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His mouth quirks. “Gets cold down here at night sometimes,” he says, holding me close. “I won’t mind the company.”
I smile. “Okay,” I say, silently willing myself to be cool. “Then, I’ll stay.”
Riley kisses me softly once again, and I kiss him back.
5
TISH
Istir on the bed, my limbs silently screaming at me as I slowly drift into consciousness. It has been a while since someone’s stretched me out this way and that, and I feel myself smiling wide before I even open my eyes.
I open them in a dark and cold room. An apartment. Riley’s apartment beneath Sparks Pub.
I pull the blanket further over me, the bed still warm. Expecting Riley to be lying beside, I slowly turn my head to look behind me on the bed.
“Meow.”
“Ah!” I lurch, face-to-face with the black cat. I breathe a laugh, scolding myself. “Good morning, Jake,” I say.
He doesn’t reply.
Noticing that Riley is nowhere to be seen, I blink as my eyes adjust to the darkness. No windows down here. What time is it even?
“Where’s Riley?” I ask Jake.
“Meow.”
“Right,” I reply with a nod. “Well, thank you.”
I sit up on the bed, keeping the sheet clenched against my chilled breasts. Memories spark as I glance around, my bodyrecalling what we did on the couch. And on the table. And on the bed.
“Riley?” I ask.
No answer.
I chew my cheek, debating whether to go back to sleep or...leave.
“Shit,” I say, finally awake enough to remember something other than screaming orgasms.
Like the fact that I have to work today.
I scan the room for my handbag, quickly spotting it on the floor by the couch. I scoot off the bed, cursing as my bare feet touch the cold floor. Taking the bedsheet with me, I shuffle over to grab my handbag, finding my cell phone inside.
“Nine,” I say with relief. My shift isn’t until eleven. “Thank the maker.”
If I’m late again, Bruno’s gonna... well, he’ll probably just snort. Big dude’s a big softy on the inside.
The door opens. A beam of light breaks the darkness and I flinch, my phone nearly slipping from my hands. I drop the bedsheet, using both hands to catch the phone safely before it cracks against the floor.
“Tish?” Riley asks, flicking on the light.
I freeze in the middle of his room; the bedsheet pooled at my ankles, my phone clenched between my palms. “Uh-huh,” I murmur.
He pauses in the kitchenette, a to-go tray with two coffees in one hand and a paper bag in the other. “Whatcha doing?” he asks, looking me over curiously.
“Nothing. Just...” I hold up my hands. “Checking the time.”
“Naked?”
