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“Should I have another piece?” she said to herself as she looked at her empty plate.

“Might as well. You brought plenty.”

Stace nodded. “You’re right. Do you need anything?”

“A refill?” Stace took my glass and came back with two more slices and a full glass of soda for me.

She let out a little sigh as she looked out my windows.

“I always feel like reading in the rain.”

“Me too. I should do it more often. I always get so lost in the things I should be doing and forget about the things I want to be doing,” I admitted.

“I think we all do that,” Stace said, finishing another pizza slice with only a few bites.

Once we’d finished eating and each had a piece of cake, I put on some soft music that I listened to when I read and grabbed my ereader. Sitting on the couch with Stace while we read was going to be distracting, but I did enjoy having her here. Her presence was so bright and warm that it was like turning on an extra light after squinting in the darkness.

“Do you want a blanket?” I asked as I settled myself on the couch.

“Yeah, sure.”

I pulled the extra out for her and she draped it on her lap. “Thanks.”

For someone who had joked about loving to talk, I guess I expected Stace to make a lot of noise when she read, but she didn’t. The only sounds that came from her were the turning of the pages and her gentle breathing.

If anyone was distracted, it was me. The book was interesting, but every few words my eyes would flick up to watch Stace. I couldn’t help it: I liked looking at her.

She rested one elbow on the arm of the couch and rested her head against it as she held the book in her lap with the other hand. As I watched, I noted her reading speed by how fast she had to turn the pages.

It wasn’t an exact science, but I think she was faster than me. How annoying and unfair.

My current speed was even slower due to all the Stace watching I kept doing. I was the one who’d wanted to read in the first place and here I was, not reading. Not reading my book, anyway. Reading Stace was better.

And of course, the longer I watched her, the more I thought about her and when we’d kissed and how she’d laid me on her couch and we’d been so close to having sex. If either one of us had removed even one piece of clothing, it would have been all over. For me, at least.

As I watched her, those feelings and desires reignited. Like they’d been waiting for me to think them and as soon as I did, they were all I could think about. I couldn’t even pretend to be reading my book anymore.

“You know, I am reading, but I can feel you looking at me, princess,” she said without taking her eyes off the book. She flipped to the next page and was still reading while I kept staring at her. Like a stalker.

“Sorry,” I said, forcing my eyes back on my ereader. I’d been so distracted by Stace that it had gone to sleep, and I hadn’t noticed. I turned it back on and wished I could hide my flaming face.

“You can look at me allllll you want, baby.” That word. That one word undid me every single time. I hated how much I liked it. How much it seemed to dismantle all of my rules.

“Stop that,” I said.

“What? Calling you baby?” She drew out the word.

Fuck.

I closed my eyes and I could feel her smiling. I could hear it. I hated how much I liked that too.

“Can we just go back to reading? Please?”

“I was reading. You were the one who wasn’t,” she said.

I blew out a frustrated breath and opened my eyes to find her smirking at me.

“Guess I’m just better at compartmentalizing my attraction than you are.” Another page turn. I would accuse her of faking, but I could see her eyes scanning while she said it. I definitely couldn’t carry on a conversation and read at the same time. Apparently, she was good at compartmentalizing.