Page 104 of The Goat in the Bedroom
Coach sighed. “Fine. You two better be asleep in ten minutes. Big game tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir,” we said in unison.
The door closed, and we waited a full thirty seconds before the door between rooms creaked open.
“Is it safe?” Artie whispered.
“That was way too close,” Tempest said, but she was grinning. “Also, Tyson and DeMarcus's bathroom is tiny. Artie elbowed me in the boob.”
“You stepped on my foot.”
“Ladies, please,” Flynn said. “You're both disasters.”
They emerged, and something about seeing Artie in my hotel room, in Edinburgh, made everything feel more real. We'd been living together for months, but this was different. This was choosing to be together even when it was complicated, and only for a few hours.
“Come here,” I said, pulling her onto my bed.
She curled into my side immediately, fitting against me perfectly. “This is nice.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Even if your bed is tiny and probably has athlete germs.”
“My athlete germs are exclusive to you now.”
Flynn made a gagging noise. “I'm begging you both to stop.”
“You're literally spooning Tempest right now,” I pointed out.
“That's different. We're cute. You two are nauseating.”
Tempest hit him with a pillow. “Be nice. They're in their honeymoon phase.”
“Yeah, but they've only been openly disgusting for three weeks,” Flynn said. “Trust me, it gets worse before it gets better. Gryff's already said my girlfriend approximately eight thousand times.”
“Eight thousand and one,” I corrected. “My girlfriend is very patient with my enthusiasm.”
Artie hid her face in my chest. “Oh my god.”
“My girlfriend gets embarrassed easily.”
“I'm going to smother you with this pillow.”
“My girlfriend is also violent.”
She did try to smother me then, which devolved into a pillow fight that we had to keep quiet, which made everything funnier. By the time we collapsed back onto the beds, breathless and laughing, it was past midnight.
“We should probably go,” Artie said reluctantly.
I held her tighter. We'd agreed the girls wouldn't actually spend the night. Nobody needed to see their twin brother canoodling overnight. Ew.
“Five more minutes,” I bargained, pulling her closer.
“You have a game tomorrow.”
“I'll play better if I get five more minutes.”
“It's true.” Flynn held Tempest close too. “Everyone knows Kingman's play better when they're in love.”
