Page 95 of Perfect Enough

Mom: Maybe! It’s been a long day, I’m sure for you as well. ’Night, sweetheart.

Me: ’Night. Talk to you tomorrow.

I sat on the couch for nearly an hour, thinking of Josh, my mom, and my future, before I decided to head to bed. I stopped by Josh’s room first and knocked lightly on the door. It wasn’t shut, so I pushed the door open slightly and found Josh lying face-down on the bed, that stupid whiskey bottle still in his hand slung over the side of the bed.

I entered the room, took the bottle, and set it on the dresser. I removed Josh’s shoes and socks and carefully crawled onto the bed. Rolling him over, I unbuttoned his pants and worked at getting them off.

“My God, how much did you drink?” I huffed as I attempted to remove the pants while Josh slept like a log. He must have had more than I thought.

Unbuttoning his shirt, I somehow managed to roll him onto one side, then the other, to remove the shirt. I left his boxers on and woke him up enough to get him to move under the covers. Leaning down, I kissed his lips softly.

“Please don’t push me away,” I whispered, sighing as I looked over his handsome face.

He let out a moan and rolled to his side.

That was my cue to leave. Grabbing the whiskey bottle, I headed to the door. Before I walked through it, I stopped and glanced over my shoulder.

My heart hurt for Josh and his whole family. I wanted desperately to tell him I loved him, but I knew it was too soon. And I had a feeling the next few days would be a true test for both of us.

Chapter Twenty-Two

JOSH

The sounds of morning filtered through the closed windows, and I slowly opened one eye to see sunlight pouring into my bedroom. When I opened the other eye, I groaned.

“Fuck, how much did I drink?”

Taking it very slow, I sat up and looked around the room, then at the empty, obviously undisturbed spot beside me in the bed.

The memories from last night came rushing back…and all I wanted to do was crawl under the covers and go back to sleep.

I had been cruel to Sophia—and I hated myself for it. I wanted to forget the last week had even existed. My eyes closed, and I felt myself drift off to sleep again. If I slept, I wouldn’t have to think about anything. Sophia, my job, my family. Losing Granddad. All of it would fade away, and I would have a few moments of peace.

A soft knock on my door caused me to lift my head and curse. “Go away, Nate.”

When I heard the knob turning, I sat up, ready to tell him to fuck off. The room tilted wildly, and I had to close my eyes to make the spinning stop.

“Go bother someone else, would you, Nate?”

A soft voice cleared. “It’s me, not Nate.”

My eyes snapped open to see Sophia standing there, a tray in her hand. “I made you some breakfast and Chloe’s famous hangover remedy.”

I raised a brow. “She has her own hangover remedy?”

Smiling slightly, she made her way inside. “She didn’t come up with it, but we’ve used it a lot in the past.”

Sitting up straighter in bed, I wanted to tell her I wasn’t hungry, but after the way I’d treated her last night, I couldn’t bring myself to do that.

“I hope your stomach feels okay. I made scrambled eggs, bacon, and some toast.”

The smell of bacon reached me, and my stomach growled. I wasn’t even sure when the last time I ate might’ve been.

“When was the last time you ate?” Sophia asked, reading my mind as she set the tray down on the bed.

“I didn’t even know I had a table for breakfast in bed.”

She grinned. “I hope you don’t mind. I was looking through your butler’s pantry and found it. Your mom and sister made sure you had everything.”

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