I groaned when I woke, my body a little too slow to follow, moving sluggishly as I stretched out. Only, my hands found something hard and warm, and it gave me pause.

I thought back to what happened before I slept and found a big blank in my memory. But I could feel a low pounding in the back of my head as my mind became more aware, and I guessed I’d had something to drink. That must be why I couldn’t remember anything.

With a frown, I blinked my eyes open and looked at what my hand was touching. I wasn’t surprised to find a guy lying there, I’d guessed as much. But then I looked at his face, familiar even with his hair over his eyes. I sat up abruptly. Wincing, I held my head, trying to stave off the hangover. I sat very still, sighing in relief when the pain reduced, and my eyes moved back to look at Zach.

Then last night came back to me.

Well… fuck.

At least I remembered the whole thing. I couldn’t say I didn’t enjoy myself, but there were consequences to having a one night stand because that was all there could be between us.

I sat there for a few moments staring at Zach, internally starting to panic, feeling a little angry at myself. Because I fucked up. Badly.

“Dammit!”

Carefully, trying not to wake him, I slid out of bed. Our clothes were strewn all over the floor, and I felt a blush warm my cheeks as I remembered how they got there. After he had fucked me against the door, we’d gone to bed for a few more rounds before passing out, exhausted. Just then, as if to remind me, my body ached, particularly between my legs. Even worse, I felt something warm start to trickle down my thigh, as if the whole thing weren’t humiliating enough.

“Damn you, Zach,” I hissed in his direction, going around the room to pick up my dress and underwear.

I was being harsh with him. I knew it wasn’t his fault—it wasn’t like he’d forced me, after all.

I moved my things to the bathroom. I needed to take a quick shower and dress, and hopefully leave before he was any the wiser. If I got lucky, he’d forget the whole thing or be nice enough not to bring it up. I didn’t need to feel cheaper than I did already.

As I hopped in the shower, the cold water cleared my mind a little more. Once I got out, I’d find something for a headache and some food, but I could worry about that later. Putting on yesterday’s underwear felt didn’t appeal at all, but I didn’t exactly have spares, and I wasn’t brave enough to carry them around in my purse so I went without. I’d probably take another shower at home again.

Fuck! This was why I never did one night stands.

Sex without strings attached sounded easy, but it was messy on so many levels, most of them disgusting.

I stepped out of the bathroom, dressed but barefoot, with my hair combed by my fingers, only to freeze. There he was, sitting upright, back against the headboard with one of his knees raised under the sheet.

“Hey there, Scarlett,” Zach called, almost cheerfully, waving at me.

My jaw dropped, words sticking in my throat. I didn’t exactly have excuses; I knew if he hadn’t been awake, I would have walked away without looking back, but now that option was out the window.

“What?” He asked, voice sarcastic. “Cat got your tongue? Where are you going in such a hurry? It’s still pretty early.”

He slid out of bed, his arms raised in another full body stretch. I blushed and looked away, but not before my eyes trailed over his trim, fit body. I hadn't seen much of him last night, we’d both been too desperate to get to bed for that, but I’d run my hands and lips all over his chest and back. All I’d had was an idea before, but now I saw just how good he looked.

Don’t think about it, I told myself viciously. Last night was a one-time thing.

I didn’t realize Zach had moved, too preoccupied with censoring my thoughts, when the room was suddenly washed in bright light. I hissed and squinted, glaring in his direction, only to find he was still in the nude and looked away again.

Well, except for the tie, I thought to myself and felt my face warm in a harsh blush as it brought back memories from last night.

“I can't believe you were going to sneak out on me,” he said.

I would have felt bad because it almost sounded like an accusation, but his tone was weird. It didn’t sound like he was angry—more like he was trying hard not to laugh. I frowned as I barely glanced at him out the corner of my eye.

“Well, can you blame me?” I murmured. “After…” I couldn’t make myself say the words, waving my hand around the whole room so he would get the idea.

“After we had sex, you mean?” he said. “We left the party last night and had fun. There’s nothing wrong with that. Or, wait, do you regret it?”

He sounded carefree up until he said that last part, and I thought his voice sounded a bit tight.

“Well, no…” I murmured, my voice going quieter.

Because, yeah, I couldn’t possibly regret last night, no matter how I felt right then. We hadn't done anything wrong, we were both single, consenting adults, and it got my mind off my issues. I couldn’t tell if more or less talking about last night would make me feel less awkward.

“Would you at least look at me?”

“Not until you put some clothes on.”

God, I sounded like my mom. Zach had seen me naked, we’d had sex. It was a bit too late to try and act all decent at this point, but I was too busy trying to hold onto my pride and save what little of it I had left.

He sighed, and then there was a slight rustling, but I didn’t dare turn to look. I was tempted to, but then ideas would start springing into my mind. I didn’t think jumping right back into bed when I felt this unsure of myself would be good for either of us, and I knew that was exactly what would happen.

“Come on, Scarlett,” he coaxed. “Don’t make this awkward, all right? We both needed a distraction last night, and we got it and had a good time while we were at it. It doesn’t have to be anything more than that.”

Something in my chest ached a little. I was nothing more than a distraction for him, and really, what more could I have expected? But then, I used him the same way, didn’t I? Feeling bad about his wording was a bit hypocritical of me.

I looked in his direction, feeling a little relieved when I noticed he’d put briefs on. It was only a small step above being naked, but I didn’t want him to think I was uncomfortable, even though I was. Then I squinted at him in suspicion.

“That’s it?” I asked in disbelief.

He shrugged. “Well, sure. What more did you expect? I told you I’m more into sex than relationships, so if you don’t want this to happen again, it won’t,” he promised.

I blinked at him, not comprehending. He made it seem too easy when I knew it wasn’t. It was anything but easy at this point. I’d not only had a one night stand, but had had it with one of my friends while as a bridesmaid at our mutual friends’ wedding, no less.

There would be no keeping it quiet. People would speculate, maybe a few would guess. But Zach… Yes, he’d told me his views on his dealings with women, but it still felt so surreal that he was acting this carefree while I was the awkward one. But then, he was used to this. I never had sex outside of relationships, and even then it was at least after a couple of months of dating if the relationship lasted that long.

“So we’re still… just friends,” I said slowly, trying to convince myself and question him at the same time. “No weirdness between us at all, you don’t come to me expecting sex or anything?”

He snorted and rolled his eyes like it was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard. I felt a little offended.

“If that’s what you’re worried about, don’t. That’s not how I do things. We had a fun night, and I enjoyed it.” He arched an eyebrow. “Unless you have an objection?”

Unconsciously, I shook my head. “It was… probably the best sex I’ve had in a long time,” I said, immediately regretting saying it when he smirked at me, looking all smug.

“Well, there you go. It was the same for me, by the way. Probably just because it was you.”

I ignored that my face felt flushed. “Oh?”

He laughed. “If you want me to shower you with compliments, I will. You’re fucking sexy, Scarlett, I’ve always thought so. You made my night the moment you agreed to this, and it only got better.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, and I huffed out a little laugh, relaxing a little.

Maybe I was taking this too seriously. Zach didn’t look like he was having any trouble keeping things casual, so there was no reason why I should.

Still, I frowned at him. “So… what happens now?”

“Now…” he looked around. “I get dressed, we go out and have breakfast, and we share a cab home.”

He did just that, going around the room and pulling on his clothes as I watched. He put on his slacks and his shirt, then picked up his jacket and frowned at it. I could tell it was expensive and we’d mishandled it badly last night. But then I was preoccupied watching him as he pulled out his phone from his pocket.

“It’s later than I thought,” he murmured, frowning at the screen. “We’re gonna need to check out soon, or I’ll have to pay extra.”

Fuck.

The words he was speaking barely registered in my mind. I was too busy looking at his body. Somehow, partially dressed as he was, he looked even hotter than when he’d had no clothes on. His shirt was unbuttoned, framing his muscled chest and abdomen to perfection. His slacks, also undone, hung off his hips, and my eyes couldn’t help dropping to the open fly, staring at the slight bulge there. It would be so easy, just a small push with my hands, to have him naked again. His hands would go behind me to undo my dress, it would fall to the floor, and we could go back to the bed…

“Is something wrong?”

I blinked at Zach, who had cocked his head at me. It took me a moment to realize he must have said something I didn’t hear. I shook my head, opened my mouth, and said something that made my face go red with a furious blush once I registered the words: “After last night, I know exactly why women chase after you.”

We stared at each other in short silence, mine stubborn, his more shocked. Then a grin spread on his face that made me think I’d pass out from overheating in embarrassment.

“Really?” he said with a chuckle.

He tossed aside his coat. Luckily, it landed on the bed. He crossed the space between us, making me widen my eyes and take a step back when I thought he would kiss me. He stopped and tilted his head to the side.

“What, I don’t even get a kiss?” he asked innocently.

I scoffed at the act. “You leave a lot of broken hearts, don’t you?”

He shrugged, oh so casual, and sidled a little closer. I didn’t back away, but jutted my chin a little.

“I wouldn’t know about that, but I would like to know if you’d be interested in doing this again. You said it last night; we’re both no good with relationships. This would be easier, no?”

No, I wanted to say. But that wasn’t entirely accurate. If I could get over today, and the next few days, it really would be an easy decision to make.

“So we keep meeting up for sex, because you don’t want a relationship, and I can't seem to keep one? Isn’t that just a little sad?”

His grin never faltered. “Call it comforting each other. Even better, we’re already friends, so there’s no need for awkward morning afters, and finding someone new later.”

I laughed. “And how long would this go on for? Like maybe in a year we both wouldn’t have anybody. Do we marry to up the convenience?” I teased. “Then I’d be your booty call, and you’d be mine, but we still live separately, and make sex the only requirement.”

He folded his arms over his chest with a casual grunt. “Why live separately? We can have a house with two bedrooms and we’d be like roommates. It would be inexpensive, so I definitely wouldn’t mind that.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’ll have to think about the living together thing.”

“Seriously, please do. It would be awesome.”

I scoffed at him, and he grinned. He turned away from me to get the rest of his things, pulling on his socks and shoes, as I pulled on my heels with a slight wince. I watched as he folded his coat over his arm, carefully, and looked up at me.

“Ready to go?”

I nodded, and we left the room.

The ride down in the elevator wasn’t as uncomfortable as I thought it would be, but that was probably because I kept thinking about how he’d shoved me up against the wall and kissed me. I shot looks at him out the corner of my eye and noticed him doing the same. When our eyes met, he grinned, and an answering smirk crossed my lips.

I had to admit I was thinking about this, not just joking about it. The same thoughts must have been running through his mind. When we walked out of the elevator on the first floor, he broached the subject.

“So, do you think we can talk next week?”

I felt more amused now than ashamed, and I owed him for making it less awkward for me.

“For the booty call, or for us moving in together?” I teased.

“The move, actually,” he said, sounding serious. “I wasn’t kidding before. An inexpensive roommate would probably save me. The last guy moved out, and I’ve got a room.” He ruined the serious air when he waggled his eyebrows. “I could make it worth your while.”

I snorted with a roll of my eyes, but I smiled. “Sure, Zach,” I said. “I’ll keep in touch, and we can sort something out.”

His eyebrows shot up, likely wondering if I was joking or not, but I didn’t wait around for him to clarify. I hurried out the hotel entrance, hearing his chuckle behind me as we went our separate ways.