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I swore I heard a growl come from Dash, but when I looked at him, he had a smile plastered on his face.
“I’m not wearing underwear because I was in the shower when the sirens went off. It was horrible!”
“Was Lee with you?”
“Yes! And I had to listen to her talking about how the world was going to end until we were rescued by Dash,” I said, tossing my hand in his direction.
“Ah, so you’re the one I should thank for saving Wilder’s ass.” He winked at me. “No pun intended.”
A dangerous look crossed Dash’s face as he stared at Andrew. What was his problem? “Uh, yeah,” I laughed uncomfortably. “And he was nice enough to give me a place to stay for the night.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll be happy to get Wilder out of your hair now that I’m back.”
“Immensely,” Dash said through gritted teeth.
“Um…could you give me a minute with Dash? I just need to grab my stuff and then we can go.”
“Sure. I’ll be…on the other side of the couch.”
I waited for him to crawl through the opening, then turned to Dash. “Is everything okay?”
“Of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“You just seemed a little…upset.”
“Just didn’t sleep well last night.”
And that was my fault. “Yeah, about this morning, I’m really sorry,” I laughed. “Sometimes I get like that.”
“You get like what?” he asked accusingly.
“Um…handsy. You know, whoever’s next to me.” The pained laugh that escaped my lips only betrayed how awkward I felt about the whole thing. I really hoped he’d just brush it off.
“Well, good to know it’s not just me.”
Then again, maybe he wouldn’t. “Well, I really am sorry.” As the silence dragged on, I figured it was best to get out of Dodge. “Well, thank you for the place to stay and the bed. I really appreciate it.”
“Come back anytime. My couch is always open,” he said, gesturing to the door.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at his humor. “I’ll keep that in mind, but you should really figure out a way to move that thing. What are you gonna do when it rains?”
“I’m sure it’ll be gone by then.”
Wow, talk about super friendly gone bad. His easy demeanor from yesterday was gone. Yes, he was very clear that we’d only be friends, but now he almost seemed pissed, but I couldn’t figure out why. Unless he really was mad about what happened in bed this morning.
“I have to get back to work, but you know where I live if you need anything.”
“Right, and thanks again. I’ll see you around.”
“Yeah. Maybe I can show you how to grill those steaks the right way.”
When he climbed over the couch and out the door, I headed upstairs to get Lee. I was pretty sure she’d come with me since she was friends with Andrew also. To be honest, when Andrew said I could stay with him, the only reason I said yes so enthusiastically was because I was tired of ignoring my attraction to Dash. It would be easier if I wasn’t around him.
And tonight I could sleep without molesting him.
13
DASH