11. Veronica
Chapter eleven
Veronica
Clayton and his flowery blanket.
~ The Next Day ~
“Ughhh…”
“Why is it so… bright?”
“Can someone shut off that damn music?!”
I scrunch my face before blinking my eyes open. Everything is blurry, and nothing comes into focus right away. Where the hell am I? I can hear voices talking around me, everything sounding like grunts or whines, but it’s all fuzzy.
Suddenly my vision begins to come back, blinding light piercing my eyes as I try to bash it away. Oh God, that hurts. Almost as much as the splitting headache that I’m feeling. My throat feels dry as I try to swallow around the lump of clay stuck in it. I need to drink something.
“Shut off the music!” someone groans louder.
What music?
But then I finally hear it, although I don’t recognize what it is. Country? Who the hell is playing country music this early in the morning? Wait, what time is it? I try to sit up, opening my eyes at the same time, but knock right back down as the heaviness in my head and body weighs me down.
“Fuck...”
I rub my fists into my eyes, blinking again as the ceiling comes into view.
I look at my hands, then down my body. I’m still wearing last night’s clothes, that’s good.
Looking to one side, I discover that I’m lying on one end of a couch.
I stretch out my body, and my hands connect with a body part at the same time as my feet touch another, grunts coming from both ends as I hit them with my limbs accidentally.
I peer down first, noticing Gabe at my feet, my toes touching his silky hair, while his legs hang off the arm and back of the couch. I then gaze up behind me and find Clay in a ball on the armchair next to the couch. I nearly giggle at the sight.
Clay always looks like a grumpy, mean giant, even if he’s really not. Seeing him right now in that chair with a flower-printed blanket covering him is epic. “Someone take a picture,” I mumble hoarsely.
“A picture of what?” Aubrey asks, clearing her throat a few times. Wait, she’s here? Where?
I look around the room quickly and find her on another armchair across the room. “What?”
“You said someone take a picture. Of what?” she mutters again.
Oh, I hadn’t realized I said that out loud.
“Never mind,” I say with a sigh as I close my eyes and drop my arm over them, trying to lessen the brutal assault happening inside my head, which makes me realize the music is still playing. “Can someone stop that fucking music?! Where is it even coming from?”
A few seconds later, I hear faint footsteps walking around, and finally the music goes mute. A chorus of sighs happens around the room.
“Fucking finally!” someone says from beside me. But I’m on the couch; that makes no sense.
I force myself to roll over and look down at the floor, only to find Noah lying on the ground with a pillow beneath his head. He squints one eye open and peeks at me. “Hey, Kitten.”
“Hi,” I whisper back. “What are you doing down there?”
He looks around him like he hadn’t noticed he was sleeping on the hard wooden floors. “I have no idea.”
I giggle and turn back onto the couch, starting to feel dizzy and nauseous from moving too much. “Where are we?” I ask no one in particular.
Gabe lifts his head slightly, turns it from side to side, then drops it back to my feet. “Hayes’s house,” he rasps out in a scratchy voice.
“Was that music playing all night?” Aubrey asks suddenly. She’s so quiet I keep forgetting she’s there. “And where’s everyone else?”
“Yes, it was. Although you’ve all only been sleeping for two hours.” Morgan suddenly appears behind the couch near my head, nearly giving me a heart attack. “Em and Grey are in one of the spare rooms, and Cece and Sy are in their room.”
“Well, that explains why I feel like shit. How are you up and walking?” I eye her suspiciously. I don’t even think I can stand.
“I guess I just tolerate alcohol better than all of you.” She shrugs and smiles.
“Or you stopped drinking before all of us,” Noah mutters from below.
Last night took us all by surprise. Well, not really.
We knew the boys would win. They had played so well all season and were killing it in the playoffs.
But it still was a shock to realize it was really happening as we watched those last seconds tick down, knowing what was coming.
It was magical. The screams surrounded us as we all jumped in place with joy for our partners and friends. It was amazing.
Then, of course, there was a lot of celebration happening. And I mean, A LOT. The last thing I remember was taking shots at the club. I’m not sure how we made it back here, but I’m glad to see everyone is in one piece. Or somewhat.
“Wait,” Aubrey starts. “I’m still confused about the music. Why was it even on in the first place? No one here listens to country music.” The poor girl never gets drunk. She’s probably so lost right now that her only hope of sanity is to focus on that specific subject.
“Well, you guys decided you weren’t done celebrating. And you also wanted to camouflage the sound of Emma and Greyson going at it like rabbits. For the country part, I have no idea.”
Oh, that’s right, I remember hearing them. They were a little wild, although we can’t really blame them after what finally happened last night at the game. So naturally, Greyson was really excited to celebrate a different kind of win with her. And it showed.
“It was this crazy witch’s idea.” Clay’s hand comes down to my head as he ruffles my hair.
“Me!?” I gasp.
“Mhmm. Claimed you could two-step and wanted to show us.”
“OH GOD! I’ve never two-stepped in my life!” I bury my face behind my hands.
“It was pretty cute to watch.” Noah chuckles.
“Shut up, Casanova. If I find out someone filmed me, they’re about to die.” I look around, waiting for someone to admit to it.
“Aubrey did,” Gabe mumbles.
I gasp even louder. “You traitor.”
“I’ll delete it, I swear… once I find my phone,” she says from her spot. No one in the living room has moved yet. We’re now all talking, but everyone is still lying down, clearly trying to gain their bearings before daring to stand.
My stomach suddenly claws at my skin, grumbling to life.
I press a hand down on it, but that doesn’t help.
I need food. I wiggle my toes, and they catch in Gabe’s hair once more.
His hand comes back and latches onto one of them, bringing it down the side of his face as he kisses the top of my foot, then lets it go.
I manage to turn around on the couch, placing myself on my stomach with my head where my feet used to be, and bring myself up close and personal with Gabe. “Pretty Boy, wake up.” I look down at him.
He smiles but doesn’t open his eyes. I brush a wavy blond strand away from his face. “Come on. Wakey, wakey.”
“What can I do for you, milady?” he says, still not opening them.
“Can you make me that green smoothie of yours? I feel like it would make me feel so much better right now.” I beg with pretty eyes and a smile.
He peeks at me through one slit, then beams and closes his eye again. “It would, but I can think of other things that would help, too.”
I smack his naked chest. “Stop being naughty. Make me my drink.”
He laughs and finally opens his eyes, grays rendering me speechless. Those tiny specks of blue shining brighter as they gaze into my deep sapphires. Gabriel Ellis has beautiful eyes. Those that seem to hold you captive when they fall on you.
My head is held up completely above his as I rest on my elbows, arms on either side of his head as I stare down at his upside-down face. My hair falls down around my face, and with how close we are, it practically serves as a curtain of privacy.
He reaches up and tucks one side behind my ear. “Can I get a kiss?” I narrow my eyes at his request. “You know, for getting up while I’m still drunk and making you our special drink?”
I pucker my lips, thinking it over. Finally, with a grunt, I lower the few inches separating us and press my lips to his quickly. I’m not even sure it lasted a second. But he also didn’t specify the length of time required. “There. Now can I have my drink?”
He pushes himself up as I pull back into a kneeling position on the couch. “Right away, baby.” He stands and stretches himself out. Arms folded above his head as he flexes his back muscles, making them all ripple in effect.
Fuck, that’s sexy as hell.
A warm tingle spreads in my lower abdomen as I grow hot and fuzzy inside while watching him. Holy shit, I’m turned on. Gabriel Ellis just turned me on… My eyes go wide at the realization. This has to be because of that stupid dream.
The dream where I was lying in bed, sprawled out between the both of them. Their hands all over my body, touching every inch of my skin and setting it on fire. Feeling them spread my legs and taking me in turn, while the other devoured my mouth and played with my body.
Jesus, I’m getting wet just thinking about it.
I force myself to look away, my gaze falling on Noah, who watches me intriguingly with a smirk. He brings a hand up to the side of his lip and taps it. “You have a little drool there.”
I gasp as he laughs, taking the pillow behind me and throwing it at his head. “Shut up! I do not!” I wipe my mouth for good measure, just in case.
When I look around the rest of the room, I find Clay still in his position, clearly not having moved an inch and not planning to.
But then I fall on Aubrey, who stares at me with wide eyes, and Morgan, who smiles like a mother watching her child fall in love.
But she’s not my mom, and I’m not falling in love.
Definitely not. Never happening.
“Baby, we have a problem. Our smoothie won’t be exactly the same since Hayes doesn’t have all the ingredients I need. But I promise it’ll still be delicious,” Gabe calls from the fridge.
I turn to smile at him. “That’s okay, but I also want food. You promised me one of your gourmet breakfasts.”
He pops his head out from the fridge, grinning back at me. “Anything for you, Vixen.”