When his eyes dragged back over to mine, his lip curled up into a smirk. “I s’pose I am. Care to join me?” He widened the entry into his cabin.
Blowing out a flustered breath, I decided not to attempt a confrontation—not when he was intoxicated to the point of slurring. And definitely not when he was dressed like that. An angry fight combined with a nearly naked Sebastian would most likely end up with me just as naked, and the only resolution I’d end up with would be the ache between my thighs.
Before I did anything I would regret, I backed away from his door and shook my head. “No, Sebastian. I’m going to bed.”
I pulled my key card out in record time and held it against the sensor on my door.
“Kai, wait.”
I turned as he approached and pressed an arm against the frame at the top of my door.
Then we both heard it—the click of his door as it shut behind him, and our eyes went wide with a mutual thought. He didn’t have his key on him.
“Fucking shit,” he said, looking back at his door. Then he turned back to me with his eyes narrowed. “Well, aren’t you going to invite me in?”
I shook at the accusatory tone. “No, I’m not.” I pointed down the hall. “There’s a community phone near the elevator. Someone will let you into your room.”
Despite the lack of space, I managed to turn, unlock my door, and push inside my room. I tossed my key onto my desk and tore off my heels and jacket then chucked them across the room.
Gah. Sebastian was infuriating. No need to get an explanation from him. I knew exactly why he’d stood me up. He was getting wasted. Maybe the rumors of Sebastian’s drinking problem weren’t wrong at all.
I reached for the hem of my shirt and pulled it over my head, freezing when I heard someone clearing their throat behind me.
Shit, shit, shit. Did my door ever shut? No.
I pivoted to face an amused and still pissed-off-looking Sebastian. He’d only stepped a foot inside my cabin, but that one foot was dangerously close to leaving us half naked and alone together.
My arms were still caught in the shirt locked above my head, revealing a sheer black bra that surely was doing nothing to hide my hard nipples in the company of my intruder.
“What are you doing?” I shrieked. “Get out!”
“Not until you let me use your phone.”
“No. You can’t be in here.”
Deciding that removing my top was much easier than trying to put it back on, I tossed it onto my bed and charged Sebastian. My palms hit his chest, and I looked up into his baby-blue eyes. He wasn’t budging an inch.
“I’m not doing a walkabout in my smalls.”
My gaze fell. “Your smalls?”
“Undies, knickers, bum-huggers. Why? What do you call ’em?”
I shook my head, my eyes locked on a perfectly defined dick. “Definitely not smalls.”
I looked up. Another mistake. Sebastian’s grin was so wide, he looked like he’d eaten a Cheshire cat for dinner.
“Oh my God, Sebastian, you need to get out of my room right now.”
This time, when I pushed a little, he stumbled out into the hallway. Relief whooshed through me, but only for an instant. Chatter and footsteps could be heard through the door leading to the stairwell. Whoever was headed our way would see Sebastian in the hall and help him.
But my heart betrayed me as jealousy reared its ugly head at the thought. I didn’t want anyone seeing him like this, especially not in his state.
With a hushed growl, I grabbed Sebastian’s arm and tugged him back inside my room, bringing him far enough so that the door could shut behind him. His gaze was an inferno of heat and desire, and I couldn’t look away.
“Who’s crossing the line now?” He taunted me like I hadn’t just saved him from giving our fellow crew members a peep show. Then again, it was Sebastian. He probably wouldn’t have minded in the least.
“You wanted to use my phone.” I pointed at my nightstand, where the ship phone sat. “Knock yourself out. I’m going to shower. Feel free to let yourself out when you’re done.”
“Or,” Sebastian said, stepping toward me. “I could join you.” He ran a hand over my shoulder, hardening my nipples to the point that they ached with need.
I stepped back, forcing a laugh to mask my nerves. “Have you seen these bathrooms? We wouldn’t fit.”
He shrugged. “Tight squeezes are my specialty.”
I rolled my eyes. “Wow, you’re on a roll tonight.” Then I went to the bathroom and pulled the door shut and locked it behind myself, wondering if he’d actually be gone when I got out.
More than thirty minutes later, I walked out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel. I’d taken my sweet time, wanting nothing more than to crawl into bed and pass straight out. The day had been a long one, and I was still pissed at Sebastian.
I flipped on the hallway light and had started to unwrap my towel when something blue flashed in front of my sweeping gaze. Sebastian was still there, and he was facedown on my bed, asleep. I could tell by his heavy breathing and his mouth, hanging agape.
The book I’d been reading was lying facedown beside him beneath his hand. After picking it up, I flipped it over and chuckled at the irony of the clever title, Pour Judgment, by Heather M. Orgeron. Sebastian could probably relate. I quickly slipped it back onto the small bookshelf over my desk and returned to him.
“Sebastian,” I hissed. “Wake up.”
Maybe he was only half asleep. But he didn’t move, even after I shook him.
Groaning, I gave up the battle, dressed in a long shirt, and crawled under the covers. At least a sheet and comforter were between us, so he couldn’t accidentally cop a feel during the night.
I would kick him out in the morning.
Chapter 26
Sebastian
Dessert.
That was the first thing that popped into my mind when my eyes opened in the middle of the night. At least, it felt like the middle of the night. Then…
“Shit.”
I groaned at my headache and cursed myself for everything I could remember from the night before. Kai and I had had plans, but I’d gotten drunk after letting Dirk get under my skin. And I didn’t show up for frozen yogurt. Instead, I wrote a song heavily inspired by the woman I should have been with while writing it. To make matters worse, I ended up locking myself out of my cabin, which meant…
I was searching in pitch blackness for a clue as to where I was because I sure as hell wasn’t in my own room. I could tell by the lack of light streaming through a single porthole that looked out over the ocean. No, I was in an inside cabin.
I searched the bed with my hand, hitting something solid, and I sure as hell hoped it was Kai rather than some random crew member I might have picked up from the bar in a past life. No way had I done that last night, not with the way Kai had been consuming my every thought and breath.
A soft moan came from beside me. “You cold?” she asked.
I swore my heart stopped beating for a second just at the sound of her sweet voice. “Yes,” I lied.
“Get under the covers.”
I could tell she was half asleep by the grogginess in her voice. The room was so damn hot, but no way would I deny her. I slipped under the covers, well aware of my lack of clothing, and still trying to process everything. How the hell did I end up here?