He leaned over her. One of his hands settled at her hip again, his touch scalding. She grinned as he kissed her all slow and sated. She could have kissed him like that for hours, sleep be damned, but eventually he murmured, “I guess I should go?”
Charlotte did not want Reece to go. She wanted him to stay right where he was, above her and touching her with his large, warm hands. But Reece needed to go, because that was how they operated. That was their old rule and it had worked for both of them. Charlotte fell asleep wrapped in her hard-won solitude, and in the morning Reece could nurse his hangover in peace.
It had been years since she slept beside another person. She and Jackie shared beds when they traveled together, but splitting a king-size bed at a hotel with your best friend was a far cry from spending a night tangled up with a lover in a twin-size bed. Sleeping together was an intimate act, messy and vulnerable, even more so than sex. Skin bare, breath mingling. Aside from the logistical concerns of finding your way home in the middle of the night, Charlotte couldn’t think of a reason to sleep with someone else that wasn’t just to be close to them.
Being close, voluntarily close, hadn’t been Charlotte’s style for a long time.
The boundary made sense. It had protected her ever since Ben.
She just wasn’t sure if she wanted to protect herself now.
“I should check my email,” she said, instead of stay with me.
Reece brushed an errant curl off her forehead. He placed a kiss on her nose before sitting up and reaching for his boxers, wedged between the mattress and the wall. “And I should make sure Garrett and Liam are still alive.” The bed tipped as he stood up. She turned to lie on her side and watch him dress. “Let’s hope they stayed away from the hard stuff.”
“Godspeed,” she drawled.
Reece wedged his feet back into his sneakers, not bothering to tie them. He hesitated when fully dressed, drumming his fingers on the bedpost.
Stay with me.
Charlotte chewed on her bottom lip to keep the words from escaping.
“We’re going to the pond tomorrow.” Reece’s fingers tugged on the flower lei hanging at the foot of the bed. “Want to come?”
She knew it was silly to get excited about an invitation to hang out when they’d literally just had sex, but that was the college hookup scene for you. Charlotte’s smile returned.
“I’d love to.”
TEXT MESSAGE FROM JACKIE SLAUGHTER TO CHARLOTTE THORNE, 1:51 AM: can I come back yet??
Chapter 8
SLACK MESSAGE FROM ROGER LUDERMORE TO CHARLOTTE THORNE, 5:34 AM: tim cook can suck my dick
Much had changed at Terry’s Bar since Charlotte’s last shift. The restaurant itself had a fresh coat of paint on the walls and a different layout for the dining tables. New artwork hung everywhere: paintings and photographs by Hein students, each with a small cream gallery label and a modest price. Biggest of all, a new food truck sat in the parking lot. By night it revved to life and served Hein students their beloved vegan hot dogs in hemp wrappers.
Charlotte sank into her favorite booth by the jukebox. At least that hadn’t changed: The vinyl stuck to her hands as she scooted over to make room for Jackie.
Their waiter slapped plastic menus on the table. He nodded as Jackie ordered nacho fries to share.
“Nina and Amy must be late,” Charlotte mused, plucking the menu from the waxy tabletop. She ran her fingertips over the text and hummed as she recognized the specials.
Jackie swigged her glass of water. After sufficient hydration, she burped quietly into her fist. “Nice hickey.”
“Shush.” Charlotte swatted away Jackie’s finger as she tried to touch her neck. “I’ll replace the condom.”
“Don’t bother, I’ll load up at the health center this afternoon. I need dental dams.” Jackie grabbed Charlotte’s untouched water cup and poured it into her own. “Want to tell me all the juicy details?”
“No.”
“Rude. We should get pancakes.”
Charlotte’s eyes slid over the pictures on the menu as all those details stole across her mind. She could still feel the pressure of Reece’s lips at her neck. The heat of his breath against her skin. How his teeth grazed just a little, a mere suggestion of pain. She would never forget the relief and rightness of having him inside her again.
But there was no way in hell she was telling Jackie any of that. Even though this was only a casual thing for the weekend, it felt wrong to dissect it like they were bros at a keg party comparing one-night stands.
Jackie sat up straight, her palms flat on the tabletop. Charlotte looked up to see Nina and Amy cutting across the restaurant. Amy’s hair was still wet, and she was fresh-faced and smiling widely. Nina looked a little worse for wear, last night’s mascara smudged beneath her eyes.
“Good morning, Starshine,” Nina rasped. “The earth says hello.” She slid into the booth first, and Amy followed.
“Are you quoting Hair?” Jackie’s lip curled, uncharacteristically ignoring Amy. “Do not quote show tunes at me, Dorantes.”
“Forgive a girl for being cultured.” Nina jutted her chin at Charlotte as she picked up a menu. Her dark eyes widened as she took in Charlotte’s neck. “Is that a hickey?”
Jackie snickered.
Charlotte sighed behind her menu. “It’s not up for discussion.”
Amy’s eyes widened. Mercifully, Nina dropped the subject and flagged down their waiter.
“How late were you out last night?” Jackie asked Nina. “I thought we were going to walk back to Randall together.”
While Jackie interrogated Nina, Charlotte pulled out her phone under the table. She prayed silently that there wouldn’t be any more Slack messages from Roger.
TEXT MESSAGE FROM REECE KRUEGER TO CHARLOTTE THORNE, 10:45 AM: where you at?
After a quick glance to make sure the girls weren’t paying attention, she replied.
