it was 11:20 a.m.
The full effects of what’d happened didn’t hit me until I swung my legs over the side of the bed, slowly standing to stumble toward the door. My anxiety about what Laney and I had done hit at about the same time.
It wasn’t regret.
Oh, no. Far from it.
Last night had been the best sex I’d ever had. I’d kissed her like I’d never kissed another woman. I’d touched her and couldn’t get enough. But her absence put me on edge. Where the hell was she? Why wasn’t she in bed, by my side, snuggled against my chest? I had to find her, morning-kiss her, and see what she was up to. We’d had a few drinks, sure, and it probably wasn’t the best time to cross the line with her. But then again, when would it ever be a better time to do that?
I smiled to myself as I walked out into the hall. I swore I could still taste her tongue on mine, and my head was filled with the delicious sounds she purred against my ear as I moved inside of her. The softness of her skin, the hungry look in her eyes. The fresh memories weren’t doing much to help roar my dick into a semi, but I managed to get it under control well enough to feel okay looking around the apartment. I scratched my stomach and realized I hadn’t bothered putting a shirt on. Why would I? I was in nothing but boxers, but surely that was okay now that we’d slept together.
The closer I got to the kitchen, I was struck by the invigorating scent of freshly brewed coffee. The simmering sound of something cooking on the stovetop hit my ears. I rounded the corner. All of that wasn’t a surprise. Seeing Laney there, completely dressed, makeup and all, shouldn’t have surprised me. But for some reason, it did.
Before she noticed me, I stood there a moment and watched her flip an omelet in the pan. She was wearing a pair of tight-fitting jeans that made her ass look like a ripe piece of fruit. I wanted to walk right over and take in a big handful of it. Or wrap my arms around her and kiss her neck, taking in the fragrance of her strawberry-scented hair again. Maybe I’d even bend her over in the kitchen for round two.
It was still strange to think of her in that way, but the night before had apparently opened the floodgates of all my feelings about my “best friend.”
Laney turned around to slide the cheesy eggs, olives, and peppers onto a plate, catching sight of me as she did. “Oh.” She looked down, clearing her throat. “Good morning.”
Huh? My brow wrinkled as I instantly picked up on the change in her demeanor. “Good morning.” There had been times since she started staying with me that she’d seemed awkward and distant. But this was different. I swallowed hard, wondering if I’d screwed everything up.
She refused to look me in the eye but kept flashing her gaze across my exposed chest. And, she didn’t exactly seem happy to see it.
“Sorry, I would’ve put a shirt on, but I just assumed since we—”
“Sure, whatever.” She cut me off, seeming irritated.
I tried to smile through her coldness. “Uh…I hope I didn’t snore last night. How did you sleep? Are you okay?”
“Great. Yeah, no worries.” She shrugged, still refusing to look at me. What the hell?
The sinking feeling in my gut grew as reality came crashing down on me. I woke up feeling great. It was obvious Laney did not. Was she expecting me to regret our night together? Did she regret it? Did she regret losing her virginity to me?
“Hey, listen. About last night,” I started slowly, scratching the back of my scruffy hair.
“Oh, hey. Don’t worry about it,” she insisted, wrinkling her face as she waved it off.
I didn’t like seeing this side of her. The side that made it painfully obvious she was trying too hard to play it cool.
“I’m not worried about it,” I replied in confusion. “Should I be?”
Her shoulders slumped with a heavy sigh, but at least she finally let her eyes drift up to mine. “We were drunk, Oliver. I was all hyped up from that acceptance letter, and things got out of hand. That’s all it was.”
“Oh.” I nodded, my chest tightening more. “We weren’t that drunk, in fact…”
A beeping sound started coming from the phone in her pocket. She