29
Amanda dozed off sideways on the couch, phone still clutched in her hand and one sock halfway hanging off her foot.
The tequila haze was just starting to slip into full-blown sleep when—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Her eyes snapped open.
She blinked, confused. The room was dark except for the glow of the TV still playing a muted music video she didn't remember putting on.
And then—
Another knock.
Slower this time. More deliberate.
Amanda sat up too fast, the room spinning for a second before steadying. Her heart pounded. She stared toward the door, brain still catching up.
No way.
No. Freaking. Way.
She scrambled off the couch, bumping her knee on the coffee table, and half-hobbled to the door, peeking through the peephole.
Blue eyes. Jet black hair. That ridiculously unreadable expression.
Amanda sucked in a breath and opened the door.
Ericka stood there, hands in the pockets of a long black coat, her hair pulled back into a sleek bun. She looked far too put together for it to be past midnight.
Amanda stared. "You came."
Ericka lifted an eyebrow. "You invited me."
Amanda opened her mouth. Closed it. Her drunk brain had not anticipated this level of follow-through.
"I didn't think you actually would."
"I figured you wouldn't remember by morning," Ericka said dryly. "But here we are."
Amanda leaned against the doorframe, suddenly very aware of her messy hair, flushed cheeks, and slightly smudged eyeliner. "I... may have over-tequila'd."
"I gathered."
Ericka's tone was neutral, but there was something behind her eyes—a flicker of concern, or maybe curiosity.
Amanda stepped back, gesturing inside. "Come in. Unless you're here to scold me for poor texting decisions, in which case—maybe wait till morning."
Ericka didn't move for a moment. Then, slowly, she stepped inside.
Amanda closed the door behind her and turned to find Ericka scanning the room like she wasn't sure whether to sit or run.
"I didn't mean to make it weird," Amanda blurted, suddenly desperate to fill the silence. "I was just... drunk and honest, which is never a great combo."
Ericka's gaze met hers. "It wasn't weird."
Amanda blinked. "It wasn't?"
Ericka stepped a little closer, her voice lower now. "Amanda. I came, didn't I?"
That shut her up.
The air between them felt heavier now. Not uncomfortable—just thick with something they'd been avoiding.
Amanda swallowed. "I didn't mean it in a... you know, come over way. Okay, I did, but not like—not like—ugh." She buried her face in her hands. "You know what I meant."
A beat passed. Then:
"I do."
Amanda peeked through her fingers. "And?"
Ericka's expression softened—not a smirk, not a tease. Just something quiet.
"I couldn't sleep either."
Amanda dropped her hands.
"Oh."
They stood there in the dim room, neither one moving, both of them standing right at the edge of something unspoken.
And Amanda, still tipsy, still brave in the worst and best ways, asked softly:
"Will you stay?"
Ericka didn't answer right away. But then she took off her coat, carefully folded it over the arm of the couch, and said,
"For a little while."
_________________________
Amanda moved toward the couch, heart hammering way too fast for someone who'd just asked their boss—her very attractive, very complicated boss—to stay the night.
She flopped down, tried to act casual, and immediately regretted how awkward her limbs felt. Ericka remained standing for a beat longer, taking in the room with that calm, calculating gaze of hers, like she was trying to decide if she'd made the right call by showing up.
Amanda pulled a throw blanket from the back of the couch and offered a half-smile. "We can sit. Or talk. Or ignore everything I said and just watch TV. No pressure."
Ericka raised an eyebrow. "You say 'no pressure' like this isn't already the strangest Friday night I've had in a while."
Amanda winced. "Sorry."
Ericka shook her head, a rare flicker of a smile playing at her lips as she finally sank onto the couch beside her. "Don't apologize. You're just... different when you're like this."
"Drunk?"
"Unfiltered."
Amanda groaned and buried her face in the throw pillow. "Stop reading me like one of your legal briefs."
Ericka chuckled. "I don't read legal briefs at midnight in other people's living rooms, Amanda."
Amanda peeked at her from under the pillow, a little dazed. "That sounded way too smooth for midnight."
"It's a gift," Ericka said lightly, eyes still on her.
The silence that followed was quieter this time—less tense, more settled. The kind of quiet Amanda didn't mind.
She shifted slightly to face Ericka. "You really couldn't sleep?"
Ericka gave a soft shrug. "My mind wouldn't shut off."
Amanda nodded, understanding that all too well. "Me either. Hence the tequila. And... impulsive texting."
Ericka leaned back, stretching one arm along the top of the couch. "You're lucky I like impulsive."
Amanda blinked at her, heart stuttering in her chest. "You... like it?"
"I like honesty," Ericka clarified. "Even when it comes in at 11:47 PM, attached to emojis you probably didn't mean to send."
Amanda gasped. "There were emojis?"
"Two."
She let out a dramatic groan and grabbed another pillow, muffling her face in it. "I want to disappear."
Ericka laughed. Not just a soft breath or an amused smirk—a real laugh. Quiet, warm, and unexpected.
Amanda turned her head just enough to peek at her. "You're laughing at me."
"I'm enjoying you," Ericka corrected.
And just like that, the air between them shifted again.
Amanda's breath caught. She didn't know what to say to that—didn't trust herself to speak.
Ericka must've sensed it because she gently reached over and took the pillow out of Amanda's grip, setting it aside.
"I can stay," she said softly, "just for a little while. If you want the company."
Amanda nodded. "I do."
Ericka settled in beside her, not touching, but close enough to feel her warmth.
________________________
The minutes passed slowly. Not in the awkward, ticking-clock kind of way—but like time had taken a deep breath and decided to stretch itself out for them.
Amanda sat with her knees tucked under her, blanket draped across her lap, the flicker of the TV casting soft shadows across the room.
Ericka hadn't said much since sitting down. She didn't have to.
Her presence was calm, steady. Grounding.
And that, somehow, made Amanda feel even more out of sorts.
She kept sneaking glances at her—at the sharp line of her jaw, the soft curve of her mouth, the way her icy blue eyes looked far more tired than she ever let show at work.
Ericka wasn't looking at her. She was watching the TV, not reacting to it, probably not even absorbing it.
Amanda cleared her throat. "You know... I wasn't trying to put you in a weird position."
Ericka didn't look away from the screen. "You didn't."
Amanda paused. "Okay, maybe not a weird position, but definitely a risky one."
That earned her a faint smirk. "Amanda, if I couldn't handle a few drunk texts and an unexpected invitation, I wouldn't be where I am."
Amanda pulled the blanket tighter around herself. "Still. I know I probably crossed some unspoken line."
Ericka finally turned to her then, gaze sharp but not unkind. "There's a difference between crossing a line and testing where it is."
Amanda blinked. "And which one did I do?"
Ericka leaned slightly closer, her expression unreadable in the dim light. "That depends. Do you want to find it?"
Amanda's breath caught in her throat.
She wasn't sure if Ericka was flirting, challenging her, or just being... Ericka.
But the heat that crept into Amanda's cheeks was real.
She looked away. "I'm still drunk, so I feel like you're asking questions that I can't answer without accidentally oversharing."
Ericka gave a soft, amused hum. "Then don't answer. Just... be."
That silenced Amanda for a good long moment.
Be.
It wasn't something she was particularly good at. Her mind always raced, always overanalyzed. But with Ericka here—beside her, not as her boss, not as the CEO, just... here—it was a little easier.
Amanda leaned back into the couch, stealing one more glance. "You don't do this often, do you?"
Ericka looked at her, one brow raised. "Do what?"
"This. Stay. Sit still. Let someone see you when you're not in control."
The question hung in the air like a challenge.
But Ericka didn't flinch.
She looked straight at Amanda and said simply, "No."
Amanda nodded slowly. "Didn't think so."
They didn't say anything else after that.
They didn't need to.