He rolled over onto his left side and snuggled closer against his pillow. The music stopped, and he frowned. Why did it sound so far away? It started up again, and Dex rolled over to the other side, his face and body falling, then hitting something hard.
“Ouch.” Dex opened his eyes, blinking a few times to get them to focus. Why was he on the floor? With a frown, he sat up. Journey was playing, and it took him a second to realize it was coming from his phone. He grabbed it off the coffee table and turned to flop against the couch while he swiped the screen. His heart skipped a beat when he heard Sloane’s voice.
“Hey, babe. You okay? Were you sleeping?”
“Yeah, on the couch. I uh….” Dex frowned. “I guess I fell asleep after you left.”
“You guess?” Sloane said with a chuckle. “Did the pillow accidently land under your head?”
Dex took note of his pillow and fluffy blanket on the couch. Had they been there when Sloane left for work? They must have if Sloane remembered the pillow. “Something like that.” He pushed himself to his feet and stretched. Man, his body hurt. He must have fallen asleep at a funny angle.
“You okay?”
“Must have been a bit out of it. I remember you leaving, and then I think I went to the kitchen for something. Next thing I know, I’m on the floor.”
“What do you mean on the floor?” Sloane asked worriedly.
“I fell off the couch.”
“Oh.” Sloane laughed softly. “Do I need to get you one of those toddler rails?”
“Ha. Funny.” Dex sat on the couch and pulled his legs up before wrapping himself in his blanket. “At least I fell of my own free will and wasn’t pushed.”
“Aw, come on. I didn’t do it on purpose.”
Dex could hear the amusement in Sloane’s voice. He narrowed his eyes even though Sloane couldn’t see him. “Really? Do you know how far I had to travel to make it to the edge of the bed? Our bed is not small. It’s king-size. Therian king-size.”
“You move around a lot sometimes. You obviously got too close to the edge.”
“Uh-huh. Funny how it happened the night I accidently deleted the season finale of your favorite show before you could watch it.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Dex gasped. “Oh my God, you did push me off on purpose!” There was a rustling noise, followed by the muffled sound of Sloane laughing his ass off.
“I can hear you!”
The laughter intensified. He’d clearly moved his hand away. “Sorry.” Yet he continued to laugh. He was so not sorry.
“Laugh it up, fuzzball.”
“I am. You know how much self-control it took for me not to laugh when you hit the floor? I thought I was going to pee myself!”
Dex waited as Sloane’s laughter eased into a very attractive snort. “Are you done?”
“For now.”
“Is that why you called?”
“I called because I missed you.”
“Aw.” Dex melted into the couch cushions. “Well played, sir. Well played.”
“Am I off the hook?”
“Not on your life, but aw.”
“It was worth a try. How about if on my way home from work, I bring you home something tasty and unhealthy?”