Chapter 23
LINCOLN
Sofia was still in my arms when I woke up the next morning. We had ended up falling asleep on the couch while watching really bad action movies.
Having not wanted to wake her to go to the bedroom, I simply fetched us a blanket and had folded the hideaway bed out of the other sofa.
Eden and I had discovered it was a sofa bed when we lived here but had never used it.
I wouldn’t even have remembered if not for the fact that we’d been severely cramped after falling asleep mashed together on the thin cushions.
Obviously, it meant that it was necessary to wake her, but I’d already wrapped the blanket around her and had worked quickly and quietly. I doubted she’d even remember the interruption this morning.
As I lay there, I found myself feeling strangely happy that she was still there. A feeling a lot like euphoria swelled in my chest as I imagined waking up with her and not having to race her home. I liked waking up and having her in my arms.
Her face was buried in the crook of my neck, so I could feel her breath ghosting across my skin. Soft hair covered her cheek and eye from view, but I reached up and gently tucked it behind her ear.
She stirred but didn’t wake up. I lay there just holding her for a long time. The warmth of her against my side, the vanilla and bergamot smell drifting from her hair, the weight of her head on my arm and shoulder, I didn’t want to lose it just yet.
When the sun started peeking through the open blinds, I knew it was time to get my ass in gear. The least I could do after she’d come to check on me and then stayed with me was to have some coffee ready for the girl when she woke up.
Very slowly moving my arm out from underneath her, I gripped the edge of the blanket to replace me with and performed the fastest swap I could. Again, she stirred, but when her eyes didn’t open, I rolled off the sofa bed and padded quietly to the kitchen.
There was a jar of instant coffee that had hardened a little in the cabinet above the kettle. It took some whittling with the back of a teaspoon, but eventually, I had enough loose to fix us each a cup.
The kettle had just boiled when I heard her yawn from the doorway. I turned my head to her, then nearly dropped the scalding hot liquid on the floor. It would have splashed all over my legs, but I doubted I’d even had noticed.
Sofia’s hair was all tousled and messy. She had donned my shirt from the day before, and I could clearly see the outlines of her nipples and the tops of her thighs as she stretched her arms up and covered her mouth while she yawned.
I’d only put on my underwear before coming into the kitchen, but my cock was suddenly extremely unhappy about being restrained in them. Shifting my feet so my hips pointed at the counter, I adjusted myself and gripped the kettle tighter.
“Morning,” I said, my voice coming out gruffly. “Sleep okay?”
“So good,” she moaned, definitely not doing me any favors. When her arms dropped and her chin came down to bring her eyes to mine, she didn’t seem mischievous or like she’d intentionally been trying to tease me.
If anything, she seemed happy and relaxed. Her eyes were bright, her posture loose as she ambled closer to me. “Please tell me that’s coffee.”
“It’s coffee.” I successfully filled a mug without burning anything even as I struggled to keep my eyes off her. I handed it over.
Another soft sound of pleasure came out of her, and my problems started all over again. As she took the cup, though, she sorted it out for me. “Urg, I love you. Thank you. Nothing sucks more than having to start the day without a good cup of this stuff.”
My body stilled, my mind hitting a brick fucking wall. “You what now?”
Sofia’s gaze snapped to mine, her eyes big and full of regret. “Shit. No, I didn’t mean it like that. I don’t love you, love you. I just—thank you for making me coffee.”
She looked so horrified that I started laughing. Obviously, she hadn’t meant that she actually loved me. That would have been ridiculous.
“No problem,” I said as I lifted my own mug. “Want something to eat?”
She made a circular motion with her finger. “Here? I’m pretty sure there’s nothing to make for breakfast anywhere in this kitchen.”
“Good point. Want to go out for breakfast?”
“We can.” She rolled her lips into her mouth, narrowing her eyes as she thought. “Yep. I don’t think I’m forgetting about anything I should be doing.”
“Great, but, uh, I don’t think there’s any clean clothes for you around here.” If there were any women’s outfits lying around, I doubted she’d want them anyway. Most single guys had those lost-and-found items lying around, but I didn’t think any around here would have been laundered.
Sofia seemed to come to the same conclusion, then held out her arms. “Your shirt is huge on me, but I could always make a tie around my waist. Thankfully, jeans are notorious for being more comfortable on day two, and I can go commando. If you’ve got a shirt for me, we’re good to go.”
“Just like that?” I frowned. “Aren’t you going to want to stop off at home for makeup or something?”
She rolled her eyes at me, but they shone with amusement when they landed back on mine. “I’ve got the essentials in my purse. If you were wondering, I have a toothbrush in there, too. Do you have any toothpaste?”
“Of course, I have toothpaste.” I half sat on the counter and sipped my coffee. “Why do you keep a toothbrush in your purse?”
“Oh, for all the one-night stands I have,” she said breezily, then rolled her eyes again when my face dropped.
“Joke. Wow. You’re too easy. I keep it there so I can brush my teeth when I have to go from the library to class.
I like getting my study sessions in early in the morning, but I also like coffee, so yeah. ”
“Considerate of you.” I liked the explanation way more than I had her joke.
The thought of her being with other guys bothered me weirdly.
I had no claim on her, but a primal possessiveness was making itself known deep down in my chest. “Where would you like to go breakfast? There’s a diner not too far away that’s near the water. ”
Her tongue swept over her lips and she averted her gaze like she was nervous about something. I arched a brow, waiting for her to come clean about what it was. “I might have sneaked a peek at the pictures up on the wall. There’s one of you with a boat. Is it yours?”
“Yeah, why?”
She tugged her lower lip between her teeth, hope flashing in her eyes. “Can we go out on it?”
“Sure, if you want. But unless you want to catch fish for breakfast, we’re still going to have to stop for something to eat.”
“Let’s get takeout. I haven’t been out on the water in way too long.” She beamed at me, then jerked her head in the direction of the bathroom. “Should I shower first, or do you want to?”
I blinked at her. We were falling into this morning-after routine really easily for two people who had only done it once before. “You can. I’ll bring you a shirt.”
In the end, I showered with her and we fooled around a little but didn’t get too intense again. Last night had been something else. I just wasn’t sure what yet.
We stopped to pick up bagels for breakfast and added a variety of snacks and drinks for the day. Once that was done, we drove together to the marina and Sofia surprised me by being willing and able to help me with the boat.
“Dad sails, too,” she said in passing, and I didn’t ask anything else about it because the last thing I wanted was to talk about Charles. Especially in the context of having something in common with him.
Eden was on my mind constantly, but I’d left a message at the base hospital. I’d been told in no uncertain terms that he wouldn’t be allowed visitors today. Apparently, they were running some tests on him.
It was hard to go about having a relaxing day on the water when I knew my brother was lying unconscious in a hospital bed, but Sofia helped. She coaxed me out of my mind and into talking by asking me questions about the boat.
“You didn’t want to keep a place, but you bought a boat?” she asked disbelievingly as we sailed across the bay. Slightly choppy waves clashed with the hull and made us need to anchor ourselves by holding on to something, but it wasn’t bad out at all.
“I’ve always loved boats and working on them. I bought it to have as a form of meditation when we were around.” My lips curved into a slight smirk. “A counselor told me to try therapy and meditation, so I did. But my way.”
“I like that.” She smiled and released a contented sigh. “It’s a damn expensive form of meditation, but I suppose it’s so much better than sitting cross-legged in your own living room.”
I nodded. “Much better. Plus, I bought this one for cheap and fixed it up myself, so it wasn’t damn expensive. Do you mind if I do some fishing for a bit?”
“Only if you’ve got a spare rod.” She squinted into the bright sunshine and shook her hair out in the wind.
“But do you mind if we just keep going for a while? There’s something about being out here with the wind roaring in my ears and my hair going wild that clears my head the way nothing else does. ”
“Yeah, I get that,” I replied, but I doubted she’d heard it. While she smiled into the sun with her eyes now closed and her nose slightly lifted, I did my best not to stare at her. Where the hell did this girl even come from?
I knew, of course, but how she’d stumbled into my life, I didn’t know. I just knew I wasn’t ready for her to fall right back out of it again.
When we eventually slowed down, Sofia confidently helped me assemble the rods and was even the first one of us to catch something. She needed no help and handled it like a real damn pro.
“I have to admit, I’m impressed,” I said, moving back to the steering wheel to move us to a different location.
Sofia smirked at me, looking sexy as fuck with my ball cap now on her head, my sunglasses covering her eyes, my shirt on her body, and a fishing rod in her hand. I wondered how she’d feel about a quickie as I turned the key. Then all happier thoughts left me when nothing happened.
As in, nothing. The damn engine wouldn’t start.
“Fuck.”