Page 28 of This

I roll my eyes, and he falls onto his back, pulling me with him. We lie there, his fingers linking and unlinking with mine, my cheek on his shoulder. Other than Dane, I haven’t cuddled with anyone after sex in a long time. Not since Bentley and I went down in flames for a second time last year. And I won’t lie; I’ve missed the physical aspect. The warm body to sink into and lazy touches to remind you of what just happened. The part where the brain tries to trick you into emotionally bonding, not so much. Snuggle up and open up. Bleed all over the person who was just inside you to satisfy a hormonal need for connection.Yuck.

“Are you going to have any fallout from bailing on your dad?” I ask.

He twists my fingers until my wrist turns and then flips it the other way. “No. One of us usually cancels at the last minute.”

“I take it you two don’t share the same type of relationship as Liam and his dad?”

Weekend camping trips, father-son poker games.

“Not remotely,” he says. “He and Shane genuinely enjoy one another’s company. Greg and I tolerate each other for family events and business meetings.”

I want him to keep going, show me his soft underbelly. No one enjoys being vulnerable, but we all love to be the one to bring it out in someone else.

“What about you?” he asks. He tips my chin so I'll look at him, ready to make me bleed. “Liam told me about your mom, but he’s never mentioned anything about…”

“File six-two-four-nine-zero?” I shrug against his chest. “Straight brown hair, brown eyes, an inch shy of six-foot, athletic.”

His eyebrows draw in. “Sperm donor?”

“My mother’s choice in men was terrible. She outsourced for a chance at promising offspring, but like everything else, I failed to complete her. I ruined her body, soiled her life with sticky hands and requests for attention. And she was never going to forgive me for not being the answer for her.”

I mess with the chain around his neck, examining the broken line etched into the bar.

“You talk about her like she died,” he says.

I laugh once, scraping my nail over the metal. “I doubt it would feel much different if she did.” The words bottom out in the pit of my stomach, and I push off Dane’s chest, shaking my head. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

Damn it, Bennett.His momactuallydied, and I act blasé about mine’s life.

But he sits up beside me and runs his fingers down the hair hanging over my shoulder. “You have nothing to apologize for. You should be angry with the woman who ran off and left you behind. I’m pissed, and I’ve never met her.”

I lick my lips and look down. The room is too warm, even with the window open.

“Hey.” Dane pushes his hand into my hair, and I turn back to him. “Let’s get out of here. We can go on our fourth date in five months.” He kisses me but draws back and raises his eyebrows. “Unless this is an out-of-state booty call. In which case…” Another kiss as he leans me back on the bed, following me down until my head lands on the pillow and he hovers over me. “We’d better make the plane ticket worth my while.”

I smile, the breeze from the window reaching us again. “I don’t remember my last booty call involving an overnight bag.”

He presses his lips to mine one more time before he crawls off the bed. “This must not be one then.”

I guess not.

Dane meets Steve and Ariaover dinner at a crowded restaurant a few blocks away. At least twice as many people cram into the space as capacity allows, leaving us all sitting on top of one another at a table for two. By the time we order dessert, he and Steve have all but declared their love for one another. The financial advisor and painter share almost every interest—music, movies, opinions on late-night talk show hosts. Steve’s eyes when Dane offers a tip on investments compares to a man watching his bride walk down the aisle. Twenty minutes into a play-by-play of a football game that happened before either of them were born, Aria lays her head on my shoulder and sighs.

“I always tell him he should open up to people more.”

“You regret it?” I ask.

Mid-yawn, she says, “Right now, I do.”

She falls asleep shortly after, and Steve carries her out of the restaurant, never even considering waking her. Dane and I trail along behind, but halfway to the apartment, he tugs on my hand.

“We’ll catch up.”

“Have fun,” Steve calls over his shoulder.

Dane turns me the other way down the sidewalk.

“And where are we going?”

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