“You’re one to talk, Caleb.” Hayes juts his chin toward Wolfie. “We were just talking about you and Scarlett.”
Caleb freezes with his shot glass in midair. “What about her? What about us?”
“It just seems like your friendship has . . . what was the word you used?”
Hayes nudges Wolfie, who very matter-of-factly grunts out, “Evolved.”
“No, it hasn’t.” Caleb scoffs, swearing as the cue ball drops into the pocket.
I didn’t see this turn of conversation coming, but I’m suddenly very interested. And frankly grateful the focus isn’t on me anymore.
“I always thought she had a thing for you,” I say, leaning over the corner of the table to clap him hard on the arm. I snicker when he scowls at me.
“No, man, it’s not like that. Scarlett and I are strictly friends.”
“Of course.” Hayes nods solemnly. “Well, let me remind you that I’m Maren’s confidant, who happens to be Scarlett’s confidante, and word travels—”
“I’m getting more shots,” Caleb says quickly, tossing his pool cue to me before turning on his heel and storming back to the bar.
I glance at Hayes and Wolfie, and the three of us exchange a knowing look. Let’s drop it.
I check my watch reflexively, noting the time. I’ve already been out for a couple of hours. It would be best if we wrapped this up soon so I can get home and relieve Jessa of her babysitting duties.
“Thinking about the nanny?” Wolfie asks, leaning against the pool table while Hayes takes his shot.
I’d bristle at the question, but coming from Wolfie, I know there’s no subtext behind it.
“Yeah, I guess I am,” I say with a sigh. “I feel bad staying out late while she’s waiting for me at home.”
Hayes makes a face, pursing his lips as if to stop whatever he’s thinking from tumbling out of his mouth.
Son of a bitch.
I give him a challenging look. “Whatever you’re thinking, just say it.”
Caleb returns with more shots, for once reading the damn room and keeping his mouth shut.
“That just sounds like something I’d say about Maren,” Hayes says, giving me a knowing look.
“And I’d say about Penelope,” Wolfie adds.
I scrunch my eyes closed and run a hand through my hair. When will my friends just leave well enough alone? “That doesn’t mean anything.”
“You’d tell us if there was something going on, right?” Hayes asks, his brow furrowed.
What a bunch of gossips.
“There’s nothing to tell.”
Absolutely nothing. Certainly not the fact that we slept in the same bed the other night, and I woke up curled around her soft, sweet curves. Definitely not how I contemplated for just a moment about pressing a kiss to the back of her neck and grinding my raging hard-on against her ass, desperate to take this thing we have to the next level.
“We talking ’bout the hot nanny again?” Caleb whispers conspiratorially, passing shot glasses to Hayes and Wolfie before holding one out to me.
“Man, I said I was done drinking.” I groan, shaking my head.
“You never explicitly said that.” Caleb shrugs, nodding toward the shot glass in his outstretched hand.
All eyes are on me as they wait for me to do one of two things—either admit that I’m into the nanny, or down this shot. And God knows I’m not about to confess my dirty little secret just yet.
I grab the glass from Caleb’s hand and throw back the shot in one painful gulp. They all watch silently, waiting for me to recover from the taste of literal gasoline.
I raise a single finger, my voice hoarse as I croak out, “One more, two at most.”
Caleb hoots in triumph while Wolfie and Hayes exchange a fist bump.
Sorry, Jessa. Looks like it’s gonna be a long night after all.
By my fifth shot, I’m officially drunk. My tolerance is at an all-time low, thanks to months of only drinking the occasional beer or glass of wine.
After arranging our rideshares, Hayes shares a car with me, which is more of an effort on his part to make sure my drunk ass makes it safely to my front door. I struggle to stay vertical during the car ride. When our driver pulls up to my house, I pull myself upright.
“That was fast,” I mumble, smoothing my hair back with one hand.
Damn, I even smell like I’m drunk. A real class act, Connor.
“You knocked out for a bit there.” Hayes chuckles, his gaze trained on his phone. He’s probably texting Maren all about my reckless night of drinking. “Need me to get you inside? Dismiss ‘the nanny’?”
I shoot him a lazy glare and open my door. “I got it. Thanks.”
“See you tomorrow, bud.”
I shut the car door, swaying a little as I watch the headlights disappear down the road.
It takes me roughly ten years, but I manage to unlock the front door, kick off my shoes, and wander to the kitchen. Leaning against the fridge, I force myself to drink two full glasses of water. Since stumbling through the door, I’ve made some noise, so it strikes me as strange that Jessa hasn’t poked her head in here yet.
Something could be wrong, though I sincerely hope not. Maybe she just fell asleep? It is pretty late.
The lights in the hall are dark. Marley’s nursery is dark too, except for the single star-shaped night-light on the shelf. I tiptoe into her room and gaze down into the crib.
Marley’s sleeping peacefully, all warm and cozy in her little monkey onesie. She’s so fucking cute that I have to shove down the urge to scoop her into my arms and press a kiss to her cheek. But I leave her be, knowing it’s not worth waking her up and spending the rest of the night comforting a grumpy baby.
The guest room across the hall is also dark, the bed untouched. I know Jessa would never leave Marley alone and just go home . . . so the question is, where the hell is she? It’s then that I notice my bedroom door is slightly cracked open, a sliver of light cast onto the hallway carpet.
As I give it a gentle push, the door opens silently. And there she is, curled up on my bed, her limbs tangled in my favorite gray cotton blanket.
A soft-cover book rests on Jessa’s chest, rising and falling with each slow breath. In the lamplight, her eyelashes cast dark shadows across her freckled cheeks, and all those gorgeous mahogany curls spill over my white pillows.
I don’t know how long I stand there like a creep, staring at her, but I know I could watch her for hours. She’s beautiful like this, with all the formalities and professionalism forgotten. Even more beautiful because she’s in my bed.
I try to be as quiet as I can, softly padding across the floor to kneel next to the bed.
Damn. She looks so peaceful. I really don’t want to wake her. But even my inebriated brain knows that I have to.
When I caress the back of her hand with my fingertips, Jessa blinks awake, her eyes heavy with sleep. The smile that sprawls across her warm, rosy lips is so easy and trusting that it makes my chest tighten.
“Hey there,” she murmurs, tilting her head to get a better look at me.
“Hey,” I say softly, smiling genuinely for the first time all night.
She chuckles. “Sorry for stealing your bed.” Her voice is raspy with sleep and, if you ask me, sexy as hell. “I thought I’d hear Marley if she woke up since you share a wall. Didn’t mean to fall asleep.”