Page 44 of The Friend Zone

A shudder works its way down my spine when I withdraw, already missing the heat of Bay’s warmth.

She crumbles into my mattress and I gather her in my arms. “You ok?”

Her eyes are closed, but her lips curl in that little smile that’s starting to become familiar. “More than ok.”

I cover her mouth with mine, playing with her lips as I kiss her gently over and over.

I drag Bay up to the pillows stacked against my headboard. “Wait here.”

“Oh.” She gasps when I return from the bathroom with a warm, damp towel and clean her up.

“I made a little mess in there.”

She yawns, her eyes still closed but that smile just a little wider. “I like your mess.”

“I like you.” I say.

It’s fucking terrifying how much I like her.

Falling for her is exhilarating and a little scary. I hope she’ll protect my heart just as much as I’ll fight to protect hers.

“Let’s try to get some sleep. Six am is going to be here very soon.”

The only response I get from Bay is a soft snore. Like always, she’s a couple of steps ahead of me.

CHAPTER 10

KARMA

JAGGER

Six am comes way too fucking soon. Especially if you spent all night tossing and turning.

My brain wouldn’t shut down and every time I closed my eyes, I saw Bay.

The look in her eyes when she saw me coming out of the locker room with Candace and Bianca and then later at the party with Candace on my arm.

I almost ran after her twice. To beg for her forgiveness for that stupid text and to swear that nothing happened between me and her Zeta sisters.

But what’s the point of behaving like a grade A asshole and having a decoy date, if then I blew my cover the second I saw her?

The situation hasn’t changed.

Topher was watching me all evening with an arrogant smirk on his face. I have no doubt that he would follow through with his threat if I ignored his demand to stay away from Bay.

The only thing that makes me feel slightly better is that Bay looked more pissed than sad.

I’d take anger over heartbreak any day. Take it from me. There has been a dull pain in my chest all night. If I didn’t know that I’m healthy and in top shape, I would be scared that my heart was going to explode or something.

The truth is that heartbreak can cause physical pain, I got so worried that I fucking googled it.

It’s better that she hates me rather than pining for me. I’m going to do all the pining, it’s what I deserve.

For being an asshole and disrespecting her and for convincing myself that Bay and I were just friends with benefits.

I lied to myself that Bay and I barely knew each other, that there’s no way I could fall for her so quickly and completely.

The truth? I’m a fucking idiot. What do I know about love when I’ve never been in love before Bay Woods?

---