Why is the wall talking?
Why is the wall wet?
Why does the wall smell like sage and warm summer nights like Cooper’s bodywash which I definitely do not ever use or smell in the shower?
“Don’t move,” he warns, his voice low and quiet in my ear.
The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
It’s the same voice he uses when there’s something behind me that I don’t want to see.
Fear consumes me, and everything happens at once.
Scared, I jerk backward, and for some reason, Cooper follows, falling into me. His heavy hands land on my shoulder and stay for half a second before he’s shoving me away.
Something brushes against my leg and I panic, sending my sketchpad into the air and landing I don’t even know where.
His towel, which has apparently attached itself to the broken spiral that’s barely holding the pages together, is tangled up with my book that’s sprawled out on the floor down the hall.
Cooper’s standing opposite me.
Naked.
Completely and utterly naked.
Is that his…
Oh my.
It is.
“Fuck.”
His voice is raw. Hoarse. Totally not him.
His hands fly to cover his junk, and the tic in his jaw is unmissable. A storm brews in his usually pale green eyes, and I’m not sure if it’s due to anger, humor, or embarrassment.
I don’t watch them long enough to find out.
Completely unable to be stopped, my eyes travel of their own accord.
Down his straight nose, over his chiseled jaw that’s always lined with at least two days’ worth of stubble, and over his throat that’s bobbing with every thick swallow.
There’s a smattering of hair on his chest, and it surprises me. More so, it shocks me how much I like it.
I’ve always found myself more attracted to smooth chests when scrolling shirtless guys on Instagram, but there’s something about seeing the hair on Cooper’s chest that screams mature.
My fingers itch to touch it as much as they do the tight, well-defined abs I know he spends a lot of time on.
A knot takes shape in my throat, and a throbbing that I haven’t felt in far too long begins between my legs.
Cooper looks good. Really good.
No! No. Stop it!
Slamming my eyes closed, I swallow the lump and ignore the pressure building in the parts of me that haven’t seen action from anything other than my vibrator for a year or more.
Neglect.
That’s all it is.
I’m gawking at Cooper of all people because I haven’t had sex in far too long.
It’s not him. It’s just my desperation.
Or maybe it’s just that I’m shocked to see him like this.
In all the years we’ve been friends, this is definitely the most naked I’ve ever seen him. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen him without his shirt on, and that’s usually just a glimpse when he’s left his bedroom door open or his shirt gets stuck to his hoodie when he takes it off or when swimming, but it doesn’t count when all the dudes at the pool are shirtless.
It’s an unspoken agreement between us. We keep things like nudity to a minimum. Not because we’re afraid we’ll jump the other’s bones at the first sight of skin, but because we acknowledge the stereotype that comes with our friendship.
You can’t be just friends with the opposite sex.
It’s total baloney, of course. We’re proof of that.
And that’s exactly how I know the ache that’s still between my thighs is nothing but pure human instinct and has nothing at all to do with Cooper himself.
There is absolutely no chance it’s anything to do with Cooper.
I’m sure of it.
I’m hot. My face is on fire. And I want nothing more than for the earth to open and swallow me whole.
I can feel Coop staring at me.
“Well, this is unfortunate,” he finally says.
I nod.
He chuckles.
“Open your eyes, Caroline.”
I shake my head.
“Come on. Let’s not make this more awkward than it already is.”
With a deep inhale, I peel my eyes open.
“You know, if you wanted to see me naked, all you had to do was ask.”
My eyes widen to twice their normal size, and he laughs.
I swear I can feel the rumble down to my toes.
“Cooper,” I whisper, completely mortified. I haven’t been this embarrassed since he forced me to be his date to a homecoming game and I tripped in front of the entire school when he escorted me across the football field.
I try to will away my blush, but I know it’s pointless, especially with Cooper smirking down like he is, his full lips pulled up on one side and a sparkle in his pale green eyes.
I’m tall, but Cooper towers over me like I’m the smallest thing ever.
“I’m sorry.” He sounds anything but. “Let’s just go to our rooms and pretend this didn’t happen.”
I nod. “I’d like that very much.”
“You go left. I go right.”
I move.
He moves.
We collide, tripping over one another, limbs tangling in our awkward dance.
And I definitely touch his dick.
We freeze.
My back is against the wall, and he’s caging me in. He drops his head to the spot next to mine, and I try not to drop my gaze to see what’s hanging between us.
“Are you trying to kill me?”
He swallowed glass—or at least that’s what his voice sounds like.
We’re quiet, and I’m not sure either of us has taken a breath.
My blood is pumping so hard I can’t even hear the TV playing in the other room anymore.
Time is standing completely still, and I wonder if I fell asleep on the couch and this is just a crazy dream I don’t ever want to repeat.
“Okay.” He exhales sharply, and another “Fuck” drops softly from his lips. He’s so close I can feel his stubble scratching against my cheek. “I’m going to go to my room and go to bed. To make up for fondling me, you’re going to say yes to going out tomorrow night and buy me drinks to help me cope with my trauma. Got it?”
I nod, not trusting myself to speak.
I mean, I did just accidentally grope him. He deserves drinks.
“Good. I’m going to walk away now. Do not move,” he instructs. “And listen this time.”
Another nod.
He pushes off the wall, and I slam my eyes closed again.
I don’t dare open them until I hear his bedroom door bang shut.
I run to the bathroom and push the door closed, locking it behind me for good measure.
I lean against the sink, dropping my head between my shoulders, taking what feels like my first real breath in hours.
Don’t think about it. Don’t think about it.
I turn the faucet on to the coldest setting and splash freezing water on my face until all thoughts of Cooper and his—nope! Not thinking about it.
I do it again. And again.
I don’t stop until my face is numb and my mind is blank.
Only then do I dare to open the bathroom door and slink out into the hallway with my eyes closed, too terrified to open them and see the spot where our friendship was rocked to its core.
I don’t open them again until I’m in my bedroom, my back pressed against the closed wooden door.