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Come on, did I have to spell it out? “Get your ass in here.”

More creaking until I heard feet padding across the floor and she appeared in my doorway. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, come on. I’m tired.”

She approached the bed cautiously, as if I was going to change my mind.

“Just get in.” I glared at her and then turned onto my side, my back facing her.

James got onto the bed and for a moment she paused before she slid under the blankets with me. My bed wasn’t that big, and she was pretty close. I could smell her scent, which was dark and almost masculine? More like cologne than perfume and it was really nice. Connor had always worn that awful body spray stuff that had made me gag when I’d accidentally walk through a cloud of it.

James settled in beside me and I let out a sigh, doing my best to relax and fall into sleep again.

It took a long time.

* * *

The sun wasup the next time my eyes opened and James was still in bed with me. But this time my back was pressed right up against her and she’d thrown an arm over me. We werecuddling.

Oh. Maybe I should be more shocked, but she was warm, and she smelled good, and I hadn’t been held by someone like this for a long fucking time and it was nice. Really, really nice.

James exhaled and her breath puffed against the back of my neck, but she slept on quietly. No snoring. That was nice too.

My god, I was touch deprived. All I wanted to do was wiggle backwards a little bit and press my body even closer to hers. Her arm on top of me was just the right pressure.

The only reason Connor ever cuddled with me was to press his dick into my back as a prelude to sex. James and I were cuddling for entirely different reasons and I was loving this.

Before I could stop myself, I let out a little contented sound and felt James slide into wakefulness beside me.

She inhaled sharply, freezing with her arm still around me.

“Sorry.” James retracted the limb and moved away from me and all I wanted to do was grab her and tell her to come back. To resume holding me for the rest of the day. We could stop for food breaks. Maybe she could throw in some hair touching.

Ugh. I was a mess. Begging James to hold me was a new low.

“It’s okay,” I said, rolling onto my back and looking up at the ceiling.

“It’s morning. Late morning,” she said, and I could feel her gaze on my face.

“Yeah. Give me a few minutes and I’ll drive you home.”

She sat up. “You don’t have to. I can call for a ride.”

I finally looked at her. Hair all haphazard, a crease on her cheek. She looked beautiful for someone who had passed out in my bed twice.

“I’ll drive you. Maybe… I can make you breakfast first? To thank you for bringing me home. It’s the least I can do.” That seemed like a fair trade. A meal and a ride.

Her mouth popped open as if she wanted to argue, but I rolled my eyes.

“Don’t make a big thing out of it.” I got out of bed and cringed at my outfit. I needed a shower and to brush my teeth, but I needed to get James home first.

“Can I use your bathroom?” she asked.

“Of course. You don’t have to ask.” I ran my hand through my hair and winced. Definitely needed to do a deep condition soon.

James hit the bathroom while I puttered around the kitchen, assembling some breakfast items. I could go really easy and just toss some frozen waffles on a plate, but I wanted to do something more, so I pulled out eggs, sausage, sourdough, an avocado, and started making some coffee. My headache was gone, but I was absolutely starving.

“I’m going to throw some eggs on avocado toast with some sausage. Is that okay?” I asked when she came out of the bathroom.