Chapter 16
Sixteen
Jack put on plaid pajama pants and a University of Michigan T-shirt. Then he joined Kayla in the kitchen, as instructed. She was at the stove, cracking eggs into a frying pan, and coffee was percolating. It was a cozy, domestic scene, which was oddly appealing.
Kayla glanced at him over her shoulder. “Have a seat. Breakfast is almost ready.”
“You must be feeling better this morning,” he said as he slid into a chair.
“Yes,” she said dismissively.
Bread popped up from the toaster, and she set it on a plate and buttered it.
Jack watched her with amusement. Obviously, she was embarrassed about last night, and making breakfast was her way of channeling it.
He inhaled deeply. “Smells delicious.” Last night, she’d said he smelled delicious, and he smiled at the memory.
Soon, she brought two plates of scrambled eggs and toast, and two coffee mugs to the table. Then she slid into the chair across from him.
“Thanks for doing all this.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, avoiding eye contact.
Jack dug into his breakfast with gusto. He hadn’t realized how hungry he was until now. They ate quietly for a while, but it wasn’t a comfortable silence.
Finally, Kayla spoke. “Some details from last night are a little fuzzy. Did we … I mean … Is there anything I need to know?”
He gazed at her over his coffee mug. “You mean did we have sex?”
Her eyes widened. “Did we?”
Jack chuckled. “No.”
“Whew!” Kayla slapped her hand over her chest.
“But you did ask me to cuddle.” Jack sipped his coffee while she processed this.
“I asked you to cuddle with me?”
“You were cold, and I offered you another blanket, but you wanted to cuddle instead.”
She swallowed hard. “I woke up without pajamas.”
“You refused to wear them.”
Kayla sighed. “How embarrassing.”
“It was actually kind of cute.”
She gaped at him. “Cute? Nothing I did last night was cute.”
“I disagree.”
She scowled. “Why didn’t you just put me to bed upstairs?”
“I was worried you might fall out of it.”
“I wasn’t that bad off!”
“Yet you don’t remember asking me to cuddle.”
“No.” Kayla took a deep breath. “Did you mind?”
Jack shifted uncomfortably. Of course, he hadn’t minded. Kayla was soft, warm, and nearly naked in his bed. While cuddling, it was all he could do not to let his hands and mouth roam all over her. “Cuddling isn’t my forte, but no, I didn’t mind.”
Kayla chuckled. “You probably could have taken advantage of me.”
“You would have hated me this morning, and I would have hated me too.”
She eyed him for a long moment. “More coffee?”
“Sure.”
Kayla stood and refilled their cups. Then she sat back down. “Is there anything else I should know?”
Jack twisted the mug in his hands. “You kept telling me how nice I smelled.”
“I remember that, and you did smell good,” she conceded.
“Ryan talked me into buying a new cologne.”
“It was a good choice.”
“I’ll tell him you said so.”
Kayla smiled. “What else?”
Jack dragged a hand through his hair. “You said I was handsome at least ten times. Not that I was counting.” He’d so counted.
“You are handsome,” she said.
He grinned. “Oh. And there was one more thing.”
Her face fell. “What?”
“You kept rubbing my arms and saying, ‘This feels so nice.’”
“While we were cuddling?”
“Mmm-hmm.” It had felt luxurious and torturous.
Spooning her while she was wearing only a bra and panties had aroused him to the point of pain.
She’d kept nestling closer, and he kept pulling back, lest she feel his erection pressing into her back.
The memory would fuel his fantasies for a long time.
“Sorry for making you cuddle,” Kayla said.
“You don’t have to apologize.”
“I must have been more intoxicated than I thought.”
Hearing this stung his ego. Kayla clearly wouldn’t have suggested cuddling if she weren’t impaired.
“Do me a favor. Don’t ever let me drink that much again.” Kayla stood and gathered their empty plates.
“Noted.” At least she’d been with him and not a stranger. Jack hated the idea of some random guy taking advantage of her when she was vulnerable.
“I’m going to get ready,” she announced.
“Where are you going?”
“Over to my apartment. I need to pick up some more clothes, and I’ll hang out with Josie for a while. I’ll be back later,” she added, alleviating the panicky feeling in his chest.
“Okay,” he said, trying to sound neutral.
“What are you doing today?” Kayla asked.
He shrugged. “I haven’t really thought about it.”
“You could hang out with your parents.”
“Maybe.”
“I’ll take a shower upstairs.”
“You can use my bathroom. I’ll stay here until you’re done.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
Kayla started to leave and then paused. “Thanks for taking care of me last night. I promise it won’t happen again.”
“It’s fine, Kayla. Don’t worry about it.”
She nodded and strode out of the kitchen. When she closed his bedroom door, he let out a heavy sigh. To save Kayla from additional embarrassment, he hadn’t told her everything about last night. And selfishly, he didn’t want her to avoid him again.
While they were spooning, she’d suddenly turned and faced him. “We should have sex,” she’d murmured.
Jack remembered the rest of the conversation as clear as day. His eyes had widened. “Sex?”
Kayla giggled. “Yes.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’re drunk, and you’ll regret it in the morning.”
She playfully slapped his chest. “I’m not drunk.”
Jack smiled. “Drunk people never think they’re drunk.”
Kayla looped her arms around his neck and wriggled closer to him. Glancing down, he saw her hardened nipples poking against her bra. Swallowing hard, he returned his gaze to her face.
“You need to get some sleep,” he said, his voice unnaturally gruff.
“I’m not tired.”
She wiggled against him again, her pelvis brushing against his erection. “See. You want to have sex with me,” she teased.
She had no idea how true that was. “You won’t even remember this,” he argued.
“Think about how good it would be,” she whispered.
Jack’s hands were around her waist, and it wouldn’t take much to slip them inside her panties. His internal angel and devil were battling it out for dominance. “You’ll hate yourself in the morning,” the angel insisted. “She wants you. Just do it,” urged the devil.
While he warred with himself, Kayla trailed a hand down his bare chest. He was already warm from cuddling, but her touch inflamed him. “Don’t do it,” the angel warned him. “You know you want to,” coaxed the devil.
Her hand paused at the waistband of his boxer/briefs, and his manhood twitched in anticipation.
Kayla gazed at him intently but was she really seeing him?
For all he knew, she was fantasizing about Justin Timberlake instead.
Jack clamped a hand around her wrist and moved her hand up to his chest again.
“We can’t do this, Kayla.”
“Why not?” she repeated.
“Because you’re not thinking clearly. If we ever have sex, I want you to be fully aware of it.”
She scowled and turned her back on him. A few minutes later, she was softly snoring. He’d omitted that detail too, because it wasn’t something a woman wanted to hear.
Sighing, he’d flopped onto his back and stared at the ceiling, simultaneously cursing and congratulating himself.
He could have had sex with Kayla, and God knew he wanted to.
However, she wouldn’t have remembered it or, worse, hated him for taking advantage of her.
The angel won this time, but the devil was right on his heels.
If there was a next time, Jack couldn’t guarantee the angel would win.