Page 36 of The Riley Effect

Ooh-ooh-ooh, honey

I snort a laugh as he leans forward until his forehead rests against mine. “I’m so sorry Ivy. My foot just hit the remote. I had no idea it was going to start the movie,” he laughs, “but just in case it wasn’t clear, you are the one I want”

I give him a playful push. He uses the momentum to pull out before getting up to clean himself off and throw away the condom. When he settles back onto the bed, he pulls my body into his. I can feel the rise and fall of Jalen’s chest as his breathing evens out. He falls asleep first, but I fall asleep wrapped in his arms. It’s been a long time since I’ve fallen asleep in a bed that’s not my own. It’s one thing to have a little fun, but it’s another to let myself get distracted, and I’ve worked too hard to get distracted now.

19

Jalen

“Ivy, give me a minute to wake up.” I swat at her hand that’s clawing at my chest. I hear giggling coming from the other side of the bed. I keep my eyes closed desperate for ten more minutes of sleep.

“If you really think I’m the one licking your face right now, you’re truly delusional.”

When I open my eyes, the first thing I see is the furry little fluff ball responsible for waking me up. A small part of me is kind of disappointed I wasn’t woken up by Ivy’s tongue.

“When did you get in here, little girl?” I coo as Mia makes her way onto my chest. Ivy moves over, so we’re sharing a pillow, fighting over who gets to hold Mia.

“How did she get in here?” I ask before giving Ivy a quick peck.

She rests her head on my shoulder before playing with the end of my braids. I don’t usually have girls stay over, and on the rare occasion I do, I never stay in bed long enough to talk or, even worse, cuddle. This feels good, though.

I have no idea what’s happening with us. One day, it feels like Ivy and I are on the same page, and the next, we aren’t even reading the same book. It’s clear that Ivy has major trust issues, I think last night was proof of that. Most of my teammates would wash their hands of a girl who was that distraught from me talking with another girl in a bar, but I can see there is more to this than someone just pissed that I’m not giving her attention. There has to be a story behind Ivy’s lack of trust, one I hope she’ll tell me when she’s ready. A few weeks ago, Ivy lived in the shadows. All I know is that she brings so much more light to my life and her waking up in my bed is better than any sunrise.

“Someone opened the door, and she ran in. I have no clue who it was.”

“She loves to come here in the morning and snuggle with me. It drives Byron crazy because she loves me more than him,” I state matter of factly. “Isn’t that right, little girl? I’m your favorite, isn’t that right.” I snuggle Mia into the crook of my neck.

“Now that she has all her shots, you should bring her to the shelter. The other dogs would love a new buddy to play with.”

I watch as Ivy arches her back before sitting up against my headboard. For the first time, I notice the tattoo that wraps around her side. The delicate script must have been hidden under her bra strap the night of the party, and for last night, Ihave no clue how I missed it. I’ll blame it on being too in the moment.

“What does it say?” I ask as my fingers run across it. She places her hand on mine. The movement is tender like she is making sure she can trust me with whatever she is about to share.

“It says, Be Brave, Be You. My mom would always say it to me,” she pauses to take a deep breath, “She died when I was eight, and I didn’t understand what it meant then, but my sister reminded me of the mantra during high school at a time when I was struggling, and it made me feel closer to Mom. So, I got this on my eighteenth birthday, so I’d always have a piece of her with me.”

Ivy looks down to where my fingers are still. I place the fingers of the opposite hand under her chin and tilt her head until her eyes meet mine.

“Thank you for sharing that with me,” I kiss her before continuing, “I’ll be here whenever you want to tell me more about her. I want to hear all about the woman you loved so much.”

She stays silent, and a sinking feeling settles in my stomach. Did I say the wrong thing? I don’t want to push her, but maybe that’s what she wanted. She did say she’s been working on opening up to people. Fuck, I don’t know what I’m doing. I’ve never liked a girl enough to talk about her family, and I’ve definitely never second-guessed myself this much.

“Jalennn,” the screeching sound comes from downstairs and in an instant I’m jolted back to reality. I quickly pull on a pair of sweatpants and make my way to the kitchen, where an angry Indy waits for me.

“Jalen,” she punches out, “Which girl in your rotation did you let go in the bathroom, use my stuff, and then leave thebathroom a mess?” Her hands are flying around, it’s not until Marcus wraps his arms around her that she calms down.

Does she really not remember coming home last night? She and Marcus were going at it pretty hard in the back seat, but that’s nothing new, and neither of them had to be drunk to partake in an aggressive post-bar makeout session.

I decide to make a game out of Indy trying to figure out who I was with last night. I can’t wait to see how many random girls she guesses until she lands on her best friend.

“You seriously don’t remember riding home together?”

Game ruined.

Ivy comes downstairs in my shorts and shirt, not trying to conceal the fact that we slept together last night.

Indy’s eyes slowly scan from Ivy’s to mine, then back to her best friend’s. “Why are you here?”

I always forget how well Indy can hold her liquor. There was no indication that she was blacked out last night. She met Marcus at a frat party where she outdrank the football team’s offensive line. If you ask Marcus, he’ll tell you it was love at first sight.

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