Page 45 of I Blame the Alcohol

I shake my head, “That makes perfect sense. He was a happy man.”

“Exactly. He was just as strict, but my mother was his counterbalance. She made sure we had equal amounts of discipline and fun growing up.”

A strand of hair falls in her eyes. Without thinking, I reach out and gently tuck it back behind her ear.

“I wish I could have met her.”

Stella’s breath catches and suddenly, I’m worried I have overstepped.

“I wish you could have met her too.”

She smiles, pressing her cheek into the palm of my hand. The tenderness in her expression has my chest tightening, the magnetic pull between us growing stronger. I gently pull my hand back as a sliver of moonlight creeps through the stained-glass windows lining the opposite wall, casting a rose glow around us.

We stand like that, trapped in a touchless embrace for an indefinite amount of time. The desire to kiss Stella grows with every passing second but I can see the past and tonight’s dinner weighing heavily on her mind.

I’ve watched Stella physically exert herself to the point of exhaustion every day for the past six months, but tonight I got to peek behind the hard planes of muscle protecting her surface. I got to see beyond the bubbly extravert who drags her roommate to every resident event Taber University has to offer.

I clear my throat, deciding not to disappoint us both by pulling the same stunt as last time, “We should probably head to bed, it’s getting late.”

An eyebrow quirks up, “Sounds like an invitation, Captain.”

That’s the second time tonight she’s referenced to my varsity title, and I’m starting to like it a little bit too much.

“Separately, O’Brien.”

At least for tonight.

Stella rolls her eyes, “Always have to be the responsible one, don’t you?”

I huff out a laugh, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze, “Someone has to be.”

We leave her mother’s photograph behind as we head back, hand in hand, to our separate bedrooms.

Chapter 14

Cody

I wake up to the sound of someone banging down my door.

“Ellsworth! What the hell are you doing in there?”

Yanking my legs out of bed, I stumble across the room to open the door. Mo is waiting on the other side, looking like he’s about to take part in an Under Armour commercial.

He smirks, glancing down at my black briefs, “I shouldn’t have left my change in the car.” Unzipping the gym bag slung over his shoulder – Under Armour, of course – he tosses me some clothes.

I blindly catch them, eyes still half-closed from the sleep I was so rudely torn from.

“What time is it?”

“Time for you to be out of bed.”

Mo waits while I fumble my way into more sponsored gym wear then throws a pair of brand-new sneakers at my feet.

“I thought you were an early bird like my sister.”

I grunt, bending down to slip the shoes on, “Not when it’s Christmas break.”

“Everyone takes a break during the break. This is the time to get ahead.”

---