Steeling Her: A Romance Novel

Carter

We sit at the table and chairs set located under a low light. It’s still warm enough outside. It’s dark, and the trees in the back hiss as the wind brushes over the leaves lightly.

“Well . . . are you going to leave your thoughts in your head or are you going to share them so I can get feedback from someone who knows what they’re talking about? Because I would really like you to choose the second option.” I see the bottle rest on his lips as he takes a sip. He sends me that glowing smile I’ve seen all day. He’s even more happy after his win.

I smile and stare out at nothing in front of me. I replay the game in my head. Watching him in his uniform, watching his hard features focus on the game; living in the moment.

He nudges me, taking me out of the memory. “Well? What’ll it be, Steel?” he teases me. I open my mouth to answer him but the back door opens up and people spill out of it to make their way over to us. Mainly to him, they don’t know who I am.

“Jackson! You were on fire tonight!” One girl saunters over with a guy around her shoulders. They look like a couple. She’s tall and toned with curly black hair just below her shoulders, glowing tanned skin, and black denim shorts that showcase her mile-long legs. A blue flowing top is tucked inside the denim shorts, much like mine, and she pairs it with strapped heels that wrap up around her calves. Overall, this girl is beautiful.

“Thanks, Cas! Hey, Reggie!” Nick stands up to shake the guy’s hand and give her a hug. I sit there, biting my cheek because I’m so awkward. “Guys, this is Carter. Carter, this is Reggie and his fiancé, Cas. Reggie’s on the team! “ Nick teases them and I watch her blush while Reggie stares down adoringly at her. My brows ride up at what he said. They’re engaged? They’re both so young. It looks like she caught on to my expression and shakes her head rapidly.

“Not engaged! Jackson, you asshole!” She kicks Nick as he goes to sit back down beside me. I smile up at her. She seems really cool, very approachable.

“Not yet!” Reggie winks at her and I watch her bury her head into his chest as he pulls her close to him. These two are so cute together. I can see they both adore one another.

“It’s nice to meet you both!” I finally speak up and they both smile down at me.

“So, you’re Carter?” Reggie grins down at me and I nod slowly, unsure at what he’s implying. His eyes shift over to Nick; I see Cas also grinning down at him. “I’ve heard so much about you from Nick!” I watch the grin get bigger and, out of the corner of my eye, I see Nick shake his head. They both take a seat opposite to us as we drink together.

“I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing?” I joke and laughter echoes at my nervousness.

“Don’t worry, it’s all good! Weren’t you at the gala last week? I didn’t know Roger Steel had a daughter.” He smiles at me but I freeze when he mentions my family name. Nick catches on to my reaction and steers the conversation away from that topic.

“She was at our game tonight! I was trying to get some critical feedback out of her but it seems we keep getting interrupted by people.” He sends Reggie a pointed look, making him chuckle lowly. The table goes silent and everyone is looking at me. “Well? You going to dodge the question again or are you going to shed some light on your thoughts?” Nick leans forward so that he’s close to me.

“You were good.” I nod while making eye contact with him. I hear Reggie snort while Nick puts on mischievous grin on his face.

“Good? That’s all?” He tilts his head to the side, challenging me. I feel the grin on my own face creep up as I’m watching him wait for an answer more in-depth than “good” from me. I silently judge if he can handle my critical comments. They’re not too bad, he played really well. I just have some observations.

“You really want to hear it.” He nods.

Reggie says teasingly, “Uh oh, I don’t like that sound of that!” I laugh. I press my lips together in thought about how I’ll put it.

“Come on, Steel, spit it out.” He pokes me and leans back in the chair. I’ve grown up watching this game my entire life. I pick up on things the same way coaches do. I’m definitely my dad’s daughter.

“You’re not quick enough on your decisions. You’re release was too slow, but you played well because your blindside was blocked exceptionally well by your teammate. If he wasn’t on his game, you would’ve been crushed. You held the ball a fraction too long. Don’t get me wrong, your throws were like darts; exact. You also seemed a little distracted; I could read that from a mile away and I’ve only seen you play in person once but . . . you have a strong arm—a very strong arm. If you could make faster decisions, you would be better than any quarterback I’ve seen. That’s your downfall; you hold on to that ball a second too long when you need to release quicker than what you normally do,” I finish with a shrug, and just he sits there with his mouth hanging open. I hear Cas giggle at his reaction.

“Well shit, Jackson, she’s got you there!” Reggie says with a laugh but Nick is still in shock at what I said. I look down at my feet, embarrassed that I probably insulted him. He’s probably used to being praised, and I knocked his ego down a little. He still hasn’t said anything while the couple across from us can’t help but laugh at him.

“But you played really well! I’m sorry . . . I didn’t mean to insult you . . . I don’t even play football, so who am I to judge you, right?” I rub my palm awkwardly along my jeans because I’m sweating from all the attention I’m getting right now.

“No, don’t be sorry! I don’t disagree with you. I was sloppy with my decisions, I knew that. How were you able to pick up on that?” he asks me in disbelief.

I shrug. “My dad. I listened to him a lot growing up, so I see things the same way he does. I don’t know . . . I pick up on small things like that . . .” It’s practically second nature for me at this point. I play with the plastic cup and then meet his eyes.

I clear my throat, meeting his gaze that’s gone darker. Is he pissed at me? “I didn’t mean to insult you, Nick . . .” I take his arm. He wanted criticism, and I gave it to him. I feel him tense suddenly and I drop my hand away from him.

“You didn’t. Honestly, I agree with what you’re saying.” He starts to play with the bottle in his hand, wiping the print on the surface, the cool droplets threatening to run down the side.

“Trust me, if you can perfect that, that you’ll be pro in no time!” His grin comes back to his face and he sips the bottle.

“Why do I get the feeling that there’s more?” he asks as he leans back. I press my lips together, trying to hide my smile. He’s reading me too well. I don’t like that. “Come on, keep going. I know there’s more!” He laughs, winding his finger around the air. I shake my head and he leans forward, edging closer to my face. “Carter . . . come on, I’m going to criticized in the future. I might as well get used to it.” I watch as his Adam’s apple bob when he swallows another gulp of the beer. He sends me a reassuring smile telling me it’s alright to voice my opinion.

“The anticipation of slating Jackson is killing me, girl! Tell us!” Cas squeals and laughs with Reggie. She nears the edge of her seat as if I’m going to let her in on a secret that shouldn’t be shared. I smile as I try to hold it in and I look back over to Nick.

“You seem to favor TJ. I know you’ve played together for practically your whole life, but you have other guys on the team; use them. It’s like you’re afraid to change up your routine. There were loads of free players that you didn’t see. You need to have more of an open mind. Look around, you won’t be insulting TJ if someone else gets the ball. You’re playing to win. Have alternatives.” I watch him nod attentively as his shoulders drop a little. “I know it’s easy for me to say that watching from the stands. All the while, you’re under pressure on the field. It’s just two comments. Two that are probably wrong, it’s just my opinion. I’m not a coach or a professional—”

“But you’re the daughter of one,” he points out. I agree with him, looking down at the ground. I did insult him. I knew I should’ve kept it to myself. I watch the ants crawl around in the grooves of the tiling under my feet. “Hey, I appreciate the criticism. It’s cool, Carter! Seriously, no hard feelings.” I nod to him because his voice was so soft. It sounded like he was actually alright with my comments, but I can’t help but feel bad. I’m not a professional; I could have read the game wrong. I’m just a girl who’s never even played the damn sport.

“Do Reggie next!” Cas requests with a laugh, pointing to her boyfriend. I giggle at her reaction along with Nick. She got so much enjoyment out of it.

“No way! I’m a sensitive guy! I’m not equipped for that!” he jokes. I sip on my drink while we laugh at everything and nothing for the next while. These two are so sweet. It’s so easy talking with them. I like Cas. She’s kind and doesn’t take anything seriously. The conversation with them is so easy, so carefree. They didn’t treat me any differently even when they knew who I was. Initially, I thought Reggie would have, but he surprised me by treating me like I didn’t have a famous last name.

“I’m going to get another drink! See you guys around!” We both nod. He continues, “Nice to meet you, Carter!” Cas waves at me and walks with Reggie while I repeat what she said back to the both of them with a wave of my own.

“They’re so nice.” I watch them walk back inside together, kissing each other once they were through the door. Reggie never removed his arm around her shoulders the entire time we were out here. It’s was so cute to watch that happen. I felt my heart swell watching both of them. They were definitely couple goals. You can see their love for each other in their eyes when they looked at one another. It was like watching one of those romance novels come to life right before your eyes.

“Yeah, they’re super chill! Every time one of the guys is sick, Cas comes over to the house and nurses them back to life. She’s studying to be a nurse, so she gets practice in our house,” he jokes with me. I could see her doing that. She seems like the type that would help anyone. She has a kind heart and I admire that about her. She really showed it when we were talking.

“They’re really cute together,” I blurt out and I watch his head turn to me with a smile on his face. He nods after a minute of just staring at me.

“Yeah, they are. They’re practically married.” He laughs and I smile back at him. I take another sip of my drink and watch it disappear. “You want another?” I chug back the rest and nod while we both stand up simultaneously to walk back inside. The booming music meets our ears as we enter into the kitchen again and see more people than when we came in.

“That’s a lot of people,” I mumble to myself and feel a hand on the small of my back guiding me along to the drinks. Nick pushes me along to the options and I take out the same vodka TJ used to mix my drink then found some fruit juice to mix it with. Nick pops off the top of a fresh, ice-cold bottle and next thing I know, I’m being dragged inside by someone.

I try to turn around but I get pushed into gyrating bodies that are bumping off me. Hands grip my hips, and I spin myself around to meet Ryan’s glazed over stare. He’s swaying me little. I watch him awkwardly, not knowing what to do.

He leans over and slurs into my ear, “Loosen up, Steel, dance with me!” He smiles. I feel like I’m out of my depth. I’m not used to being around cramped areas. I’m not claustrophobic or anything, it’s just that it’s hot and clammy in here. I honestly feel weird being here.

He takes hold of my hips again and sways them for me. My drink starts spilling everywhere. Someone bumps on my elbow and it spills on the girl next to me. Hearing her squeal, she turns around and I see that it’s Maya. Her eyes turn to red when they land on me.

Oh shit.

Why doesn’t she like me? I’ve never done anything to her.

“Did you just pour your fucking drink on me?” she yells in my face. I feel my heart hammering as I stand there in shock. “Did you? Answer the fucking question!” I shake my head and lick my lips, feeling the sudden dryness on the surface.

“I-I’m sorry. Someone bumped on my arm and it spilled over. I’m sorry!” She steps closer into my personal space and I feel like I’m shaking. I’ve never been one for conflict, but I will defend myself if it comes to it if you push me too far.

“You’re sorry? You’re fucking sorry? Do you know how much this dress cost me? Look at it! You ruined it!” She looks down at the small splash that’s on her pink dress. It’s tiny. I mentally roll my eyes at how overdramatic she’s being.

“Maya, chill. it’s not that bad.” Her eyes whip to Ryan, who holds up his hands in surrender, and she yells at him to stay out of it. Turning her eyes back to me, I gulp down at the fire in her eyes. She already hates me enough as it is—for someone reason—I don’t need this to add to it. She’s borderline breathing fire at this point.

“I’m sorry. I can get it cleaned up if you w—”

“Shut up! Fucking hell, I don’t want you anywhere near me or my clothes. You like to ruin everything that’s mine.” I send her a quizzical look. I haven’t ruined anything that’s hers. “You’re a clothes ruiner and a boyfriend stealer! You’re last name is so suited to you,” she angrily spits out while I stand there motionless. I thought they weren’t a thing?

“I didn’t steal anyone’s . . . boyfriend,” I mumble, and as if I thought she couldn’t get any closer to me, she stepped right in my face.

“You fucking stole mine! Stay away from me and him!” Sending me one last glare, she bumps shoulders with me and walks out of the crowd, her friends trail along like little ducklings behind her.

I watch them leave and think about what she said. I thought she and Nick weren’t dating? I look around the room and realize I’m alone in a crowded room. I don’t know anyone around me. I bump into people to get out of the way. I try to find Haley and walk out to the entrance where not many people are gathered.

I move around on my toes to see if I can find someone I recognize. I see nobody; not a single person. Where did Ryan even go? I look up the stairs to see Maya and her friends glaring down at me with so much hatred in their eyes. I cough and look away immediately but I still feel their eyes on me.

I feel my phone buzz in my pocket and fish it out to see my brothers’ names on it.

Austin: Stars! Outside now!

Chris: Going outside now!

Me: Me too!

I race back outside the door of the kitchen, weaving through the crowd. Every time one of us sees stars outside we message the other. When we’re under the stars, we feel closer to each other. It feels like we’re not away from each other.

Once I reach outside, I look up but I can’t see them clearly. “Dammit, I’ll have to go higher.” I walk around the side of the house and see an ivy vine with support in the back that I can climb. Putting one foot on, I start climbing up to get to the first level roof. Once I’m there, I can see there’s a little ladder on the side of the wall that goes up to the top roof. I start climbing that and the stars become much clearer. I take my heels off and allow the cold tiles to meet my skin. No way I was walking on a roof in heels, although it’s flat where I am. I pant and mumble “I’m so unfit” to myself.

Once I’m here, I look up and smile at how pretty the stars look. Specks of white and red, depending how close they are, all against a black backdrop. It’s beautiful.

Me: I’m here

Chris: Me too!

I miss my brothers.

I sit down on the ground and watch the millions of lights above me. I smile and close my eyes pretending that they’re here with me. I pretend to have my family here with me. The vibration pulls me out of my moment. Thinking it was my brothers, it was actually someone else.

Nick: Where did you go? xx

Me: I’m on the roof xx

It took a moment for him to reply. He probably wasn’t expecting one from me so soon.

Nick: Are you nuts? Why are you up there? Xx

I can almost hear his laughter. I allow my fingers to type back something.

Me: It shouldn’t be a surprise! Come join me and find out xx

A few minutes later I hear a few curses and grunts down below. I look over to the side to see it’s him. I leave my shoes where I was sitting. I don’t want to leave just yet. I see him climbing up the ladder I used to reach my level. Once there, he throws his leg over and allows his body to drop down on to the roof over the small wall that guards it. I walk back over to my spot and see him follow me.

“You’re crazy, you know that? So, what’s the big secret that I almost died for?” He grunts as he sits next to me. I point up to the sky and he looks up. “Woah! That’s amazing.” He sighs, admiring the natural beauty above us. We sit in silence for some time just admiring the show.

“You need to be above the lights to see this. The light pollution doesn’t allow you to see the stars well. It’s better when you’re in the countryside; there’re millions of them,” I tell him and look down at my feet. I wiggle my toes from the pain of my shoes. They’re free from them. I feel him shuffle closer to me because his heat radiates onto me. He’s not touching me, but I can feel him. I glance to my side and see he’s already staring at me.

“You’re not one for parties, are you?” he asks me. I shake my head, making my hair catch in my mouth. I pick it out and smile at him.

“No, I’m not used to them. The first one I went to was in high school and it was so bad. I’ve only been to two before the one I met you at.” His brows shot up and purses his lips. I couldn’t help but look at his lips. Realizing I was staring, I look back at the wall in front of us.

“I’m so over them. They were fun for the first couple of years in college. Now, it’s the same thing over and over again.” He sighs and picks up a pebble that was between his legs and plays with it. I watch his hand rub the pebble between his fingers, admiring it. “You’re not missing much.” He drops it and faces me.

“I just wish I wasn’t so awkward.” I giggle at myself. His eyes lock with mine and I feel a shift in the air. It feels heavy, like there’s something there, but I can’t put my finger on it.

“It’s not a bad thing, Carter.” His voice drops to a lower tone, and I feel my heart stop. When he said my name in that tone, it brought me back to the first night I met him—when I shook his hand.

“It’s not a good thing, either,” I joke. I see a smile lift at the corners of his lips. I once again look at them and then back to his eyes. That look. What is he thinking? I ask to myself. He smirks at me, and I realize how at ease I am with him. He makes it all so simple.

“Did you know that every star we see is bigger and brighter than the sun?” He grins at me as I’m stating a fact. “And when a star ‘twinkles’ it’s actually not due to the star at all, it’s due to the Earth’s turbulent atmosphere,” I inform him just because I find space interesting. I always have.

“I didn’t know that . . . that’s kinda cool.” He cranes his neck backwards and looks up at the sky once more. “Why do you know a lot about space?” he asks the sky while I just watch him. Everything he does intrigues me.

“I always liked learning about space. I have a telescope at home; depending on the night, I look out of it at midnight just to look at the galaxy. It’s so beautiful.” He turns back to face me and leans back on his hands.

“People don’t realize how beautiful nature is,” he says to me and we both go silent. I play with my hands for a bit while I listen to our breathing and the light chatter below us. After a while, I look up to meet his gaze. His green eyes pulse like paint diffusing in water, and I’m hypnotized by him.

“You know, I’ve never had a girl criticize me on my game . . .” I bite my lip, not taking my eyes away from him. His face inches closer to mine, taking me back to the night when he came and sat with me instead of being at the party. It feels like that night all over again. There’s something floating in the air above us, like a spark.

“I’m sorry—”

“It was kinda hot.” My brows shoot straight up and I stare at him like he’s lost his mind. I practically insulted him.

“What?” I exhale rapidly after realizing his proximity. He’s close—so, so close.

“It was sexy actually . . .” He breathes back on to my lips, allowing a tingling sensation to take over. His eyes are bright green and so close. I can’t look away. “You’re so different, Carter. A good type of different. I’ve never met someone like you . . . You’ve intrigued me from the moment I met you . . .” I feel like this isn’t real. I intrigued him?

I can’t say anything back. I can hear my heart in my ears and the pulsing sensation in my neck. But he angles his head to the side and leans in, placing a hand behind me. Staring at each other for some time, neither one of us is backing away from this. Kiss me. Just kiss me, my body screams at him but my mouth is silent.

Finally, like he can’t take it anymore, he leans in and presses his lips perfectly against mine. I shut my eyes. His hand reaches up to the side of my face. The kiss is so gentle, so soft and packed with emotion. I’ve never been kissed like this before.

I sit there, shocked, and he pulls away slightly. We stare at each other once more and I lean back into him, wanting that feeling again. I’m already missing his lips. He lightly nips at my lower lip, and I open them, allowing his tongue to slip inside and caress mine. We move in sync with each other like it’s meant to be. I feel my lips get a shock, jolting me to not stop this moment.

My hand reaches up to his hair and I run my fingers through it. Feeling his moan vibrate through me, I keep playing with his hair. My stomach is in knots and my mind has gone foggy. The pace picks up, and I kiss him back with everything I’ve got. I don’t want to stop this moment, it’s so perfect.

This is all so new to me. I feel his thumb brush my cheek as we make out for some time. On the roof of a sorority house, I’m kissing my roommate’s brother. And he’s kissing me.

Once we feel the pace slowing back down, he pulls away with a smile on his face. I feel myself copying his smile. My lips feel like they’re on fire, and where he touched me feels cold when his warmth leaves. I miss his touch. I’m so breathless after that. His hand still on my face, I rest my own on top of them. His smile grows wider with every moment that passes us. I bite on my lip, trying not to grin like an idiot. He brushes his thumb over my lip, silently asking me to release it.

There is no sign of my heart rate slowing down. It’s thumping hard against my chest, and I’m almost vibrating after each one. I’m shaking from the kiss we had, and I can’t pull myself together. My mind is blank, and yet, all I can think about is him.

“That was better than what I imagined it to be like,” his whisper tickles my lips, and I grin back at him, like he wasn’t meant to say that out loud. It finally registered that he did. His cheeks turn into a crimson color, and I can’t wipe the smile off my lips.

“I know how you feel,” I softly say back to him. I watch the smile accelerate onto his gorgeous face.

He kissed me. Nick kissed me.

The loud ringtone in his pocket cuts through our moment, and he removes his hand from me with a grunt to fish it out. Seeing Haley written across the screen, he sighs and answers her.

“Yo! Wha—TJ? What’s wrong?” he asks with a slightly raised voice. “She’s what? Shit! We’ll be down in five . . . Yeah . . . Yes, Carter’s with me . . .” He smiles back over to me and I press my lips together when they talk about me. “That doesn’t matter, man, take her away from Maya and I’ll be there in five, alright? Cool! Yeah, cool, bye.” He hangs up and turns to me.

“So your roommate, my sister, has started a shit storm with Maya and I need to take her away from her. I need to go down now before knives are thrown across the room.” He chuckles and I nod, agreeing that we need to separate them from each other. Maya isn’t the nicest person. We hesitate before we move.

He helps me down the side of the house with my heels in my hand.

Reaching to the ground level, I slip back on my heels while holding onto the wall. We can’t stop smiling at each other as we walk side by side into the house, our hands brushing off one another in the process. He holds the door open for me and I thank him shyly. That’s when we hear the screaming match taking place in the kitchen.

“You’re borderline stalking my family, Maya!” Haley yells over TJ, who is holding her by her shoulders to stop her from launching an attack. Haley bumps off of TJ. People have gathered around both of them, relishing in the tense atmosphere.

“Pfft, the only person stalking you and your family is your roommate who can’t keep her grimy hands off what’s not hers!” Maya checks her nails like it’s the most interesting thing in the world, and I feel Nick tense up behind me.

“Maya! Enough!” Her eyes whip to Nick and her face lights up then drops once she sees me. Her eyes narrow into slits, and she shifts her position so her body is facing him. Standing there with a body full of confidence, she’s not letting up. Her hands on her hips shows off how much of an attitude is radiating off her. This makes every guy in the room check her out.

“My point has been proven. How sad. She can’t get her own damn boyfriend so she has to steal others.” She points at me while people start to laugh lowly behind her. Liking the attention she’s getting, her face starts to produce a smirk. It’s feeding her ego.

“Please, I never even took you on a date. Stop acting like we were together, I think your legs had more of a chance of being together than we ever did.” Her eyes narrow once again, staring at the guy standing behind me. I feel a small giggle release by itself and I cough to cover it up, not looking at her. People are laughing at what he said. Nick pushes me over to Haley and TJ, and I make my way over to them. This is so awkward for me. Why am I the talk of this argument? Why is she bringing me into this?

I feel her eyes follow me with every step as I near Haley. I stand behind her, who’s behind TJ, so I’m out of sight. If I can’t see her then she can’t see me. “We both know you’ll come back to me, Nick. You always do . . .” she proudly says to her audience.

I hear Nick snort at her and he takes his sister off of TJ and pushes her out back to get some air. I stand there, still behind TJ, silently pleading he doesn’t move so she can see me.

“Ignore her, she likes to claim things that aren’t hers. You’re not a stalker.” TJ winks down at me with a beaming smile. I whisper back a thank you to him and he nods in appreciation.

We all stay longer at the party. Maya hangs around us without actually talking to us. I sit with Danielle and start watching people with her. She’s doing this thing where she’s commenting what each person is thinking and it has TJ laughing so hard at her. It’s pretty funny to listen to her, but I can’t take a drink. I’m afraid I’ll spit it out.

“Do him!” TJ points to the guy in the corner playing beer pong with his friends, you can barely see him with the amount of people gathered around the table.

“Okay, let’s see . . . ‘I really need to get laid.’ ”

“Danielle!” I smack her arm with a gasp.

“What? Come on, he looks like he needs his gear stick to be fuc—OW!” I hit her again while TJ has his hand up to his face, laughing. I reach over her to hit him too.

“OW! What did I do?” he asks innocently.

“You’re laughing!” I giggle and he points at me. That smile creeps back on to his face and he sends me a toothy grin.

“So are you Steel!” he teases me about my slip up. He pokes my cheek and I swat his hand away.

“Okay, as I was saying before I was rudely interrupted . . . Hmm . . . he’s totally singing ‘Let’s have some fun, this beat is sick, I want you to take a ride on my disco stick!’ ” she sings, bouncing up and down while TJ pinches his eyes laughing at her.

“You’re crazy, Danielle,” he says between laughs.

“Tell me something I don’t know.” She rolls her eyes playfully at him. I yawn intensely next to her, feeling my body craving sleep again. My head is thumping with the beat, and I feel like I’m not getting enough air.

I’m tired and I want to go home, but I know everyone wants to stay here. So I’ll stay with them. I open up my eyes when I feel a dip in the seat next to me.

“Tired?” His husky voice feathers my ear. I close my mouth and nod, smiling shyly back since he caught me. He’s so close me. It’s a bold move, considering the amount of people occupying the space around us. “If you want, I can you take you back to the dorm?” I look in his eyes to see if there’s anything behind that, like if he wants an escape. “Not like that. Shit, I promise it’s not like that!” He sighs as he thinks about something. Then it clicks with me. He thought I thought he was trying to sleep with me. I feel myself heat up from embarrassment. So he wouldn’t sleep with me? It’s a bittersweet thought. Then it registered with him once more when he widens his eyes, linking my thoughts.

“No! I would do it with you—I mean, fuck! I’m sorry. I keep putting my mouth in it . . . Uggghhh,” he groans in frustration. I find it kind of cute. I cover my laugh with my hand, making his face dart back to mine hearing it.

“It’s fine, Nick. If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, can you? I could really go to sleep right now. I’m exhausted.” I raise my voice back over to him. The music gets cranked up another notch, and we decide it’s time to leave.

I’m dying for my cozy bed right now.