Page 57 of Follow the Rhythm
My phone buzzed in my hand.
Made it back to hotel. Thx for taking care of drunky, Grace had texted.
Glad you’re safe, I replied and placed my phone on the table next to me.
I lay awake, picturing Jess’s face as she danced. It was hard to reconcile the prickly Jess I knew with that radiantly happy version. It was like the music had lifted a layer of armor to show the woman beneath.
I started drifting off, but movement woke me up. Jess had turned towards me, still asleep. Her head was on the pillow next to mine, her hand resting on my chest. I rested my hand overhers and kissed her on the top of her head. She sighed in her sleep and wriggled closer.
I fell asleep plotting how I could convince her she needed me just as much as I needed her.
I woke up to sunshine peeking through the curtains.
Jess had draped herself completely over me, legs on either side of my waist, arms tucked into my chest, her hair brushing my jaw. She’d kicked off her blankets in the night and crawled on top of me like a barnacle stuck on the side of a ship. My arm was curled protectively around her back. That fucking dress had ridden up to her waist, but I kept my eyes firmly on the slice of her face I could see, calm in sleep.
It was the sweetest torture.
I didn’t move, and I didn’t even want to breathe in case I woke her up. I needed to memorize the feeling of her in my arms if this was the only time she ever let it happen.
Eventually, she stirred.
“Good morning,” I said when she lifted her head to look around.
“Good morning,” she murmured, then snuggled her head back down on my chest, inhaling deeply, her legs tightening briefly on my sides.
A few moments later, though, she stiffened, then scrambled off me back to her side of the bed.
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry,” she said, yanking the dress down to her thighs, her face blazing scarlet. “Can I somehow blame that on you?”
I laughed. “I don’t think so, no. But we can pretend it never happened if you prefer.”
Jess hid her face in her hands.
“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. I’m happy to be your pillow whenever you want,” I said, pulling one of her hands down.
She grimaced. “This has ruined my plan.”
“What plan?”
“To never speak to, look at, or touch you again after you cruelly rejected me,” she said, as if it were obvious.
My heart sank, but I forced a smile. “I hate that plan. It’s a horrible plan.”
She rolled her eyes. “That ship has sailed. I guess I should thank you for getting me home and making sure I lived through the night.”
“You’re welcome,” I said. Her scent was warmer and sweeter from sleep, and I was absolutely covered in it. I sat up. “I’d better go.”
Jess studied me. “Really? That’s it?”
I raised an eyebrow in question.
“You wake up with an Omega all over you, and you’re just ready to leave?” she asked. “You’re doing wonders for my self-esteem.”
I met her gaze. She was wearing an ironic smile, but I could see a bit of vulnerability in her eyes. “Do you truly think I’m rejecting you?”
That vulnerability flared brighter. “It’s hard not to when it keeps happening.”
“You said you trusted me last night. Do you remember that?”
