“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know.” I laugh, pushing up to an elbow so I can look at him more easily. “I’ve never stayed the night with a man before.”
“You stayed with me after Hannah’s wedding.”
“You’re right.” I grin. “That was my first time.”
Grabbing my wrist, he pulls me to his chest. “I like being your first. Say yes.”
My head is screaming at me to go home, that this is a bad idea. I don’t have a change of clothes or my lunch, which means I’ll have to go home before work in the morning. I’ll probably be rushed, and if my day starts that way, it’ll only continue. But my heart doesn’t seem to care. My heart says live a little. My heart says stay.
“Yes. But you have to promise not to tempt me with your seductive ways. I need all the sleep I can get, or I’ll be a bear in the morning.”
Drake lifts me from his chest and jumps out of bed. He grabs a shirt from his closet and pulls it over my head.
“What’re you doing?” I ask, slipping my arms into the soft cotton.
It smells like Drake—clean and woodsy and oh so yummy.
“I really hate to cover this gorgeous body, but if I don’t, neither one of us will sleep.”
I bury my nose in the material and take a giant sniff. “You’re never getting this shirt back.”
Drake grabs my hand and pulls me up. “It’s yours, but I still get to touch it anytime I’d like, right?”
“You better.”
“You’re going to regret saying that,” he says, slapping my ass. “Let’s go brush our teeth. I’ve got a spare toothbrush.”
We brush our teeth side by side. He props a hip on the doorframe and watches me wash away what’s left of my makeup. It feels so natural to do these mundane tasks with him—and also a little exciting.
When we get back to his bedroom, I crawl into his California king and reach for the alarm clock.
“The time is already set. You just have to turn it on,” he says, crawling in beside me.
I believe him, but I have to check it for myself. I press the alarm button, check the time, and flip the switch to ON. And then I check the time again to make sure I didn’t accidentally set it for PM instead of AM. After the third time checking it, Drake drags me to bed.
“Get over here and kiss me goodnight,” he says, capturing my lips.
All thoughts of the alarm clock and getting up on time evaporate as his tongue pushes against mine. By the time we come up for air, I’m practically climbing him like a tree, and I’m seconds away from begging him to rip this shirt off and fuck me again, sleep be damned.
Instead, Drake situates the pillow, flips off the light, and pulls me into his arms.
“Goodnight, Abigail.”
“Goodnight.”
His arms are warm and soft wrapped around me, and the steady rise and fall of his chest against my body is so very soothing. After only a few minutes, Drake’s breathing becomes slow and steady.
“Did you lock the front door?” I ask before he has a chance to doze off.
“Mmm-hmm.”
“And the back door?”
“Mmm-hmm,” he mumbles again.