Page 23 of Unscripted Love
“It’s okay, Chaz,” I told him. “I didn’t mean to pressure you or anything. I guess that I’m just not ready to let you go. It was an amazing night, and morning,” I added, “and I hate to see it end.”
I rose to my feet and held out my hand to help him off the bed. I didn’t like his answer, but I chose to be a gentleman about it instead of a jerk. I pulled him to me for one last long, lingering kiss.
“I’ll see you down at breakfast,” I told him.
Chaz rose on his tiptoes and pressed his lips to mine briefly. “Itwasan amazing night and morning.” He repeated my words back to me, but it sounded awfully close to a goodbye when he said them.
I nodded because there wasn’t anything else I could say or do. A feeling of dread washed over me as I showered and got ready to meet my friends for breakfast in the hotel restaurant. The feeling turned to hurt and anger when I saw that two seats were left empty: Chaz’s and mine.Fuck!I knew damn well that I couldn’t sit there and pretend that everything was okay when my heart felt bruised and battered. I felt like the only choice open to me was to leave quietly and apologize for my behavior later.
I turned to do just that and nearly collided with Chaz. “Going somewhere in a hurry, Dr. D?”
Kyle didn’t answer my question right away, so I crossed my arms over my chest and quirked a brow.
“Uh,” Kyle stammered, which I found fucking adorable since he always seemed so composed. I was happy to make him… flappy.
“Were you about to leave without saying goodbye to me?” I asked, covering my heart dramatically to show how badly he wounded me.
Kyle’s body tightened with tension, and he looked at me with an incredulous gaze. “Me?” he asked before he snorted. “I thoughtyouleft without saying goodbye tome.” It was cute the way he used his pointer finger to help narrate his response even though he enunciated the words clearly.
Truthfully, I had planned to bolt when I left his hotel room and did the walk of shame back to mine while silently pleading that none of my friends caught me exiting his room. You know damn well that fate wasn’t working in my favor, right?
“Well, well, well,” Meredith said when she opened the door and found me creeping down the corridor. “What do we have here?” A smug smile had crossed her face before she said, “It’s about damn time. Don’t blow this, Charles Bailey!”
I passed up the opportunity to give her a snarky reply about how much I like blowing things. My night with Kyle deserved more respect than brash, bawdy words. Instead, I smiled at Mere and said, “I’ll try my best.” I should’ve been offended by her tone and implication that I was the one who would blow things with Kyle, but she was right. I was on the verge of self-destructing after the most amazing night of my life. To make things worse, I still would’ve gone home if I’d had access to a car, but I rode to Cincinnati with Mere and Harley.
“See that you do, baby doll.” Mere blew air kisses at me and shut the door. How did she even know I was in the hallway? It was like she was watching for me through the peephole or something. I pitied her future kids because they wouldn’t get away with anything.
That line of thought reminded me of how close I had come to revealing my secret the night before when I used the phrase “okay then” with Kyle. It was one I had used almost nightly as Drew and I internally cringed as soon as the words left my lips. I held my breath while I waited to see if he caught my slip. I thought for a brief second that recognition dawned in his eyes, but it either never took root or was replaced by lust for another round of sex.
I had no right to sleep with Kyle without him knowing the truth, and despite his declaration that morning, I knew he was going to care a great deal about the revelation when it happened. Yet, I discovered how quickly I could push my shame away when he locked his mesmerizing blue eyes on me.
“I couldn’t leave without saying goodbye,” I told Kyle. A hopeful smile bloomed across his face, and I kicked myself for giving him the wrong impression. “I rode with Mere and Harley.”
The smile slid from his face, and it seemed like the joyous light behind his eyes dimmed a bit. “Oh,” he said flatly. Fuck!I only wanted to set him straight, not kick him in the balls. “Can I drive you home after breakfast?”
Damn, the man drove me home like I’d never been driven before, or was it ridden? Either way, my ass would sting for days, but it was so worth it. I grinned wryly at him. “Again so soon?” I asked teasingly. My confidence soared when Kyle got flustered again. I liked catching him off guard and pushing him outside his comfort zone. “I’d love to catch a ride with you, but I need to eat breakfast to refuel first.”
“Okay then,” Kyle said then smiled suggestively at me. “After you.”
It felt like everyone at our table was staring at us when we entered the dining room. Their scrutiny made me uncomfortable, and I felt my cheeks get hot as my skin most likely turned an interesting shade of pink or red. I tried to bullshit my way through the discomfort with a friendly smile.
“Good morning,” I said with mock cheerfulness. “Everyone sleep well?” I realized my mistake when most of the people around the table snorted.
“We didn’t come here to sleep,” Josh said teasingly. “We can nap later.”
“Speak for yourself,” Adrian’s wife, Sally Ann, said. “This is the first night I slept more than two hours at a time since Adrianna was born. Everyone keeps telling me that she’ll eventually sleep through the night, but she hasn’t yet.”
“How well did you sleep, Chaz?” Josh asked me.
I picked up the menu and began looking over the breakfast selections so that I wasn’t looking into Josh’s eyes when I lied through my teeth. “Like the dead.”
“Uh huh,” Meredith said but didn’t betray where I stayed.
I looked up and found her smiling fondly at me. She winked playfully, and I rolled my eyes at her. I glanced over at Josh to see if he picked up on the exchange, but he had switched his attention back to Gabe.
Kyle leaned closer until his mouth nearly pressed against my ear. “I recall very little sleeping.” His words triggered memories of the two of us tangled and entwined in his hotel bed.
I fought the urge to lean into him or look at him to avoid making a fool of myself in front of an audience. I’d given these people enough fodder over the years to tide them over. “Yeah, but I slept hard for that hour or two before dawn,” I softly whispered so only he could hear.