Page 29

Something between a groan and a hum greets me in return and my pillow, or what I thought was my pillow, moves underneath me. I jerk up in bed, blinking to clear the sleep from my eyes as I glance down at the bed. Sawyer cracks his eyes open and our gazes meet. My lips part as I suck in a breath, the situation crashing down on me as a blush creeps up my cheeks.

Oh my God…

“So much for you staying on your side of the bed, darlin’,” he quips as a sly grin stretches across his face and he reaches over to the nightstand to grab his phone and turn off his alarm. Silence descends on the room and I groan again as I drop my face into my hands. I’m going to die of embarrassment. His soft chuckle pierces through my imminent demise and I move my fingers to peek out at him. My cheek is still warm from where it was pressed against his chest and my fingertip traces over the indentations left from his shirt.

“I’m sorry,” I squeak and he laughs again. The sound is rich and warm. It’s the kind of laugh that immediately puts you at ease and makes you yearn for more, the kind of laugh that will have me doing all sorts of stupid things just to hear it again. With a sigh, I drop my hands into my lap and stare at him, unable to look away as he throws one hand behind his head and lays the other over his taut stomach. Even through his wife beater, I can see the definition of his muscles and my mouth waters.

“Hell, I’m not,” he replies, looking up at me with a shit eating grin. “Been a long time since I woke up with a gorgeous woman in my arms so I’m certainly not going to complain.”

My lips part as I suck in a breath. “You think I’m gorgeous?”

“I do have two functioning eyes and twenty-twenty vision so…yeah.”

“Oh,” I whisper as I drop my gaze to the comforter. My heart races out of control in my chest and my cheeks burn. If it really was five years ago and a man like Sawyer told me I was gorgeous, I would have flirted with him without a second thought but now… I have no idea what to do or who to be.

“What? No compliments for me?” he asks, moving the hand on his stomach to cover his heart. “I’m hurt. Is it my hair? Does it look like shit in the mornings?”

He ruffles a hand through his hair before trying to comb it all over to one side and I laugh despite the butterflies trying to escape from my belly. Pushing it all down, I summon a little piece of that girl I was five years ago and give him a little shove before turning to swing my legs over the edge of the bed.

“You’re all right, I suppose,” I fire back, peeking back at him as I fight a smile. “But I need to go get ready.”

He laughs. “Yeah, all right. I’ll load up the truck while you’re getting ready and we’ll hit that diner before we take off.”

I nod and push off the bed before grabbing my bag and slipping into the bathroom. When the door is locked, I turn to the mirror and stare at my reflection again as my heart rate slows to a normal level and my cheeks go back to their usual tan color. Good Lord, what is going on with me? I’ve never felt anything like this in my life and I can’t decide what is real and what is just a result of this crazy situation I’m in.

“Be rational, Jules,” I whisper to myself as I shake my head. I met the man a total of seven hours ago and most of that time was spent asleep so there is absolutely no way in hell that I actually feel anything for him. Do I think he’s cute? Hot, even? Absolutely and I do think he is kind for agreeing to this plan in the first place but that’s it. Except I don’t know if that’s true…

There is this nagging feeling that I’m finding harder and harder to ignore telling me that this time is different. But then again, I can’t remember the past five years of my life so what the hell do I know? Sighing, I drop my head for a second before meeting my gaze again. I can’t keep doing this. If this whole thing is going to work, if I’m going to get the answers I so desperately need, I have to follow my heart and just do what feels right. Even if that means flirting with a man I just met. I can’t fight it anymore and I have faith that someone out there has a plan for me, that all of this is happening for a reason.

Confident in my conclusion, I nod to my reflection and turn to my bag before opening it and pulling out a pair of dark jeans and a casual t-shirt. It’s cute but perfect for sitting in a truck all day long as we make the drive back to Baton Rouge. Once I’m dressed, I fix my hair into a cute messy bun and throw on some mascara and lip gloss. Satisfied with my look, I pack everything back into my bag before stepping out into the room again. Sawyer is sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at his phone and he glances up.

“Ready to go?”

My stomach growls as if on cue and I laugh as I nod. “I think that’s a yes.”

“Let me take your bag,” he says, reaching for the duffle in my hand and I pass it to him. As we head for the door, I feel his hand at the base of my spine, gently guiding me out of the room and for some reason, it makes me feel so safe. He’s literally got my back and I feel like nothing bad will happen to me as long as he’s around. Well, hell… I guess Mercedes might have been onto something when she called the club. When we get to the truck, he opens my door for me and I flash him a smile as I climb inside.

“I’m just going to do one last sweep of the room, okay?” he asks and I nod. He sets my bag in the back of the truck before heading back into the room. I dig my phone out of my purse and consider calling Mercedes while I sit in the truck but decide to wait until we’re about to leave. Surely Gavin has found my note by now and I don’t want to risk him finding a way to track me down before I even make it out of the city. What would I even say to him if he did track me down? It’s not like I can go back to that apartment and pretend to be his fiancée with no memories. Thoughts of him finding the note and the ring on the kitchen counter this morning fill my mind and my teeth sink into my lip as I wonder how he took it. Was he angry? Did he understand why I need to do this? I’m sure that either way he is hurting but I just hope he will be able to see my logic and look at this situation from my perspective. The door to the truck opens and I jump as it jerks me out of my thoughts. Sawyer’s brow arches as he slides behind the wheel.

“You okay?”

I nod. “Yeah.”

He studies me for a second before nodding in agreement and starting the truck. The engine rumbles to life, sending vibrations from my feet all the way to my chest and I sigh as I lean my head back against the seat as he pulls out of the parking lot. The sun is just starting to peek up over the ocean, casting hues of pink and purple across the sky as we drive down the street in our quest to consume the best pancakes in the county. Sawyer pulls the truck into the parking lot and I scan the area. There are a few cars in the lot but it’s empty for the most part which isn’t surprising since it’s barely six thirty. I press the back of my hand to my lips as I yawn and Sawyer chuckles.

“Not a morning person?” he asks as he pulls into a parking spot and I shake my head.

“Nope. Night owl. You seem…perky, though.”

He barks out a laugh that makes my heart flutter. “Perky? You know… I don’t know that anyone’s ever used that word to describe me.”

“Do they not have eyes? Or are they also unusually perky morning people?”

“Neither,” he answers, his smile falling away as he drops his gaze into his lap and shakes his head. I scowl, studying him as I lean forward and place my hand on his arm.

“You okay?”

He meets my gaze. “Yeah… It’s just… if I told you what I was thinking right now, you’d think I was crazy.”