Off Limits Neighbor

It doesn’t matter that I was blind to what was in front of me years ago, and it doesn’t matter that time with her could be short. This is too good, and there’s too much possibility for me to turn away.

I’m all in for whatever this is. And when our time is up, we’ll have to figure this out together. But whatever it is, I doubt that it’s going to be simple.

11

Klara

When I wake up it’s slowly, with the awareness of warmth all around me.

I vaguely remember Rey coming to bed last night. There was the sensation of movement and closeness, but I was already too far gone to truly surface.

There was a moment last night when I was getting ready for bed in Rey’s bathroom that I wondered if I shouldn’t be. I didn’t ask if I was supposed to be in his room, I just assumed. But I couldn’t bring myself to go to another room. My chest tightened with anxiety when I thought about it, and I quickly threw the idea aside.

And since Rey is currently wrapped around my body, our legs tangled together like vines, I’m guessing that he doesn’t mind that I’m here.

I don’t want to wake him up, but I also want to see him. Moving so slowly that I feel a little like a snail, I turn over and manage to do it without waking him up. Rey is…beautiful. The sharp lines of his jaw are highlighted by the morning light, and I’m tempted to reach out and trace his brows with my fingers.

Is this real?

If I’d told younger Klara that I’d one day be wrapped up in Reynard Mast’s arms—sharing a bed and unimaginably good sex with him—I would have laughed in my own face. It would have been unthinkable.

Rey takes a deeper breath, waking, and the smile on his face when he sees me steals my breath away.

“Good morning,” he says.

“Morning.”

He leans forward and captures my lips with his before I can say anything else. And when he pulls away his eyes are gleaming with amusement. “I’m sorry if I woke you last night.”

“Barely. I was pretty gone.”

“Seemed like it.”

We stay silent for a few minutes, staring at each other. And I’m still tired enough that I could fall back asleep right here, trapped by his warmth. “How was your thing?”

“Good. You remember Manuel? He was my year.”

I nod. “Yeah. We never really talked, but I remember. He’s still here?”

“Still here, and still my best friend.”

“Not Amanda?” I smirk at him.

We’re already close, but he yanks my body closer. “No, not Amanda. But yeah, we cut it off a little early, but still good.”

“Why?”

Rey searches my face for a moment before leaning his forehead against mine. “You.”

Shock rolls through me. “You didn’t have to do that, I was fine. And asleep. If you thought—”

“It wasn’t that,” he says with a smile. “Manuel sent me home because I was distracted.”

My breath catches in my chest, and I’m not daring to hope, but at the same time my stomach is filled with butterflies. “By what?”

“By you.”

A shiver runs through me. “You find me distracting?”

Rey shifts so that his arms are completely around me, and I’m pressed flat against his chest. Our lips are nearly touching until he moves so that whispered words meet my ear, almost like they’re too fragile to voice.

“Yes, I find you distracting. I don’t know what to do about you, Klara.”

His voice makes me shudder. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that this feels too real and too natural and the thoughts that I’m having about you are amazing and terrifying. I’m not sure what I want to happen when these houses are finished and you have to leave. Because having you in my bed…”

He trails off, and I can barely breathe. It’s like what I felt yesterday, when that kiss felt like we’d been together for years. I know exactly what he’s saying. And he’s right. It is terrifying. But also…peaceful.

“Maybe we don’t have to think about it yet,” I say. “Maybe we just enjoy this, and when the time comes, then we figure it out. Because I get it.”

“Thank fuck,” Rey says softly, exhaling a breath.

I laugh quietly. This moment where we’re both quiet and nothing feels real is glorious. I don’t want to break this spell. “I wish we didn’t have to get out of bed.”

“We could play hooky,” he says with a grin.

I sigh. “We could. But that’s not exactly fair to the crew you brought in.”

“They would survive, I’m sure.”

“Yeah, but I’m hopeful that I can start painting some of those rooms today. Think that would be possible?”

“Definitely.” He pulls me on top of him so that I’m sprawled over his chest, and I can’t say that I really mind. It would only be better if I was naked. But that would make us late.