Page 47 of Losing Sleep
“We both know how this is going to end,” I persisted.
“Come on, it’ll be fun.” Grey bumped me with his shoulder before selecting the next race and pressing start. “Who knows? You may even surprise yourself.”
No words could describe the chaos that followed. I continued to struggle driving, and yet somehow, Grey managed to stay behind me. He ran over every trap and repeatedly fell off the track. At one point, I was certain he’d taken his finger off the gas button, though I couldn’t see his controller well enough to be sure.
Far longer than it should have taken, I drove across the finish line for the third time, finishing the race. Grey followed right behind me, ending the torture, much to everyone’s relief.
“You let me win!” I turned to face Grey, watching as he schooled his features into a neutral expression.
“No, I didn’t,” he said, shaking his head.
“Really? Because I watched you decimate Brad.” I stood, hands on my hips, looking at Grey, who sat cross-legged on the floor pretending all was right with the world.
Brad spoke up in outrage. “Decimated is a strong word. I—”
Grey cut Brad off with a chuckle, pushing to his feet to stand toe to toe with me, hands in his pockets, a grin peeking through his beard. “Maybe beating Brad was a lucky fluke. Or maybe you’re better than you give yourself credit for.” He flashed me a wink before settling on one of the couches and patting the cushion next to him. “Either way, you’re still in the game. Might as well get comfortable.”
“I know you cheated,” I muttered under my breath as I settled next to him, choosing to ignore how much I enjoyed his closeness and woodsy aroma.
“Maybe, but you’ll never prove it.” Grey slung his arm around my shoulders and pulled me in close to his side. “Might as well enjoy the show. Cheer me on to victory, and all that.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and grumbled under my breath about cheating, self-satisfied men. But I didn’t push away from Grey’s side. I told myself it was because he was warm andthe basement was frigid, but the way I leaned in to catch hints of his familiar smell said otherwise.
We continued playing into the wee hours of the morning. I was immediately eliminated with my next race, this one against Kylie, who showed no mercy. But at that point, I was too comfortable sitting next to Grey. Not to mention, I wanted Grey to win, if for no other reason than to prove that he’d cheated by letting me win our match. Or at least, that’s what I told myself.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The next morning cametoo early. Despite going to bed hours later than normal, I was still the first one awake. Someday, I’d let go of anxiety and sleep past 7:30. Then again, maybe sleep deprivation would do me in, and I could sleep when I was dead. I lay in bed a few moments longer, attempting to doze off, but eventually accepted that I was awake and stumbled out to the living room.
I picked up the book I’d attempted to start the night before and settled in to read until everyone else woke up. My head pounded too much from the late night to attempt yoga.
The book was just starting to hold my interest when my phone buzzed and kept buzzing in my pocket. I pulled it out, the pressure behind my eyes intensifying as I registered who was calling: Drew. I rubbed my forehead, trying to relieve the tension, and accepted the call. The sooner I answered, thesooner I could get this over with. Maybe if I was lucky, my cell coverage would fail and the call would drop.
“Hi, Drew. What’s up?” I didn’t bother hiding my exhaustion, hoping he would hear it and cut our conversation short. Then again, I was more likely to discover unicorns in Island Park than for Drew to take interest in someone other than himself.
“Where are you?” Drew’s words were clipped and rushed.
I glanced at a rooster-themed clock on the wall, noting that my work shift would have started only a few minutes ago.
“I’m on vacation, remember? It’s been on the calendar for weeks.” I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to relieve the pounding in my head.
“I thought you were going for a couple of days. I’m certain—”
I cut in. “I’mcertainmy PTO request was for a week—and that you signed off on it. I can forward you the email approval, if you like.”
Now his voice was breathier, each word coming out faster than the last. “What I meant to say was, I didn’t expect you to take the whole time. You don’t go on long vacations. At most you only ever take off a day or two at a time.”
He hadn’t been on the team when I’d taken my leave of absence last summer to help my mom after the accident. Helping with the girls while Dave worked and Mom healed had taken weeks. Otherwise, he wasn’t wrong. Me and vacations weren’t often on speaking terms. The missed work and prep to leave were rarely worth the hassle of taking time off. Or at least, that’s what I told myself. This trip was making me reevaluate that assessment.
“This time, I am going to be gone the whole time. What do you need?” It wasn’t the most professional way to speak to my supervisor, but the pounding in my head meant I had little patience for Drew and his mind games. I was going to need a Pepsi sooner rather than later.
“The system update rolled out last night, and we could really use more people on the phones. Do you think you could come in for a couple of hours?” Over the course of the conversation, Drew’s voice had transformed from clipped and forceful to a nasally whine that would have done Lily and Poppy proud.
“No, I can’t.”
“We’ll pay time and a half. We really need you!” His voice was panicked and desperate, and I felt an odd sense of satisfaction.
“Then you should have thought of that before approving my time off during the system rollout. If you need people so much,youcan hop on the phones.” Drew avoided working the phones like a hiker avoiding a bear fresh out of hibernation.
