Page 43 of Sparks Fly

“Okay, okay,” She said kissing me one more time before sliding off. “I’m stopping.”

She glanced toward the clock and groaned. “My alarm is set for five-thirty.” She said leaning her head on my shoulder.

“That’s brutal,” I replied.

“I run six miles before work.”

“Tomorrow is Saturday, Addison.” For some reason saying her name like that felt, intimate. And I think she felt it too, because she looked at me with this soft smile.

“I keep a structured routine, I always have.”

I kissed her cheek. “You’re a machine.”

She leaned forward and kissed the corner of my mouth before smiling. “Not tomorrow,” she said. “I’m skipping it.”

Then she looked back toward the television. “Stay,” she said as she reached for the remote. “Watch a few more episodes?”

“You had me at skipping the run,” I told her.

We settled back into the couch with her between my legs leaning against my chest my arms wrapped around her. She pulled a blanket over us and I was maybe the most content I’d been in… ever.

Sometime after two in the morning, we both drifted off to sleep like that.

* * *

14

Addison

My alarm went off at 5:30 a.m. loud and unforgiveable.

I groaned while swiping blindly at my phone until the sound stopped. The room stayed dark and quiet, but something about it felt different, there was warmth behind me, steady and solid. An arm rested over my waist like it had always belonged there.

Sawyer.

Her breath brushed the back of my neck in slow, even rhythms that told me she was still sound asleep.

“How did you sleep through that?” I smiled and shifted carefully so I wouldn’t wake her too quickly.

I pressed a soft kiss to the corner of her mouth. “Hey,” I whispered, my voice rough with sleep as I nudged her gently. “It’s 5:30. Do you want to move to the bed?”

Sawyer made a low, sleepy sound and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, looking for a moment like a kid who didn’t want to admit she was exhausted.

I took her hand and lead her down the hall to my room. Sawyer paused by the bed just long enough to push her jeans down over her hips and kick them off without ceremony. There was no performance in the movement, only comfort.

She stood there in a worn T-shirt and underwear, soft lines and sleepy ease replacing the confidence she carried when she was fully awake. The sight of her like that, unguarded and real, sent a warm flip through my stomach.

I pulled the sheets back and climbed into bed the sheets cool. Sawyer slipped in behind me without hesitation and curled close, one arm wrapping around my waist, her knees bending to match mine.

I exhaled softly when her bare thigh pressed against the back of my leg, her body felt warm and grounding in a way that made the whole room calmer.

She leaned forward and kissed the back of my neck, the touch light and almost reverent. “Mmm,” Sawyer murmured sleepily as her breath warmed my skin. “Goodnight.”

The softness of her voice settled somewhere deep in my chest. “Goodnight,” I whispered while threading my fingers through hers beneath the covers. I fell asleep quickly after that.

* * *

When I woke up again, sunlight slipped through the sheer curtains. I blinked at the clock and saw it was already eight. The rare indulgence of sleeping in made me smile as I stretched beneath the covers, my arms reaching overhead while my shirt rode up slightly along my stomach.