“I see that.”
“Shut up,” she said, but there was no venom in it. Her body leaned into Sabrina’s all on its own. She wasn’t trying to do that. Didn’t want to. But Sabrina was right there in all her warm, see-through-T-shirt-wearing glory, and Adley’s body clearly wanted to be next to her.
“Let’s get you into bed, okay?”
Adley didn’t argue. She wanted to. She really, really did. But then they were in Sabrina’s bedroom, and it smelled like her, and instead of shouting her anger, she just wanted to cry. Her eyes welled up, and she clenched her jaw so hard to keep from crying that it started to ache. She felt hands at the hem of her shirt.
“Here. Take this off. I’ll give you something to wear.” And like a little kid, Adley lifted her arms up, and Sabrina pulled her shirt over her head so she stood there in her bra and jeans. Warm fingers were suddenly at the fly of her pants, unfastening, then pushing them off. Adley put her hands on Sabrina’s shoulders for balance as Sabrina pushed the jeans to the floor and told Adley to step out of them. “I’ll get you a shirt,” Sabrina said and turned to the nearby dresser. Adley unfastened her own bra and let it drop to the floor. When Sabrina turnedback, she stopped in her tracks, eyes wide. Adley heard her swallow, and then she handed her an old Atlanta Falcons T-shirt. It was black and soft and worn almost as thoroughly as the shirt Sabrina was wearing, and it smelled like her. Adley put it over her head, pushed her arms in, and inhaled deeply.
Sabrina pushed back the covers so Adley could climb into the bed that also smelled like Sabrina, damn it. Hunkered down, she let herself revel in the softness, the warmth, as Sabrina pulled the covers up over her. “I have the AC set at seventy-two, but if you’re too hot or too cold, just let me know, okay?”
Adley nodded, feeling her eyes get heavy almost immediately. Sabrina stroked her forehead, and it felt…divine. That was the word. Sabrina stroking her, touching her in any way, just felt divine. She closed her eyes. She was going to regret all of this in the morning. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew that. But she was too sleepy to grab on to the thought.
Sabrina bent forward, clearly to kiss her on the forehead, but Adley lifted her chin and caught Sabrina’s lips with hers. The kiss was soft. Tender. It sent little sparks zipping through Adley’s body, but she was too inebriated to do much about them. She sighed instead.
“I’m so mad at you,” she said, her voice sleepy and quiet.
“I know,” Sabrina said back, just as quietly.
* * *
What the actual fuck?
That was the main thought in Sabrina’s head, and it ran through on a loop. What was the Universe trying to do to her, sending a drunk and adorable Adley right to her front door? What the hell?
She flopped onto the couch and blew out a breath, then immediately noticed the absence of a particular little being with four paws. With a soft groan, she pushed herself back to her feet and headed back toward the bedroom. She slowly pushed the door open and peeked in, and there was Sprinkles, all curled up in the crook of Adley’s arm, his chin on her shoulder. Both of them were sound asleep.
“Traitor,” she murmured but couldn’t stop the smile.
Back in the kitchen, she poured herself the glass of wine she’d been about to have when she glanced toward the front of the house andsaw Adley’s silhouette on the front porch. She leaned the small of her back against the counter and took a sip of the merlot, then shook her head.
What the actual fuck?
Heading back into the living room, she bypassed the work she had spread out on the dining room table and went right back to the couch. Adley showing up at her house was completely unexpected. And surprising. And not at all unwelcome. And super confusing. And now she was asleep—well, passed out, really—in Sabrina’s bed, and what was she supposed to do now?
Her phone was sitting on the coffee table, and it pinged a text notification before she could answer her own question. She glanced at the screen and felt relief flood through her. Teagan. She began typing without even looking at their greeting.
Guess who showed up at my house drunk and is now passed out in my bed.
The little gray dots that told her Teagan was typing bounced and bounced and bounced. They must not have been able to decide what to say because the message that finally came was short and simple:You’re shitting me.
Sabrina chuckled and shook her head as she typed back.I shit you not. Showed up on my porch about a half hour ago looking adorable. And a little tipsy.
She sipped her wine while the dots bounced some more. The next text popped through.What did she say?
A snort because Adley had really had only one thing to say.She said she came to tell me how mad at me she was.
Teagan’s answer came quick.And?
And nothing. That’s as far as she got.
The phone rang in her hand, and she laughed quietly as she answered.
Teagan didn’t even wait for her to say hello. “What happened? Where is she now?”
“She’s in my bed with my puppy, sleeping it off.”
“Wow,” Teagan said, and there was a beat before they said again, “Wow.”
