Page 98 of Alive At Night

She didn’t hesitate to answer that question.

“Did you lie to me tonight?” I asked before holding my breath and waiting for a reply.

I didn’t have to wait long.

“Not at all.”

Daring to get closer to her beneath the covers, I curled an arm around her waist. She settled right into me.

Yeah, I was going to miss this.

I transferred my head from my pillow to hers to whisper in her ear. “Ironic, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” She didn’t turn around, but I could tell she wanted to. I wondered if she could tell what I wanted, too.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Her voice started to disappear into the night. “It’s ironic, Julian.”

CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE

julian

INEEDED JUNIPER’S ASS to be further away from my crotch.

This was the first time that being someone’s big spoon had caused me physical anguish. Juni kept readjusting herself like she couldn’t get comfortable even while sleeping, and it was even more distracting than yesterday morning when I caught her tracing my abs with her fingers.

When I couldn’t take any more torture, I slid out of bed and padded toward the bathroom.

I needed to take a long, cold shower.

Unfortunately, it didn’t end up giving me very much relief, and I left the bathroom feeling equally as…tense.

Not to mention, when I made the decision to only wear a towel riding low on my hips, I assumed Juni would still be passed out. But now I stood at the foot of the bed, about to break out in a sweat. God, it made me want to dive back under the cold shower spray when she looked at me like that.

“You’re awake.”

Juniper blinked at me, and I ran a hand through my hair nervously, slicking back my wet locks. Water trickled from the ends of my strands down my back and shoulders. Juniper’s eyes widened as she watched, similar to when I was stripping my shirt off last night.

Jesus Christ.

“Juni, do you…” I cleared my throat. “Do you remember last night?”

Her eyes darted to my face and lingered for a moment before she answered. “Yeah,” she whispered and then straightened herself in a hurry. She flung the covers off and scrambled out of bed, mumbling something about how she was going to take a shower. Her eyes stayed downcast, watching her feet as she tiptoed around the bed.

When she went to dart past me, I hooked an arm around her waist to stop her without even thinking twice about it. I should have, though. She looked at me with pretty but alarmed eyes, her hair hanging limply around her face.

“All of it?” I asked, needing to know. “Or just some of it?”

I couldn’t help it; my gaze fell to her mouth, my own memories nearly doing me in.

“All of it,” Juniper said, a hushed confession.

I dropped my arm like her words burned me, and Juniper ran off to the bathroom. I didn’t move from my spot until I heard the shower turn on, and then all I could do was quickly dress and pack my suitcase.

The thought of Juniper stripping down on the other side of that bathroom door was enough to drive me to my breaking point. I scribbled her a note that I would be waiting for her in the lobby and then left to get some fresh air.

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