Page 58 of Whisper Of Attraction (Whisper Lake 3)

CHAPTER 17

Brynn was floating in the precarious zone between waking up and drifting back off to sleep when she felt a chill. Out of habit, she reached for the blanket that she was sure Lucy must’ve stolen in the middle of the night. Her half-conscious plan was to cover herself up and let the enveloping warmth of the comforter lull her back into slumber. But her plan was thwarted when her palm hit something hard and solid. Her lids flew up and she saw Axel asleep beside her. His face was so peaceful and content. So relaxed and happy.

Memories from the night before flooded back to her. Her going to Axel’s apartment. Him kissing her and making love to her against the wall. Then her trying to get dressed and leave and him kissing her again. Making love on the couch. Her saying she was worried about Lucy. Moving down to the main house, popping popcorn, watching Property Brothers, and talking into the wee hours of the morning.

Morning.

She lifted her head and saw tiny flecks of dust in the sunlight streaming in through the slit in the drapes. The sun was up. That was impossible. Her eyes shot to her phone on the nightstand. She clumsily fumbled for the device and pressed the home button to see what time it was.

There was a seven followed by two zeros.

“It’s seven o’clock?” she whispered as she stared at the numbers in disbelief.

That couldn’t be right. She hadn’t slept past her five a.m. internal reveille since she was twelve years old.

Beside her, she felt Axel stir. Her breath caught in her throat and she held it as she turned her head, expecting to find him awake. When she saw that his eyes were shut, she exhaled slowly in relief. She needed a few moments to process everything.

Honestly, she wasn’t sure which was more surprising, everything that happened last night or the fact that she’d slept in.

A knock sounded at the front door before she was able to fully contemplate her situation. Startled, she jumped out of bed, suddenly feeling like a teenager caught with a boy in her room. One quick glance over her shoulder told her that her sudden movements hadn’t disturbed Axel or Lucy, who was curled up at his feet.

Brynn grabbed her phone and her heart raced as she hurried down the hall. Mentally, she felt like she was a beat behind and her brain was playing catch up.

It was Saturday morning.

Ryder had spent the night at the high school. He wasn’t due back until this evening as he’d asked if he could go help Ali and the boys over at the rental shop.

A good work ethic was something that she’d done her best to instill in Ryder. And it made her feel good that he took helping out at the shop seriously and didn’t just mess around with his friends when he was there. Ali always raved about how hardworking Ryder was.

The thoughts of Ryder made her decide that she needed to wake Axel up as soon as she got rid of whoever was at the door. Teenagers were unpredictable and the last thing she’d ever want was for Ryder to come home and find Axel in the house, or worse, her bed.

She envisioned how waking him up might go, hoping for him tugging her into bed and them going for round three, as she opened the door. The bright morning sun flooded her entryway and she squinted and lifted her hand to her forehead. Jess was standing on her front porch, holding a bag and two paper cups from Cobblestone Cafe.

“Were you sleeping?” her friend asked expectantly.

“Um, I just woke up.”

“Yay! I thought for sure I’d be too late.”

“Too late for what?” Brynn asked, still a step behind.

“For breakfast in bed.” She lifted the bag and the carrier that held the drinks and stepped inside her house.

“You brought me breakfast in bed?” Brynn smiled widely as she closed the door behind her friend.

“I did.” Jess spun so she was facing her. “Ali wanted to come too, but Saturdays are crazy at the rental shop.”

“You guys are so sweet.”

“We are. But full disclosure, we also wanted to discuss last night.”

Last night?

How did they know?

They were already gone when she’d slow danced with Axel. Her mother was a self-professed clairvoyant but she didn’t think her friends had ever made such claims.

“Last night?” she swallowed so hard she was sure it was audible.

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