that I fell in love with, you know? But it doesn’t matter.”

“Doesn’t it?”

I furrowed my eyebrows. Nothing was going to change. No matter how much I wanted it to. No matter how much I enjoyed seeing him in a suit. Sexy as sin, even when I was watching him leave. God, I hadn’t been able to pry my eyes away from him this morning after he’d said goodbye.

I didn’t want to go another five years without talking again. We’d avoided talking about our one night together after my graduation. About the note he’d left.I wish things were different.That was all it had said.

Now, I was the one who wished things were different.

“No.” I shook my head. “We’re friends now. And roommates.” And that was enough.

“Alright. Well, I’m here for you when you need to talk.” She scrunched her nose. “Or if you need to complain about living with a man. I lived with my brother for long enough that I totally understand.”

A laugh burst out of me. “Thanks, Mags. I’m glad I have you as a friend.”

She gave me a warm smile. “Me too, Ellie. I’m glad you got the job.”

I was too.

No matter what else happened, I was thrilled I ended up here.

Saturday morning,I woke up to Owen in the kitchen, making pancakes and looking surprisingly chipper. Which shouldn’t have been that much of a surprise considering the Seals won their game last night—they were now 3-0 for the season, which was good—but I had no idea why he was awake this early.

Or why he was making breakfast.

“Morning?” I questioned, sliding in next to him to get a cup of coffee. He always made a pot, and even though I absolutely detested black coffee, adding in copious amounts of creamer and flavorings, it was at least tolerable. I preferred ice coffee from his mom’s shop, but I wasn’t in Portland anymore.

“Morning. Thought I’d make breakfast.” Owen flipped a pancake in the pan as I stirred my coffee with a spoon.

“Yeah, I see that.”

He was wearing a t-shirt and flannel pajama bottoms, and even with hair mussed from sleep, I couldn’t help but notice how handsome he was. The white cotton fabric of his shirt clung to his muscles, and I really needed to stop checking him out.

“Do you have any plans today?”

This felt like a trap, but Ididn’t, so I couldn’t lie to him. “No.” I trailed off, taking a drink of my coffee as I slid onto one of the barstools at the island.

---