I brought my lips to his in a chaste kiss and then twisted out of his hold. “Come on, let’s finish shopping. I’m getting hungry again.”
12
Tackle
After we ate a late lunch and went back to Sloane’s friend’s apartment, she decided to take a nap before driving to her parents’ house.
“I don’t know why I’m so tired,” she mumbled when I lay down on the bed, beside her. She yawned and rolled to her side. “You don’t have to stay.”
I went out to the living room and grabbed a throw I’d noticed on the back of the sofa. In the short time it took me to do that, Sloane had fallen fast asleep. I covered her with the blanket and lay back down beside her.
As much as I wanted to touch her, caress her cheek, I didn’t want to wake her, so I kept my hands to myself and thought about our conversation from earlier in the day. “What are you asking of me?” she’d said. I didn’t have a good answer then or now. I knew this, though. If Sloane wasn’t Halo’s younger sister, I’d want to date her, see where that took us. At the very least, spend a few months enjoying each other’s company and bodies.
Would the fact that her brother was my best friend really preclude that? He might be uncomfortable at first, maybe even angry, but he’d get over it.
It was what happened after the relationship ended that worried me more. If I hurt Sloane, if she wanted more than I was prepared to give, it might end more than my friendship with Halo. What about our parents? They’d become good friends too. Was spending time with her worth the risk? If we could stay friends, it would be.
I tucked my arms under my head and stared up at the ceiling, jolting when Sloane turned and snuggled her body close to mine. She murmured words I couldn’t understand, but she looked content, peaceful. I put my arm around her and kissed the top of her head.
There wasn’t another woman I wanted to be with, liked more, was attracted to in the same way I was to Sloane.
She’d also asked if I always got my way. Most of the time, yes. I also worked hard to build the life I wanted for myself. When I closed my eyes, I could envision us together. That should scare the shit out of me. Instead, it filled me with an inexplicable warmth.
“What time is it?” Sloane asked, rolling to her back and stretching her arms above her head.
I had no idea except that the sun was setting.
She pulled out her phone. “I can’t believe I slept for three hours.” She turned her head toward me. “You didn’t have to stay.”
“I fell asleep too.” I stretched like she had and then rubbed my belly. “I can’t believe I’m hungry again.”
Sloane laughed. “I’m so glad you said it first.”
“What sounds good? We could order takeout, or I could run to the market and make us something.”
When she didn’t answer, I turned my body toward hers.
“I’ve decided you’re a figment of my imagination.”
I laughed like she had. “Why?”
“First, Tackle Sorenson is lying next to me, on a bed no less. Second, you just offered to cook food for me.”
“Neither should surprise you that much.”
“No?” She tapped her cheek with her finger. “If a year ago, someone had predicted this was where you’d be on a Saturday night, would you have believed them?”
“Probably not.”
She rolled onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. “What are we doing?” she groaned.
“Trying
to decide what to have for dinner.”
“You know what I mean.”
“How about this? Instead of talking so much about why we’re spending time together, why don’t we just enjoy it?”