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“Am I missing the party?”
Dominic closed the door behind himself before dropping his bag on the floor. Rayelle jumped up from her seat and ran to him, jumping into his arms when he held them open. Bryce laughed and rolled his eyes.
“That’s Dominic. My friend since forever and Rayelle’s husband,” he explained to Samantha. “He’s an over the road truck driver, so he’s been gone for the past few weeks, but you’d think he was away at war.”
“Well, I think it’s sweet. I’ve never had that.”
“Yeah. Neither have I,” he agreed before turning his attention to Dominic. “Come on over here and have a drink. You have catching up to do.”
“I brought bourbon,” Dominic announced. “Thought you could use it. Sorry about your brother.”
“Thanks,” Bryce accepted. “This is Samantha. Brandon’s wife.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, Samantha. How are you holding up?” Dominic asked as he pulled up a chair and joined them at the table.
“I’m managing,” she answered. Bryce could tell she wasn’t comfortable staying on the topic of her late husband.
“Somehow we ended up playing Never Have I Ever,” Bryce said, effectively changing the subject. “Interested?”
“Why not? But let’s at least make it interesting and switch to bourbon. We’ve all had a long day.”
Rayelle grabbed four glasses from the kitchenette. Dominic poured a little bourbon into each glass, and just like that the game became more interesting. With the statements they managed to think up, Bryce felt like he was getting to know everyone at the table, and not just Samantha. They were all good at coming up with things to make the others drink, so it wasn’t long before they polished off an entire bottle of bourbon.
“I should get going,” Samantha said as she pushed her chair away from the table.
Bryce looked at the time on his phone and then at the empty bottles of champagne and bourbon on the table. No way was she leaving. It was too late for any female to walk around by herself, let alone someone who had been drinking. He would have offered to see her home but if he was honest, he’d also had too much to drink.
“That’s not a good idea.”
“Bryce, I have a Metro Card and the train is right across the street. And my building is a block away from my stop. I’ll be fine, I’ve been taking care of myself since long before Brandon died,” Samantha argued.
“That’s fine, but you aren’t his responsibility anymore. I wouldn’t feel right letting you go, and I’d never forgive myself if anything happened to you,” he said, ending with a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. “Please, just stay here.”
She looked around as if she was expecting the others to have her back, but Dominic stood up and led Rayelle toward the bedroom. Bryce didn’t want Samantha to feel trapped or uncomfortable, but there was no way she was leaving to go home in the middle of the night.
“There’s just the fold-out couch, but I can have Dominic bunk with me so you and Rayelle can share the bedroom. Whatever will make you feel comfortable.”
She let out a nervous laugh and actually began wringing her hands. “He’s been away from her for the past however many weeks. And it seems they like each other. I won’t do that to either of them.”
Bryce watched quietly as she worked out her options. It was obvious that she was nervous, but he wasn’t sure what had her so worked up. She stood up and he could see she was a bit unsteady. The way she met his gaze told him she realized how unsteady she was at the same time he did.
“No way I’m letting you stumble out of here in the middle of the night. There’s extra blankets in the closet; I can sleep on the floor.”
“Stop it. You aren’t sleeping on the floor. If I stay—”
“If you stay that’s all it is. You staying. I’ll stay on my side of the bed on top of the blankets. I know how to keep my hands and everything else to myself.”
She laughed nervously again. “Do you think Rayelle has something I can borrow to sleep in? I don’t want to do the walk of shame in the morning in wrinkled up clothes I slept in.”
He breathed a sigh of relief. “I have a t-shirt you can sleep in if that’s okay. There’s a bathrobe hanging up in the bathroom. You were right about them being apart for several weeks. I’d rather not knock on that door.”
Another nervous laugh. “Okay.”
Bryce unzipped his bag and pulled out a dark gray shirt and handed it to her. “You don’t have to be so nervous. You can trust me.”
Samantha woke up in strange surroundings. Though the curtains were drawn, she could see bits of daylight peeking through. She looked to her left and breathed a sigh of relief to find she was alone in bed. Flashes from the previous night came through as she stretched and fully entered consciousness. Glasses of champagne, shots of whiskey, and drinking games.
Lifting the blankets in a panic, she saw she was in a borrowed t-shirt. Just as the bathroom door opened, she remembered Bryce lending her something to sleep in. She looked up to Bryce walking out with a towel wrapped around his waist and his wet hair falling into his eyes. Before she caught herself, she glanced at his defined abs and chiseled chest. He froze when she made eye contact.
