Page 124 of Third and Ten

I can’t help but laugh at him. “Come on, you’re going to bed.”

“Nuh-uh, not sso fasst, young lady,” he says, slurring this time. He reaches out and pulls on the drawstring around my neck. “You’re wearing my hoodie.”

Oops. Busted.

“I stole this hoodie fair and square, and it’s not coming off tonight. Now, get into bed.”

“Oh, I like it when you…when you boss me around,” he says, attempting a sultry look through his half-lidded eyes. It should be funny, but this room is getting warmer by the second.

“Good, then get your ass to bed, Coach Thirsty,” I command, placing my hands on his bare back and pushing him along. He giggles and snorts, then stops abruptly before the bed and arches his hip up and to the side. He glances magnanimously over his shoulder, thinking he’s doing me a favor with his generous offering.

“You have to do it, or I won’t move,” he declares.

“JD, you’re ridiculous.”

“Well, damn, Jackie. I can’t control the rules.”

“That’s not even how that one goes,” I point out, trying my hardest to take him seriously. But I don’t know which is worse: the bad TV lines or the fact that he’s waiting patiently for me to touch his butt.

“Nobody asked you, Patrice,” he retorts, making me roll my eyes.

Then he lifts his chin tauntingly and bounces his eyebrows. “Come on, Ten. You know you want to,” he adds, because we both know I’ll inevitably give in to him.

I heave out a loud sigh before I cave and flatten my left hand, using it to softly smack his proffered cheek. Then he throws his head back in a loud guffaw, and I hide my now-reddened face with both of my hands.

But he pulls them down. “Babe, I hate to dissa—disappoint you, but I’m not drunk enough”—he stops, hiccups, swallows a burp, and continues—“to forget that part.”

“Just…get your firm butt in bed,” I repeat, dropping his hands from mine.

“Only if you’ll join me,” he says, his tone more solemn.

“I can’t. I’m still in my work scrubs.”

“Just take them off. Please?”

Heat swirls around in my stomach as he stares at me as if I were the only woman in the world.

“Will you behave?”

He smiles mischievously. “I’ll try.”

Reluctantly, I pull the jacket up over my head and toss it aside, and JD steps in to tug the waistband of my scrub top. “Please?” he begs again, impossibly irresistible.

“Can I borrow a T-shirt?” I ask timidly.

He pouts for a second before he turns to fetch a shirt from his dresser. But he drops it onto the bed instead of handing it to me.

“I should probably change in bathroom,” I propose, my voice unsteady.

But he keeps his eyes glued to mine as he shakes his head slowly.

Well, if this is going to be the first time I let him see this much of my body, at least he’ll be more likely to ignore all of the imperfections with whiskey goggles on, right?

I squeeze my eyes shut for a second, mustering a surge of confidence, then reopen them as I peel away my top. He tugs on the string at my waist until he loosens my pants, sliding them down my hips and leaving me in a bra and a mismatched pair of underwear. But JD’s reverent expression says that he’s a huge fan of my comfy work drawers, and he devours me with his eyes as he grabs my hand and brings it to his mouth for a kiss.

“So beautiful,” he says softly.

I step over my clothes and shake my head, refusing to believe him. But he pulls me closer until our bodies are pressed together, staring me down the whole time.

---