I wake up early in the morning and smile when I see Melissa still lying beside me. Her lithe body is only half-covered by my bedsheets. I watch her for a moment. She’s sleeping soundly. I listen to the sound of her soft breathing. Every now and then, she lets out a little breath like a sigh and stirs.

Our clothes are scattered around the flat. My bedsheets smell like a mixture of cologne and perfume. I close the distance between us and snuggle Melissa close to me. She lets me pull her in and wrap my arms around her. She’s still half-asleep and smiles as she pulls my arm even tighter around her, then shuffles back into my embrace so we’re spooning.

Her body is warm, and the sound and feel of her rhythmic breathing starts to make me drift off once again. Just as my eyes close a cell phone starts ringing. We both jump at the loud, harsh sound piercing through the peace and quiet of the bedroom.

When she hears her ringtone, Melissa bolts up and gasps. She answers it quickly. I only hear her side of the conversation.

“Connor? I’m so sorry. I forgot to call. Are you okay? I know, I’m sorry. Yes, I know. I do care. I’ll be home soon.” She hangs up and lets out a long breath. Her whole body slumps, and she runs both hands through her messy dark hair.

She looks sexy in the dim morning light filtering through the drapes. Her hair is tousled from last night’s fun, her skin bare and inviting; her glasses rest on the nightstand. Her large brown eyes close as she hugs her knees and groans.

I sit up. “Everything all right?”

“That was Connor.”

“Your brother?”

“Mm-hmm.” She pulls the cover around her and stands up, starting to search for her clothes. “I’m sorry, but I have to go.”

I stand up and catch her eyes darting downward toward my manhood. She blushes. Last night is a bit of a blur—everything happened so quickly, from leaving the party to tumbling into bed. Now Melissa is hurrying away just as fast.

“You’re not going to stay for breakfast?”

She casts me an apologetic smile. “I’ve got to get back to him.”

I frown. “Your brother? The guy I saw you with on campus the other day? What’s the hurry? He’s a full-grown man.”

“He’s nineteen,” Melissa states as if she’s correcting me. “I’ve been out all night without telling him where I am.”

“So? You’re not his mother.”

Melissa stops what she’s doing. Darkness falls over her expression, and she sinks down to the mattress. “Our mother passed away four years ago.”

“Oh.” The news takes me by surprise. I pull on a pair of sweatpants and sit down beside her, studying her expression.

Her eyes are full of sorrow and exhaustion. Her shoulders are slumped low, her posture defeated. She wraps her arms around herself, holding the covers over her chest. Her head is bowed. “Connor was fifteen when she died. I’ve been taking care of him ever since.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. What happened to your father?”

Melissa shrugs. “Never knew him. He walked out on my mom when she told him she was pregnant with Connor. She raised us alone.”

“That’s awful.” I protectively wrap my arm around her shoulders to comfort her. “You’ve taken care of him all this time? How did you manage?”

“It’s been hard,” Melissa admits. “But I always find a way. The hardest thing has been dealing with Connor’s behavior since Mom died. He always had an attitude, but once we lost her, he went off the rails.”

Melissa clears her throat and looks up at me. She forces a smile, injecting a false brightness into her voice. “Sorry. I don’t know why I’m telling you all this. You don’t need to know about all my baggage.”

“I had no idea you were dealing with so much.”

“I don’t like people knowing,” she replies. “And I’d appreciate it if you kept this between us. I’m already surviving on scholarships and hand-outs; the last thing I want is to give people another reason to pity me. I simply want to focus on my studies and get my degree.”

“I understand.” I walk around the flat, gathering Melissa’s clothes, and hand them to her.

She offers me a grateful smile. “Thanks.”

“Feel free to grab a shower. I can get you a towel if you like?”

“I don’t have time. God knows what Connor’s been up to while I’ve been out.” She shakes her head. “I’m not usually this irresponsible.”

“It’s not irresponsible to let your hair down once in a while, Lissy. Your brother may have his issues, but he’s an adult. You should be able to have a night out without feeling guilty.”

Melissa frowns. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“I’ll put some coffee on.”

I choose not to say anything else because Melissa’s right—I don’t understand. I’ve never been responsible for another person or lost someone I loved. My life has been easy and privileged. What do I know about loss?

The last thing I want to do is put my foot in it by saying something insensitive, so I busy myself with the coffee machine. I hear Melissa moving around the bedroom as the water boils. Moments later, she appears beside me.

She’s wearing last night’s purple dress and heels. Her makeup has rubbed away overnight, and she didn’t bring a hairbrush, so her hair is wild. She’s put on her glasses again, so she looks like she’s just walked off the set of “Librarians Gone Wild.” Even in this state, I still think she could give any girl on campus a run for their money—she’s effortlessly beautiful.

I pour her a cup of coffee and slide it across to her. “At least get some caffeine in you before you head off.”

“Thanks.”

I gesture for her to take a seat at the breakfast bar, which she does. She appears restless, jostling her leg up and down and drumming her fingers against the edge of the cup.

I take a seat beside her. “Relax,” I say gently. “I’m sure Connor will be fine.”

“I hope so.”

“Does he have special needs?”

She makes a face, then laughs. “What? No. Why?”

I shrug. “I’m wondering why you’re so worried about him. He’s nineteen. He’s more than capable of taking care of himself.”

Melissa hesitates and lets out a long breath. “He gets himself into trouble a lot.”

“So do I. He’s young. That’s normal.”

“I’m not talking about having a few too many and hitting on tons of women. Connor gets into real trouble—fights—drugs.” She sighs. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“You’re worried I won’t understand?”

“I know you won’t understand.”

“All I know is that I had a great time last night, and I’d hate for it to be a one-time thing because I kept you out too late. You’re entitled to have your own life, Lissy.”

She shakes her head. “Please stop. I know you’re trying to help, but you don’t know what you’re talking about. I have a responsibility to Connor. I promised Mom I’d take care of him. If anything happens to him because I was out having fun—I’d never forgive myself.”

“Does that mean I won’t be seeing you again?”

She lets out a long breath, her body slumping. “I don’t know, Henry. I had fun last night, but I have a lot going on in my life right now. I’m not sure that inviting a man into the mix is the best idea. It’s complicated.”

I watch her gulp down her coffee, rushing to leave. I can see the stress in the way she carries herself; every inch of her looks worn out and fed up. She didn’t look that way when she was dancing last night.

“You have my number,” I say. “You should call me.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

“Or else I’ll see you in lectures.”

“Mm-hmm.” Melissa is avoiding my eyes. She finishes her coffee, places her cup down on the breakfast bar and stands up. Everything in her body language says she’s trying to escape.

I lay my hand gently on her arm. “Do you regret last night?” I ask her. “If I overstepped any lines, I’m sorry. I thought you wanted to stay.”

Her eyes widen, then soften. She lays her hand over mine and smiles. “I don’t regret it. I wanted to stay.”

I nod. “All right.”

I fold my arms over my chest and stand back so Melissa can finish gathering her things. She picks up her handbag and turns to face me one last time.

“Thanks for last night, Henry. I’m sorry I have to leave in a hurry.” She pauses, smiling at me softly. “I had fun. Guess it’s time to do the walk of shame.”

“Hang on,” I say. I go to my closet and take out my old university hoodie. I hand it to her. “Take this.”

She holds up the gray sweatshirt to examine it. She studies the logo. “Kings College, Cambridge. Wow.” She pulls it over her head. It’s too large for her and looks odd with her short dress and heels, but at least her chest is covered. She pulls a hair tie from her handbag and pulls her hair back into a rough pony. “Thanks.”

“Do you want me to walk you back?”

“Thanks, but I’ll be fine.”

We stand opposite each other awkwardly. After a whirlwind night, it’s all come to a sudden end, and neither of us is sure what to say.

“You’ll be safe, won’t you?” I ask uncertainly. “Your brother won’t be too mad?”

“Connor has his issues, but he’s not like that. Forget I said anything. I’ll see you at the next lecture.”

I walk her to the apartment door. We say goodbye with a short, distant hug, and then she leaves.

I’m left feeling uncertain and uneasy. Last night with Melissa was great. I enjoyed seeing her come to life on the dancefloor and lose her inhibitions. I saw two different sides to her last night—her fun, free-spirited side, and the side she tries to hide—the long-suffering and devoted older sister.

There’s more to her than I realized at first glance, and her story stirs something within me. I recognize that she deserves more than someone who’s going to use her, then throw her away. That’s not you, Henry. You don’t have it in you to be that man.

I shake away the thought. For once in my life, I want to do right by the woman I’m with. Melissa is more than just some fling. She means a lot to me.