Page 29 of Covet (The Red #3)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Elle

Listen to On my Mind

by Alex Warren and Rose

I woke up slowly, savoring the heavy weight of the male body pinning me to the mattress. Arms bracketed me to his hard, muscled length. His chin was tucked into my shoulder, leg thrown over mine. I smiled and relaxed fully. For a few moments, I wondered why Coop was so snuggly.

Coop was the type to need distance after sex. A quick cuddle and then he was off to the next task. What had happened to cause such intimacy? Had we fought or---

Oh, my God.

I was with Noah.

My eyes flew open. My head crashed in rebellion and reminded me of how much I drank last night. Pieces of memory floated by and unfolded.

Singing on stage with Noah by my side. Our honest talk. The way he took me in his arms for comfort. The sizzling chemistry of the music and our attraction pulling us together.

But we hadn’t acted on any impulse. Yes, we’d held each other, but Noah was still on top of the blankets and I was safely tucked underneath.

I allowed myself a few more moments to savor our closeness. I’d always accepted Coop’s lack of aftercare without complaining because I didn’t mind. I thought I didn’t need the extras before or after sex.

But right now, wrapped in Noah’s arms, safe and treasured, I understood why cuddling got such a high approval rating.

If Coop had done this with a woman I would lose it.

The thought made me wince. Was emotional cheating even worse than physical?

Maybe. But right now, I had no plan to do anything that would cause either of us to lie.

I could tell Coop and Daisy we slept in the same bed.

I could even say we were high from the night and shared an embrace.

But there’d been no kissing. No sex. That had to be enough for now.

Until I figured out what I really wanted.

“Elle? You okay?”

His raspy voice in my ear made me shudder.

I didn’t turn around, thankful the covers had enough padding to hide his morning erection.

Bright light trickled in through the window.

A pang of regret coursed through me. Last night was like a beautiful dream; a frozen moment in time where endless possibilities existed. But now I had to deal with my reality.

“Yeah, of course.”

Silence pulsed. I sensed all the unspoken words tangled on his tongue. Slowly, he removed his arms and leg, retreating to his side of the bed. “Sorry if I crushed you in my sleep.”

“You were fine.”

“Did I snore? Daisy hates it when I—” he broke off.

I jumped from the bed in a rush to maintain distance. “Nope. I was passed out anyway. Had way too much to drink.” I forced a laugh, refusing to look at him. “Don’t even remember much of last night. Do you?”

I waited, breath held.

His voice was threaded with regret. “Barely.” I nodded. “We better get going.”

“Agree.” I grabbed my phone and groaned. “Oh, shit!”

“What?”

I blew out a breath, already madly texting. “Coop called like a million times. I had my phone on do not disturb.”

Noah reached for his own phone and frowned.

“Yeah, Daisy, too.” He looked up and our gazes met.

My heart thumped madly at his innate sexiness.

Rumbled from sleep, his jaw was scruffy, and the back of his head held a slight cowlick I’d never spotted before.

No wonder he kept it ruthlessly short. Those gray eyes were deep and calming, even as his question made me panic. “What should we say?”

I blinked. “The truth. We crashed here because we were too drunk and it was late.”

“Okay.”

A beat passed. Two. The tension surged between us. The unmade bed and messy sheets hinted at what could have been. I pressed my lips together and reminded myself we hadn’t crossed the line.

Yet.

I turned away. “I’m going to use the bathroom,” I announced.

Taking my phone in with me, I responded to Coop’s messages with a careless tone he wouldn’t suspect.

Knowing I had to get back in my same outfit, I figured I’d shower when I got home.

I peed, washed up, stuck my hair in a clip, and pulled on my club outfit.

My phone beeped. Glad everything went well. I’m proud of you, babe. Hope you’re not still mad.

I breathed out a sigh of relief. Coop didn’t seem to care that Noah and I shared a room.

He trusted me.

Nausea hit my gut. This was wrong. I had to stop tempting Fate.

I wish I could confide in Landon and get her advice, but she was distracted in LA and didn’t need my problems dumped on her.

I had to handle this myself. Soon, the album would be wrapped and we’d have distance.

I was sure this chemistry would fade between us with space.

Unlike Landon and Adam, Noah and I had no history of lusting after the other.

It had to be the music creating the bond. Things would go back to normal.

When I stepped out of the bathroom, my armor was back on. Noah seemed to catch the vibe and kept our dialogue super light. We decided to skip breakfast and head right home.

Halfway through the trip, JJ called Noah. “JJ, you’re on speaker. Elle and I are heading home right now,” Noah said.

JJ’s voice boomed over the line. “How’s my star couple doing? I heard last night was the shit! The manager said you packed the place. He wants you back next month.”

I smiled, giddy at the response. “That’s awesome. I think it went really well.”

JJ laughed. “Better than well. It was fire, just like your song. I think we’re going to push that out ahead of the album to try get some momentum. Dusty said you’re almost done. We have four, right?”

“Yeah, we’re still working on the last one,” Noah said.

“Good. I have a few labels interested. Since it’s a mini album, we have more leeway but with Unison killing it out here, I’ll have the guys use their socials to promo.”

I knew that networking was everything, so I was grateful Adam had our backs.

“I’ll call Adam later to thank him,” Noah said.

“I need you to finish up in the next two weeks. We’ll take it through final edits and push the marketing.

I have some ideas.” JJ talked about the plan, outlining some key industry players and goals to get the song played.

“I’ll be back in New York soon, but I can always fly in to take meetings. Just get it done, guys. We good?”

“We’re good,” we both repeated together.

JJ clicked off. The Uber pulled up to my place. I faced him. “One more song,” I said.

His gaze locked with mine. “We can grind it out. We’re so close. Can you clear this week?”

I nodded. “I have nothing else going on except Red.”

“Good. Take the weekend and we’ll meet at the studio Monday?”

“Yes.”

I opened the door and got out. “Elle?”

I tilted my head. “Yeah?”

“Last night changed my life.”

I caught my breath at his gentle, loving smile. Those eyes flickered with a deep emotion I rarely saw when I looked at Coop.

Then he shut the car door and pulled away.