Page 16 of Deal Breaker
How could I resist? Snuggling down under the covers, I let Max’s strong arms encircle me. Sure, he was probably still drunk, and nothing would really have changed between us in the morning, but at least we had tonight. I didn’t even get to say goodnight before my eyes had closed, and I drifted into a slumber filled with first dates and first kisses.
Chapter Six
Max
Waking up and finding someone next to me in bed was never an unpleasant feeling. The woman in my bed snuggled flush to my body, the perfect fit. Trying not to wake her, I buried my head in her hair. She smelled amazing, all coconut shampoo and almond conditioner. My dick twitched, obviously enjoying the unexpected early morning arousal.
The only question was: who is she?
My hazy memory of the previous evening recalled the rehearsal dinner and drinks afterwards with Joshua, Evan, and Trent. I didn’t remember speaking to any of the women there for long: Brianna too excited about the wedding, her sister trying to quell her enthusiasm, then Alice and Maya from school. Had I brought one of them back to the cabin?
The honey blonde hair spilling across the pillow was familiar.
Too familiar.
Sophie Hale familiar.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
I froze, unsure of what had happened. Carefully lifting the covers, I peeked underneath. We were both clothed: me in my boxers, Sophie in a tank top and sleep shorts. If we had done anything, it hadn’t gotten as far as us being naked.
But whathadwe done?
And why was Sophie waking up in my bed?
The nagging headache in my temples reminded me of what I’d drunk last night. A can of soda and blister pack of painkillers sat on the bedside table.
A little bit of last night’s memory came back.
Sophie had come to check on me in the night after I’d been sick.
After she’d kissed me.
The recollection of pushing her away and recoiling in horror as I was about to throw up suddenly appeared front and center in my head. I winced, screwing up my eyes. Seriously, I was never drinking again. No matter what happened today, I’d stay on water, juice and soda. Not a single drop of alcohol would pass my lips.
Sophie stirred, a contented little mewl coming from her lips, eyelids fluttering as if she were about to wake up properly. How was I going to handle this? My dick had one idea, but my head needed to be much more involved in this situation.
Outside my bedroom door, I heard a floorboard creak. That meant someone else was up. Autumn or Jodie, I couldn’t be sure. Music filtered through the door, Ariana Grande, I thought, followed by some seriously out-of-tune singing. I stifled a laugh. Definitely Autumn. Before long, Jodie would join her, then they’d ask where Sophie was, then they’d come in here and find us in bed together. The thought filled me with horror. Not Sophie being in my bed, but being caught even though we hadn’t done anything wrong. At least I didn’t think we had.
A silent sigh caught my chest.
I couldn’t fight with Autumn first thing in the morning.
Not with this hangover.
Panicked by the thought of what might happen, I untangled myself from Sophie’s limbs and shoved her out of the bed. Literally. She landed with a thud on the carpeted floor.
“What the fu…?” She blinked several times, rubbing her hipbone with one hand.
“You shouldn’t be in here,” I hissed.
Sophie wrapped her arms around herself, as if trying to ward off the cold. “It’s freezing,” she complained. Picking herself up off the floor, she glared at me, her blue eyes tinged with sadness. “Do you remember anything about last night?”
It was hard to admit that fragments of my memory were clear, but a lot were hazy—especially the part about how she’d actually ended up in my bed and we spent the entire night spooning.
Taking my silence as a hard no, she stepped towards the door. And if she did, she’d go straight into the living area where Autumn sang at the top of her lungs, no doubt making some breakfast for us all before we got ready for the big day.
Which would kick start the interrogation and a whole bunch of questions I had no idea how to answer.
