Page 83 of Let’s Be Real

“No.” I pushed myself up on my elbow. “I’m sorry for coming here last night and further muddling things.”

He gave me a half-smile. “You had to get your pajamas.”

“Neither of us is buying that very thinly veiled excuse.” I huffed a sigh. “I missed you. And even saying that isn’t fair when I can’t give you what you want. I promise this is it. I’ll take my pajamas and leave you in peace. I’m not the kind of person who plays games, and I really don’t want to do that with you.”

He looked at me for a long time, long enough for me to want to swallow back every word and lay my head on his shoulder again.

Finally, he nodded. “You’re always welcome here, but…yeah, maybe not for sleepovers. Like you said, let’s not muddle things.”

“Okay.” I sat up, suddenly disoriented.

This was it. I mean, it should have been it days ago when I’d told him I couldn’t give him the real he wanted, but now, this was definitely it. I tried not to be a huge asshole as I went through life, and the last thing I wanted was to cause Nate any harm. But getting out of this bed and leaving seemed almost impossible now that it was time to do so.

Nate made it a little easier by getting up first and holding out his hand to me. And I nearly wept. Why did he have to be so kind? He didn’t know it made everything so much more difficult?

Still, I let him pull me out of bed, and my hand lingered in his. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” He let me go and took a step back. “Doing anything fun today?”

“Not really. Nothing except—” My eyes widened. “What time is it?”

He tapped his phone, bringing the screen to life. “7:23.”

“Oh, shit!” I slammed my hands into his bare chest, panic making me immobile. “My spin class. I’m supposed to meet Ade—”

Nate took me by the shoulders, giving them a squeeze. “Calm. You have time. Let’s think about this. There’s some workout gear in your bag, and I’m pretty sure your sneakers are in your car, aren’t they?”

I nodded dumbly. When he pulled out that smooth, assured, domineering voice, I really didn’t have a choice but to listen and believe whatever he said.

“All right. Let’s get you dressed and downstairs to meet Ade. No problem.”

He would have been right about all of it. I got myself dressed in one of my favorite athletic sets in record time. Teeth brushed, hair pulled back, face washed, and I was at the door, my suit crammed into my overfilled shopping bag.

Nate held the door for me, and I really wanted to hug him one more time, but that was being selfish. So I smiled.

“Thanks for putting up with me, Natey.”

He jerked his chin. “Get going, Sammie. Adrian’s going to be waiting.”

I drank him in for one more second, wondering how I ever thought he looked like an older version of Adrian. Nate was a man all unto himself. His brown eyes were soft and vulnerable, his jaw steely and resolute. His smiles were hard-won, and the way they lit all of him up made them more than worth it. I didn’t think I could go back to seeing him as just Adrian’s older brother, but I was going to try.

“Bye,” I whispered as I turned, rushing to the elevator.

After the doors closed and I pressed the button for the lobby, I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes.

That was a lot. Too much for this early in the morning. At least I was going to make it—

The elevator stopped too quickly for it to have reached the lobby. My eyes opened at the same time as the doors.

And standing on the other side was Adrian.

His head jerked, and he shot me a befuddled smile. “Sammie? What are you—?” He looked up, his brow furrowed, then stepped into the elevator. “What are you doing here?”

Chapter Twenty-nine

Samantha

We never made it to spin class.