Bubble Wrap

chapter nine

LUKE'S FINGERS BLAZE a trail over my skin as his hands move under my cardigan, moving toward the hem of my top as he pulls me tighter to his chest. I feel his lips curl up when a small moan escapes my lips, holding onto me a little tighter. And I shouldn't want it, but when he stumbled back into his apartment, I find myself following. Completely intoxicated by him.

I expect the spell to break the second the door shuts behind us, but instead I grab at his sides as he cages my body between his and the door. My head lulling back when his lips move down to my jaw, slowly leading a path down toward my collarbone. Running my hands over his chest, I grip the fabric of shirt between my fingers and move it up his chest. And for a second, when we part, our eyes meet and my heart stops.

He's looking at me like the whole world is at the tip of his fingers and it should terrify me. I should be pushing him away and running for the hills, but I can't. Right now all I want is him.

My arms move over his shoulders as his hands move down my spine, moving lower as he scoops me off my feet. I run my fingers into the ends of his hair at the nape of his neck, kissing him as he finds his way towards his bedroom. The mattress sinking beneath our weight, his hands moving up to my hips and a small squeal falls from my lips when he lifts me further up the bed. Our lips quickly finding their way back to each other and I lose sense of the world.

It's just him and me, and for a small second, I know the feeling in my book. The getting lost in someone else where the world only seems to exist in them. I understand it in a way I never understood it with Charlie, and that's what scares me. That I can never go back to before now. I'll know this feeling exists and that it's right across the hall.

And when it's done, I feel the cold weight of that realization as I sit up. I don't want to leave, but I can't stay either. If I do, I know I'll go into a vicious cycle and I won't be able to leave it. It'll just become my next addiction.

"Where are you going?" Luke asks, lazily tracing shapes over the small of my back. His fingers leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake.

"Home."

He hums before moving his hand to my hip, gently pulling me in his direction as I fall back into the mattress.

"Luke," I whine.

His lips rest just below my ears as he whispers, "Stay."

Every bone in my body is screaming to get out before I can't, but then he kisses my jaw and seals me to my fate. I can't leave, and more importantly, I don't want to. I want to stay right here in his arms—forever.

I wake up the next morning to the sun hitting my face, a soft groan falling from my lips as I run my hand over the smooth surface of Luke's sheets. And I can't help the smile that creeps onto my lips as I turn to look at him, surprised by the sudden shift in my emotions. I half expected to wake up this morning in a complete panic over my actions the night before, but it never comes.

Instead, I'm met with an empty bed as I sit up and take in his room for the first time. His room is vibrant in ways that his living room is not. It's easy to tell that blue is his favorite color, but here, it's complimented by shades of yellow and it gives me a better understanding of who he is. The way his room expresses more about him than his living room, because only certain people will ever see the four walls of this room.

It's almost poetic—an intimacy a little more subtle.

Crawling to the edge of the bed, I grab my shirt off the floor and pull it on before hunting down my underwear. I find them on the bench at the end of his bed and start pulling them on, when Luke reappears in the doorway.

His lips curl up, and it nearly stops my heart. "Good morning."

"Morning," I say before noticing the tray in his hands. "What's this?"

"I thought you might be hungry," he explains, setting the tray down in front of me before sinking onto the edge of the bed. My eyes drift down to the plate in front of me with eggs, toast, and a mixed bowl of fruit. It's nothing exciting, but the gesture makes my heart race a little faster.

"Do you do this for all your one-night stands?" I ask, picking at the hem of my shirt. Forcing myself to look anywhere but his eyes.

"Nah." He shakes his head as he leans back on his elbows, smiling up at me. "It's something special I do for the two-night stands, you know, got to keep them on their toes."

"Funny," I say and gently push the tray toward him. "And it's sweet, but you really don't have to do this, Luke. We slept together, and it was..." I trail off and run my fingers through my hair, pushing it back from my face. "Nice."

"Not earth-shattering?"

I roll my eyes. "I'm not going to inflate your ego. I'm sure you get enough of that from the other woman you sleep with."

"What other woman?" he asks.

I nearly take him seriously until I hear his laugh. "I have to go," I say and move the comforter off my legs before climbing out of bed. "I'm having breakfast with Maggie and Zane, but this was..."

"Nice?" he mocks.

"Shut up," I say as I move to grab my cardigan off the floor, pulling it on as I search the room for my sweats. I find them in a pile with Luke's jeans before spotting my clothes from before neatly folded on the edge of his dresser. "You folded my clothes."

"Yeah, figured you'd want them back eventually," he says as he sits up and moves to set the tray on the dresser. "So, will I be seeing you again tonight?"

I turn to eye him, folding my arms over my chest. "No, this was a two-night thing. I just... I needed to get it out of my system."

He hums. "What every guy dreams of hearing," he says with a grin, moving his hand toward my side. "You know, I hear these things typically come in threes."

I turn to look at him, tilting my chin up. "Is that right?"

"Yeah, I hear things are better that way," he says, and my stomach turns as his fingers curl around my side, pulling me toward him. I narrow my eyes in his direction, watching the slow smile creep onto his lips.

"I don't know if I've ever heard that one," I say.

He shrugs. "I mean, if you're sure."

"Don't make that face at me," I say, lifting my hand to point at him. "I told you to stop looking at me like that!"

"Like what?" he asks with a laugh. "4A, this is just my face."

"No! It's the face you make when you want something."

He grins. "I don't think so."

"I do."

"I know you do," he says and leans towards me. "Admit it," he whispers. "We're good at this."

I lean the rest of the way, just an inch between us. "I admit nothing."

He hums, kissing my cheek and then my jaw before putting a hair of space between us. His hand moves to my neck, his thumb brushing my jaw as his fingers tangle in my hair at the nape of my neck. "I'm going to kiss you now."

I press my lips together, noting the way he waits for my permission, and when I nod slowly, he leans in and catches my lips. And just like that, I lose myself in him all over again.