Page 53 of Furious

After a while, I go to use the bathroom and return to bed with a warm wet cloth. Zara doesn’t wake up as I clean her up.

If this was yesterday, we could have just let sleep take us under. But her mom is back from her honeymoon and I don’t know how she would react if Zara spent the night.

She looks so peaceful and beautiful, though. I decide to let her sleep for just five minutes and then I’ll take her home.

ZARA

My bladder wakes me up.

I hesitate to move because Lev is nestled behind me and his embrace is so warm and comfortable that I never want to leave it.

But I need to pee and I’m sure Lev would rethink the choice to show me his room if I had an accident and peed on his bed.

I disentangle from him, careful not to wake him and move a few steps in the unfamiliar, dark room.

Earlier, I spotted two doors inside it. I’m guessing one should be the closet and the other one hopefully the bathroom.

I tiptoe on the plush carpet, careful not to stub my toes on any furniture.

If I could turn the light on, this would be easier, but I don’t want to wake Lev.

I’m almost at the end of the room, but I freeze when I see some faint light filtering through the bamboo blinds. How long have we been asleep?

My urge to pee is forgotten, and I run back toward the bed in search of my phone so I can check the time.

I’m not as careful as I was a minute ago, though, and I hit the foot of the leather couch in the mini sitting area of Lev’s bedroom.

“Ouch, fuck!” I scream as pain radiates from my big toe to my entire body, taking my breath away.

How can such a small part of my body hurt so fucking much?

“Zee, you ok?” the light on one of Lev’s nightstands comes on and my boyfriend is instantly by my side.

I accept his hand as he helps me to sit down on the couch.

My toe is throbbing like a bitch, but the pain is almost immediately forgotten. “What time is it?” I ask.

Lev finds his phone right where he had thrown it next to me on the couch. “Zee, don’t panic.”

Now I’m not trying to be a bitch or anything, but that’s a really stupid thing to say. The knee jerk reaction of anyone when they’re told not to panic is exactly the opposite.

“What time is it?” I repeat, my voice panicked.

“Five.”

“In the morning?”

I know that isn’t a smart question, but in my defense, I’m in a full-blown panicked state now.

Lev nods. “Yeah. I have a message from Scott, four from Chance, and one from your mom. Shit, I didn’t even know Kelly had my number.”

I finally retrieve my phone, too and there are several messages waiting for me, too. “Oh, fuck.” I wail. “This is bad. We gotta get home.”

I jump to my feet in search of my clothes, the stabbing pain in my toe already forgotten.

“Let me text Chance to reassure him that you’ll be home in five.” He says. “Just don’t?—”

“If you tell me not to panic,” I say, almost face planting as I try not to lose my balance with one leg in my panties while I hop toward my bra. “I swear I’m gonna lose my shit and pee myself in the process.”