Page 6 of The Moment Promised

I can just go ask Finn to borrow some clothes, he won’t think it’s weird I’m in a towel. I probably wouldn’t have thought twice about it before today. It’s not like he’d look at me likethat.

I pull my shoulders back, grip the towel wrapped around my body with white knuckles, and open the door.

Steam rolls into the gym which was once a guest room. I walk with false confidence to Finn’s door and push past it.

He’s laying above the comforter, legs crossed at the ankles, in only a pair of sweats, staring intently at the novel opened in his hands. His eyes slowly travel away from the pages as I hover in the doorway, suddenly unsure of how to ask for a shirt to sleep in. It’s as if my brain forgot the entire English language the moment I saw his bare chest. My brain was not wrong about Finn’s new workout habits. Whoa.

His gaze travels over me, invisibly touching every inch of skin beneath my towel, up my lips and nose, then straight into my eyes.

“Shit, sorry. Let me get you something to wear.” His gaze is down as he gets out of bed, as if trying to avoid looking at me again.

“It’s fine.” It’s not. I want to melt into the floor. My cheeks burn, and I’m sure if Finn wasn’t actively tryingnotto look at my nearly naked body, he’d see the blush all over me.

A piece of cloth hits my face, then falls to the floor.

“Fuck,” Finn curses. “Sorry.” He bends to pick up the black T-shirt he threw at my face and extends it out to me along with a pair of boxers.

I inhale a slow breath, then quickly exhale it. “Could you turn around?”

His eyes go wide, but he does as he is told.

I let the towel drop and step into the boxers, then pull his ginormous T-shirt over my head. “You can look now,” I say, crawling into the bed and getting beneath the covers.

Finn just stands by the other side of the bed, his back toward me.

I think I’d rather be in the parking lot right now.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Just—” He holds up a hand. “Give me a minute,” he says, just standing there.

“You’re not even doing anything,” I point out.

“Adeline,” he says sternly, like that should be the end of the conversation.

“I mean you’re quite literally juststandingthere, facing the wall.” I laugh. “I mean are you that disgusted by the idea of me being naked that you have to—” I gasp as he turns around, revealing the very obvious bulge in his pants.

“Do I lookdisgustedto you?” He stares at me, and all I can do is stare at…it.

Finn’sit.

Ohmygod.

“Oh, wow. Um.” I force my gaze to the ceiling. “Proceed.” I cringe at myself.

Finn chuckles at that.

“What?” I ask, feeling defensive and a touch embarrassed at my naivety. “I only meant you should continue doing whatever it was you were trying to do to manage that…situation.”

“I think you having clothes on now will definitely help mysituation.” He fights back an amused smile, scooting into bed beside me.

I stare at him in shock. “I just saw the outline of your…” I let that part hang loose in the air, “and you’re fine with it?” The idea of me naked in his room caused that?

No. There’s no way. We’re best friends and he certainly doesn’t see me that way. It would be completely inappropriate given our strictly platonic relationship. I try to forget it even happened and the way it causes a warm sensation lingering deep within my belly.

He doesn’t respond to that, he only says, “Goodnight, Miller.” He turns the lamp off, leaving me alone in the dark with my thoughts.

I wake up to the sound of comforting voices singing “Happy Birthday.”

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