“You have a point,” I say, standing and pulling her up with me. “I want to do this right. Show you the world.”
“Oh, like Aladdin?” she asks.
“You’re tipsy,” I tell her.
She nods. “A little.” Julie reaches for my hand. Something flickers in her eyes. “Stay tonight? Just to sleep. I want … I just want you here. Nothing else.”
“Whatever you want,” I say with no hesitation. “But you might want to put on clothes first. My self-control does have limits.”
She grabs her dress from the floor. “Come on. Upstairs we go before we do something we’ll regret.”
“I wouldn’t regret it,” I say honestly.
“Neither would I. That’s the problem.” She takes my hand, leading me to her bedroom. “This was a really good idea. Sad I didn’t come up with it.”
“I think it’s the inevitable progression of this.”
“So, is this Phase Two?” she asks.
I lick my lips. “Guess I should finish my PowerPoint.”
“I wantthisfor however long we have,” she confesses.
“Six weeks,” I say.
“Six weeks,” she agrees. “And what happens if neither of us wants this to end?”
I shrug. “How about this? Let’s decide on Halloween night. Ifone of us says no, we continue forward as friends. But let’s live in the moment. Our future isn’t promised,” I say, brushing my fingertips across her cheek.
“Okay,” she says. “We’ll make an ultimate decision before the clock strikes midnight on Halloween. No matter what, always friends.”
“No matter what,” I repeat.
She disappears into the bathroom to change while I sit on her bed, trying to calm my racing heart. When she comes out in an oversized T-shirt and shorts, she’s somehow even more tempting than in lingerie.
We slide into bed from opposite sides, meeting in the middle. She snuggles close to me, like we’ve done this a hundred times.
“For the record,” she says into the darkness, “body shots are definitely getting checked off the list. Not sure how they’ll ever be topped.”
I laugh, pulling her closer. “And we have so many more to complete.”
“Promise?”
“Oh, Little Red. I’m going to have you adding more things …”
“I’m glad it’s you,” she says, yawning.
“Shit, me too,” I agree, kissing her hair.
She falls asleep within minutes, but I lie awake, holding her, wondering how the hell I’m going to survive six weeks of this. Even now, I know what my answer would be. November first will either make me or break me, but that’s forty-two days away. And right now, with her breathing steadily against my chest, I’m going to let myself have this.
Even if it’s just temporary. Even if it ends. Even if I’m already breaking our rules by feeling things I shouldn’t.
11
JULIE
The first thing I notice is how warm I am. The second is that my phone is screaming at me from somewhere far away. The third is that I’m wrapped around Nick like a koala, and the sunlight streaming through my window is way too bright for five in the morning.
