Page 71 of All Signs Point to Malibu

The tender contradiction tops the list of unexpected actions in this time and space and my heart fills with an emotion that’s almost like...

But it can’t be.

His breath is warm on the side of my face as he whispers into my ear. “Hailstorm.”

I hear the word repeated over and over, but it sounds faraway as I ride out the best orgasm of my life.

He rolls our bodies and pulls me in close, tucking me against his chest, as my heart rate struggles to settle. He kisses my forehead, my cheeks, my nose...

Kisses before sex are foreplay, but kisses like this after sex are the most intoxicatingly dangerous thing in the world.

Might even make a woman fall in love if she’s not careful.

Hailey Harris is in my bed.

Not only in my bed, but tucked in close to every curve of my body, leg strewn over mine, head resting on my chest...she’s holding my fucking hand. Well, the back of it anyway.

I have no idea how this happened. I have no idea what I’m going to do about it. I’ve never let a woman stay the night. This is new territory to me. Right now, all I can do is lie here as still as fucking possible and make sure she doesn’t wake up and beat the shit out of me for somehow having manipulated this into happening. I have zero delusions that she planned this or will be thrilled about it in the morning.

How I’m feeling is a mystery. Physically, I feel incredible. Best orgasm of my life—not that I’d inflate Hailey’s ego with that knowledge. If she ever asks, I’ll give it a six. But emotionally, I’m numb. Like that feeling I had after my first professional touchdown or after my first championship win... The kind of numb where your body is in protection mode because the emotions are too much. Self-preservation kicks in to prevent a high with an inevitable crash that could be devastating.

Hailey moans in her sleep and moves even closer. Her body’s like a furnace and I run hot, so sweat starts to pool on my lower back, but I don’t care. I like the feel of her pressed against me and I wish I could mean that in a sexual way, but it’s an odd protective thing...like I think she feels safe enough to be asleep next to me.

Given our history, I didn’t think either of us would ever willingly be unconscious and vulnerable next to one another...but oddly enough the temptation to give her a permanent marker mustache is only mildly amusing.

I still chuckle at the image though and she stirs.

I tense and go completely still.

Don’t wake up, don’t wake up...

I haven’t processed all this yet and I’m certainly not ready to talk about it or run for my life.

Her eyes flutter open and she looks sleepily up at me.

I hold my breath and count down the seconds until she loses her ever-loving mind.

Instead, she smiles sleepily as her eyes close again and she snuggles back in.

“A sleepover at Warren Mitchell’s house—who would have thought?” she mumbles and something deep in my core tells me I’m a goner.

Who the fuck would have thought?

THIRTEEN

HAILEY’S DAILY RULE FOR SUCCESS:

When life throws an unexpected curveball, catch it and learn to play the game.

I feel the warmth of early morning sunlight on my cheeks as it streams in through open blinds. Its effects are slightly blinding as my eyes flutter open.

Sunlight? Did I forget to shut the blackout blinds last night?

Instantly, I’m wide awake. My eyes fly open as I sit up and take in my surroundings.

It wasn’t a dream. I’m naked. In Warren Mitchell’s bed.

I pull the sheets—not football-themed, and actually soft as silk four hundred thread count—up around myself as I scan the room.

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