Page 67 of Shattered

“But you will ignore me again when you’re sober and can remember why you hate me,” he said as he came over and she felt the bed shift with his weight.

She wanted to hate him. She wanted to hate him for making her feel something she had never once felt before. She wanted to hate him for causing her stomach to twist into knots and her heart to sputter whenever he was near. She wanted to hate him…but she didn’t. Not even a little bit. She, in fact,didn’thate him so much she couldn't think straight.

“I don’t hate you. You frustrate me.”

“Well, at least there is something we have in common.” He reached over, grabbed her hand that was poking out from the blanket, and started drawing little designs on her palm with his fingers.

“That feels so good.” Her sleepy mumble caused him to smile.

She was basically drooling. And she was so glad he couldn’t see her face. Sam had been craving his touch so much the past few days, this felt like she was getting a hit of the drug she was trying to stay far away from.

“I promise we can talk in the morning,” she said with a yawn and buried her face into the pillow more.

“If you truly want me to leave, I will. But we both know you won’t let me back in in the morning.”

Sam peeked out from underneath the covers and found a solemn expression on Callum’s face. “I don’t really want you to leave.”

“Are you sure?”

Sam nodded. “Stay,” she whispered just before she drifted off to sleep while holding onto his hand.

Chapter 28 - Sam

When Sam awoke, her first thought was how damn bright the sun was. It was streaming in through the window, and causing her ever-growing headache to steadily intensify. While trying to decide if the amount she drank last night was worth it, she finally sat up and prayed she wouldn’t vomit.

“Here, I found it in your bathroom.”

Sam bolted up in shock at the sound of Callum’s voice.

“What the fuck? Why are you…what…?”

Then it all came rushing back. The text messages, missed calls, and then her poorly executed attempt at not contacting him.

“Please take the aspirin.”

She looked down to Callum’s waiting hands to find two white pills and a bottle of water. She hesitated, but the throbbing in her head continued and she reluctantly reached out for the items.

“You stayed?” she questioned as she swallowed the pills, hoping the lingering nausea wouldn’t cause them to resurface anytime soon.

“Of course I stayed. You asked me to.”

She quickly looked around the room and then beside where she slept. The spot next to hers was completely undisturbed. “Where did you sleep?”

He gestured toward her small futon across the room. It had one of the decorative pillows from her bed on the left side and a small blanket pushed to the other end.

“Did you sleep on my futon?” she asked and he gave her a

quick nod. “You are like twice the size of it.”

“Trust me, I know,” he agreed with a smile and then made a dramatic display of stretching out his sore muscles. She wanted to laugh, but then she remembered she wasn’t supposed to like him at the moment. And despite how much she wanted to kick him out, her body craved his touch.

“You could have just stayed in the bed beside me.”

“And risk facing your wrath if you woke up next to me and didn't remember how I got in? I don’t think so.” He shook his head with a smirk.

“Thank you.” She ran her hands across her face. She wasn’t completely sure what she was thanking him for, or what she looked like right now, but if it was anywhere close to how she felt, it was bound to be terrible.

“Can we get coffee?” Callum asked.

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