I grunt an acknowledgement as I toss my phone and wallet on the nightstand. "Yeah, don't get Tristan started on it. They screwed up our rooms and everything was too booked to change anything." I aim a teasing grin at where she's standing by the foot of the bed. "It's a good thing I'm secure enough in our friendship to share a king-sized bed with him. Otherwise, things could’ve gotten a little weird."
She shakes her head, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
I frown and look at the bed with a new perspective. I didn't think about the fact that having Hailey sleep here would mean she has to sleepwithme, but now that she mentions it, I definitely should have. God knows I've shared a bed with Remy a thousand times in the past decade, but never with Hailey.
"Should I... take the couch?" I find myself asking. "I'm so used to sleeping with Tristan or Remy that I forgot it might be uncomfortable for you to share a bed. I'm sorry, I should've thought of that before we split rooms for the night." By the end of that thought, I come to a decision. I grab a pillow from the bed. "I'm going to sleep on the couch."
Hailey stops me before I can round the bed and settle on the—admittedly way too small—piece of furniture in the corner of the suite. "Don't be ridiculous, a single limb of yours wouldn't even fit on that thing, let alone your entire body. We'll share the bed, I'm totally fine. It just... caught me off guard." She smiles at me to dispel any remaining worries. "I am ready for bed, though. Are you tired? You've had a hell of a day, too."
I groan and drop onto the bed. "You can say that again. Do you want to shower first?"
She nods and immediately disappears into the bathroom. I strip off my shoes and button-up and chug a bunch of water while I wait for my turn in the shower. I'm messing around on my phone when I hear the bathroom door creak open.
"Jax?" her soft voice calls.
I look up to see her standing outside of the bathroom in only a towel.
And she's still wet.
Which means I'm looking at a rosy-cheeked Hailey, with her golden hair plastered to her shoulders, and droplets of water running down her skin until they're absorbed by the fluffy white towel wrapped around her.
My mouth goes dry, and I'm pretty sure there's no air in the room.
She either doesn't notice or ignores my shock. "Do you have a shirt I could wear? I just realized I don't have anything to change into."
"Uhh... yeah. Yeah, I can get you some clothes. Um—I" I snap to attention and start digging through my suitcase. I easily find a shirt to toss her but I lose focus when I see her shapely legs step up next to me.
"Um, I don't have any shorts to give you that aren't grappling shorts," I murmur. "I could give you boxers, but I don't know if that's what you're looking for... I could—"
"Just a shirt is fine, I don't sleep in pants anyway. Thanks, Jax." She spins around and walks back into the bathroom, leaving me standing there with a racing heart and slack jaw.
"Fuck," I breathe out.
Hailey will be sleeping a foot away from me in nothing but a T-shirt. My T-shirt.
Fuck.
I drag a hand down my face in frustration. This is not the same image of Hailey I've had for the past decade. That Hailey was innocent. Childlike.
Not this blonde bombshell who is entirely woman yet has no idea how appealing she is.
Fuck.
I shake my head in an effort to clear it of the inappropriate thoughts. I'm not sure if it works because I'm immediately thrown back to square one when Hailey walks out of the bathroom for the second time, this time wearing only my shirt.
Myshirt.
It's so big on her that it almost reaches her knees, but she may as well be naked for how sexy she looks. She looks like every guy's wet dream.
I clench my jaw in an effort to keep it from dropping. I look down at my suitcase, trying to look anywhere but where I actually want to.
"Uh, I'm going to jump into the shower real quick. Make yourself comfortable." I practically bolt from the room.
"Fuck," I can’t help but mutter as I step into the shower and let the water run over my exhausted body.That seems to be the word of the evening.
I groan and drag my hands down my face. What the fuck is wrong with me? It's not a surprise that she's beautiful. Why is she suddenly affecting me like this?
How does this keep happening?