Logan
I woke up with a human on my chest and it took me a few seconds to realise it was Chloe; I was in her room and hadn’t left last night like I’d planned. Out of all the women I’d woken up next to this was by far the most pleasant. The least being the charming woman that stumbled to the corner of her room, crouched down and pissed on the floor. She was still off her face drunk, but still, I was out of there before she’d pulled her thong back up.
Waking up to Chloe felt about a million times better every time it’d happened, which wasn’t a lot. We’d fallen asleep in the same bed or on a sofa but this was different. There were no tears or anger. Neither of us was really there for comfort. Well, maybe I was after her fucking date.
She spent the evening with him but the night with me. I needed that night. I wondered what he’d think if he knew we’d shared a bed – not doing what I was desperate to do in it. She wasn’t his but I wanted to tell him and it’d be a deal breaker for him.
Fuck, I was a selfish bastard.
Chloe breathed heavily and balled her hand in a loose fist, dragging her fingertips over my chest before they curled under her palm. I closed my eyes and counted to ten, slowly. The bottom half of her was beside me on the bed but the top half was almost completely on me. Her breasts were pressed pretty firmly against my chest, which made calming the fuck down almost impossible.
She was everything I’d wanted for the last six and a half years but she’d always been within my reach yet completely unreachable and I didn’t know how much longer I could pretend like it wasn’t killing me.
Her lips were facing me, soft and ready and I wanted to attack them more than I wanted anything else. She might scream if I just went for it. I could pretend I was still half asleep and disorientated, speak a load or rubbish that didn’t make sense so she thought I was sleep kissing if she shoved me off. Like that thought hadn’t ever entered my mind, every time I’d had a drink I’d wanted to kiss her so I could blame the alcohol if it went wrong. The thing that stopped me every time was the possibility that it could be awkward after. I didn’t want awkward with Chloe. I wanted everything with her. I could settle for an agonising fucking friendship, but I couldn’t do awkward.
I wanted to lay in her bed all day with her but I knew she’d wake up soon and I wasn’t sure how she’d handle the intimate position, the closest we’d been before was waking up with her elbow in my side or one of her legs against mine.
I kissed the top of her head, closing my eyes and savouring the moment for a second. I fucking love you.
Against every instinct I had when it came to her, I rolled her over, laid on my side and leant on my hand. “Morning, Chlo,” I said much too loud and much too cheerfully.
She gasped awake, jumping and clinging to the cover. “Logan! What’re you doing?”
“Waking you up, you’ve been sleeping too long. Want to go for a run?”
First she looked lost, then she looked murderous. “You woke me up to ask if I want a run at…” Her eyes flicked to the alarm clock on the bedside table, “seven in the morning?”
“Yeah, you up for it?”
“No, I am not up for it. What’s wrong with you?”
Now that was a question I wouldn’t mind the answer to as well.
“You like running in the morning.”
“Not this morning. We weren’t supposed to run today.”
“So is that a no?”
She groaned and flopped back on the bed. “Logan, go home.”
“I don’t want to. We could go get breakfast somewhere or you could cook for me here.” I’d already put my hands out to protect whatever she was about to hit. I caught her wrist before it came into contact with my shoulder and laughed. “I was joking. I’m a modern man; I’ll cook for you. What do you fancy?”
“Why’re you so happy?”
The answer was pretty fucking obvious to me and it was currently glaring at me.
I shrugged. “It’s a lovely day, Chlo. Come on, sweetheart, cheer up.”
“You can cook for me here. I want bacon.”
That was what I’d hoped because there was no way her mum would let me loose in her kitchen so I wouldn’t end up being the one that cooked anyway.
I got out of bed. “Alright, miss grumpy, bacon is coming up. You want it in bed or are you getting that arse up?” Actually, I quite liked the idea of bringing her breakfast in bed.
“I’ll get up. Give me five minutes to get ready and I’ll be down.”
“Alright. See you in a minute.” I opened her door and looked back over my shoulder. “And, Chlo, the messy bed hair is pretty hot.” I got out and closed the door as she frantically looked for something to throw at me.
***
“Morning, Bethany,” I said to Chloe’s mum as I walked into the kitchen.
“Logan, hi,” she replied, shocked to see me. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“Yeah, sorry, popped over to see Chlo after her date and fell asleep.”
She nodded, having no issue with the fact that I’d spent the night in her daughter’s bed. But that was because I was Jace’s brother and she would never think anything would happen, so it kind of sucked.
“I’m making bacon, you want?” I asked her.
She laughed and shooed me to the table. “You sit, I’ll be making breakfast.”
“Will you ever let me cook in that fancy kitchen?”
“Not a chance, mister! I don’t even let Bill cook in my kitchen.”
“I’ll make the coffee then.”
She pointed in my direction, already getting pans out to cook. “That you can do. How did Chloe’s date go? She tell you?”
Oh, yeah, she told me. “It went alright, they’re going out again.” I tried, really tried, to sound happy for her.
“That’s good. For a while there I wasn’t sure if we’d ever get her back. She relied on the plan she’d made with Jace far too much.”
“She just needed a kick up the butt. Honestly, I think she was getting there herself, she was healing but couldn’t see a way of planning for a different future.”
Bethany ripped open the pack of bacon. “She needed you. You’re good for each other, you’ve always bounced off each other.”
She didn’t mean it in the way I wanted her to or she did but knew it was about as likely as pigs flying. Either way, someone saying me and Chlo were good for each other did things to my heart that I’d only admit out loud if I turned into a teen girl.
“Yeah, we’ve always got along.”
“Until last night,” Chloe said, walking into the kitchen and glaring at me again. “Scare me or wake me again and I’ll have your balls, Scott.”
That would’ve frightened me but I really wanted her to have my balls.
I held my hands up, playing along. “Noted, sweetheart. No more surprise visits or wake ups.”
“Ugh, you so don’t mean that.” She sat on a chair and rested her head on her arms. I wanted to sit down next to her and pull her into my arms while her mum cooked. I wanted to be able to hold her, just to fucking hold her.
So I wouldn’t make a tit of myself, drop to my knees and proclaim my undying love for her, I went back to making coffee.
“Tell me about your date, love,” Bethany said.
If I got details I was pouring the kettle out over my head.
“It was good. He made a picnic, we ate at the park and then had a long walk. He’s taking me out next weekend.”
“That’s great.”
I wanted to make a puking sound but refrained.
“Yeah. It was a little awkward at first, we’ve never spent any time together outside of work, but he’s really nice.”
“Nice but awkward. Winner!” I said before I could stop myself. Chloe stuck her finger up. “Sorry, I’m sure he’s your prince charming.”
“I’m not looking to marry the guy, Logan. We’re just getting to know each other. There might not even be anything that comes out of it.”
There fucking better not be!
“There’s no pressure, Chloe, just go with the flow and see what happens. You never know, you may well end up marrying him,” Bethany said, wiggling her eyebrows.
I thought she’d end up marrying Jace and that hurt enough but some random guy… As much as I wanted her to be happy I didn’t want to watch her walk down the aisle and take the hand of someone else. The thought of sitting there while she recited vows to another man made me want to hurl.
I poured boiling water in three mugs, trying to push away the image of her in a white dress dancing her first dance with a guy that wasn’t me. Marriage wasn’t something I thought much about but I’d marry her right now, no hesitation.
Shit, I had problems.
“Bill’s at work?” I asked.
“Yeah, he’ll be home in an hour, he just had to sort something out for Monday.”
“Mum, what are the chances you and Dad’ll get me a new car for my birthday?” Chloe asked.
I turned around, really wanting to see this.
“Hmm…” Bethany said, pretending to think. I couldn’t help a big, fat grin. This wasn’t going to go in Chloe’s favour.
“Come on, Mum. Please?”
“There’s nothing wrong with your car.”
“It broke last month.”
“For the first and only time in the three years you’ve had it.”
She pouted and I almost offered to buy her a fucking car.
“Please? I’m a poor student and can’t afford one.”
Bethany rolled her eyes, turning around to continue cooking a shit load of bacon. “Chloe, when your car breaks we’ll replace it, that was the deal.”
“Okay, fine, but you’ll have to get me a birthday present and a car. I was saving you money here!”
Women logic.
“Nice try, love. Dad wants to get you something special, we’re both so proud of how well you’ve been doing this year, but don’t hold your breath for a car.”
“This year’s been a lot easier. It’s nice to think about Jace and not feel total despair. Still not too sure about what happens after uni but I’m working on it.”
“After uni you get a job and a house,” I said, handing Bethany her coffee before taking mine and Chlo’s to the table and sitting down. “Like the rest of us.”
“You didn’t go to uni,” she replied. She looked smug and pouted her lips in that sexy, unknowing way. It got me every time.
“Alright, smartarse. I mean you do everything you wanted to do, just…”
She chewed her lip and then released it to say, “Do it without Jace.”
“Yeah. You have to do it without him.” We all had to do everything without him. It fucking sucked.