Chapter 20

Bradley had no idea what he’d been thinking when he agreed to stay with Carissa until she fell asleep. He’d lost his damn mind. That was the only explanation he could come up with. Well, the only explanation he was willing to accept, because anything else and he’d have to face the fact that he wasn’t a very good guy. Then again, Danny was the one who’d put Carissa in this situation in the first place. If the asshole hadn’t left her…

Bradley curled his hand into a fist, then flexed his fingers. He was already pissed enough at Danny; no need to make things worse by dwelling on his anger. Right now, he needed—no, wanted—to focus on Carissa. She clearly needed someone to be with her, to listen and not judge or yell or anything else.

He hurried into the room he’d shared with his brother and dug out some of the clothes he’d left here. Snatching a pair of gray sweatpants, he sniffed them just to make sure they didn’t smell moldy or anything. Not that they would—his father employed a stellar cleaning service to come in once a week and clean the place.

After changing, he wandered back toward the master suite. Even though he wanted to rush to Carissa’s side, he didn’t. He took his time and tried to calm himself. But no amount of pep talks and deep breaths would prepare him for what he was about to do.

From the moment he’d met Carissa, he’d been attracted to her. And that kiss they’d shared… He stifled a groan and licked his bottom lip. The spark that had ignited between them when their lips touched had been intense and unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. And he knew she’d felt the same thing, too. How could she not? Since then, they’d been dancing dangerously close to the edge, flirting but not really. Teasing one another in what he tried to convince himself was simply two friends joking, but he knew better.

And now he was supposed to lay in bed next to her and not touch her? He had to be a serious glutton for punishment.

Reaching the door to the master suite, he knocked, and she called for him to enter. He took another deep breath, and with his heart racing, he opened the door and walked into the room.

Carissa was in bed already. She was on her back, hands folded on her stomach, staring up at the ceiling, much like she’d been in the lounge chair on the roof. She’d changed, too, and from what he could tell, his sister’s clothes fit Carissa well.

“Comfortable?” he asked, gently closing the door behind him.

“Mm-hmm.”

Her throaty hum had desire sizzling through his veins. Slowly, he strode across the room and eased onto the bed, careful to keep a respectable distance between them.

“Um, you’re sleeping in that?” she asked, turning her head to glance at him.

“What’s wrong with this?” He settled onto his back.

“You’re half-naked.”

He laughed. “Normally, I’m fully naked when I sleep. Count yourself lucky I put pants on.” He turned his head to look at her, too, and her cheeks were a delicious, delicate shake of pink. “If you’re uncomfortable with me being half-naked, you’re welcome to get half-naked, too. You know, make it fair.”

A strangled sound of disbelief tore from her throat, and then she barked out a shocked laugh. “I don’t think so.”

“Can’t blame a guy for trying,” he said.

“This is probably the softest bed I’ve ever been in,” she said, her voice heavy with sleepiness. “It’s like heaven.”

“It’s the best bed in the house.” He shifted slightly, but he was far from relaxed. His muscles tightened with tension, and nervous energy thrummed inside of him.

What would he do if she tried to make a move? Would he stop her again? That would be the smart thing to do, but he wasn’t sure he’d have the strength, not when every cell in his body screamed for her.

“So, do you come here often?” she asked.

He momentarily froze, then laughed. “There’s really no need for cheesy pick-up lines. I mean, you’ve already got me in bed with you. What more do you want?”

“Shut up.” Carissa laughed and shook her head. Then she rolled onto her side so she was facing him, hands tucked beneath her cheek. “I meant the penthouse. How often do you stay here?”

“Not as much as I used to.” He rolled onto his side, too, and propped his head in his hand. The last thing he wanted to do was talk about his ex-girlfriend, so he hoped Carissa wouldn’t push the topic.

“I wish I had a place like this.” She sighed.

“What do you mean?”

“Somewhere I could go when I needed to get away.” She gave an awkward shrug. “Somewhere no one could find me.”

He studied her intently. Her hair was wild despite her obvious attempt to tame her locks; her face was no longer tear-stained, though her cheeks were redder than usual; and her normally vibrant eyes were dull and devoid of the spark he’d come to associate with her.

“You do have a place like that,” he said before he could think about the implication of his words. “You have this place. You can come here any time you want.”

Her smile was faint but still noticeable. “Thank you. Seriously. You’ve been a great friend to someone you hardly know.” She slid one arm beneath the pillow and rested her other hand on the bed.

He let out a sigh that was much heavier than he’d meant. “So, I’ve been officially friend zoned, huh?”

Despite knowing that’s all they were, hearing her say the words was like a billion tiny pinpricks to his heart, each one deeper and more painful than the last. And even though he’d sworn not to pursue her while she was in a relationship with another man, the second he’d found out Danny abandoned her, Bradley changed his mind. No way was he going to step aside and let someone as awful as Danny have Carissa and treat her like she didn’t matter.

“I thought we were friends,” she said, her tone unsure. “Was I wrong to think that?”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “We are friends, but we were both there for that kiss. You can’t tell me that was just a friendly kiss.”

She averted her gaze and aimlessly traced the stitching on the comforter. “I told you. That kiss was a sorority test. I had to—”

“You had to kiss me. Yes, I know. But you didn’t have to respond to me the way you did. No one could fake that kind of reaction.” His tone was soft but insistent.

He needed to make her understand, to help her see that she had other options, that she didn’t need to waste another day—or one more tear—on Danny. Maybe Bradley needed to be blunter in his approach, but he didn’t want to come on too strong and end up pushing her away.

“I don’t know what you want me to say,” she whispered.

Bradley placed his hand over hers, stilling her movements. She didn’t attempt to pull away, so he took that as a sign to keep going.

“I want you to admit that you felt something when we kissed.” His heart pounded as he waited for her to say something, even if her response crushed him. At least then he’d know the truth.

“I did,” she finally said, meeting his gaze. “No one has ever kissed me like you did, and I couldn’t tell you the last time Danny kissed me with any real emotion.”

Bradley scowled at the mention of Danny, but rather than dwell on the bad, he focused on everything else Carissa said. No one has ever kissed me like you did. Those words were a balm to his raw nerves.

“When I found out you had a boyfriend, I was bummed, but I swore to myself I wouldn’t do this.” He waved his hand between them. “I wouldn’t be the guy to move in on another man’s girl, but then I saw the way Danny treated you, the way he spoke to you, and I saw red.” The muscle in his jaw tensed just thinking about it. “And tonight, when he left you…”

Carissa’s sigh sliced through his growing anger, and Bradley forced himself to calm down. The last thing she needed was for him to bash her boyfriend, even if Danny deserved every word said about him.

“Sorry.” Bradley frowned.

“No, it’s okay,” she said. “I know Danny doesn’t always say and do the right things, but he does love me.”

Bradley raised a brow. “If he loved you, he wouldn’t constantly make you cry, and he sure as hell wouldn’t have left you alone in the woods.” His face heated with a renewed sense of rage. “Anything could’ve happened to you, Carissa. Do you realize that?”

She nodded and once again lowered her gaze so she wasn’t looking at him.

“Does he? Because if he did, he wouldn’t have left,” Bradley said, his tone hard. “Look, I may not understand what you see in that guy or why you stay with him, but you obviously love him enough to stick around and put up with that kind of treatment.”

The glistening sheen of tears shone on her cheeks, and Bradley wanted to kick himself for making her cry. He’d vowed never to do that, and that’s exactly what he’d done.

“Please don’t cry.” He gently placed his finger under her chin and tilted her head up, bringing them face to face again. “I promised myself I wouldn’t do this, that I’d stay away from you and far from your relationship, but I’m willing to be that guy for you, Carissa.”

She blinked, and a few more tears slid down her cheeks. “What’re you saying?”

“I’m saying I like you. A lot.” He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm. “I’m saying I’ll go against everything I believe in if doing so means I might have a chance to be more than your friend.”

“Bradley…” Her bottom lip trembled.

“I’m saying that Danny now has competition, because I am more determined than ever to prove that I’m the better guy for you.” He flattened her hand on his chest, directly over his racing heart.

Her touch, even though not intentional on her end, sent fire blazing through him, igniting his need in a way he wasn’t sure he’d be able to control. She curled her fingers against his chest, and then she scooted a little closer.

“There is no competition, Bradley. I already know you’re a better man than Danny,” she said, a new wave of tears pooling in her eyes.

His breath caught in his throat, and for a few moments, he was too stunned to speak. But eventually, his brain caught up with his heart. “Then why are you still with him?”

With a sigh, Carissa eased her hand from his chest and rolled onto her back. “It’s complicated.”

“Complicated how?” He was so close to getting what he wanted—her—and he couldn’t give up now. “It’s not like you two are married. You don’t owe him anything.”

“I really don’t want to talk about Danny right now.” She turned her head to look at him, and her expression was pleading. “Can we please talk about anything else?”

Bradley was silent, debating the pros and cons of giving her what she wanted. Agreeing to talk about something else would make her happy, but then he still wouldn’t have any answers. But did the “why” behind her and Danny’s relationship really matter? All Bradley wanted was for Carissa to see that she deserved better, and that “better” was literally right in front of her.

“Okay,” he agreed. “What would you like to talk about then?”

“Why are you so into me?” She once again shifted onto her side. “Clearly, I’ve got a lot of emotional baggage. I mean, other than the first time we met, I’ve been fighting with Danny or crying like a lunatic. Why would you want someone like that?”

“I don’t want someone like that. I want you, and I’m smart enough to see that you only act that way because of Danny. If he were out of the picture…” Bradley shrugged.

“I’d probably still be overly emotional,” she said.

“Probably,” he agreed, which earned him an eye roll and a laugh. “But I’ve seen you happy, too. I’ve heard you laugh. Why wouldn’t you want to feel that way all the time?”

“It’s complicated,” she said again, and he groaned with frustration. “I’m sorry, but it is, and this conversation is over.” Her tone turned to ice. With a huff, she rolled in the opposite direction, her back to him.

He flopped over onto his back and blew out a heavy breath. Well, so much for confessing his feelings. Then again, what had he expected? That Carissa would admit she had feelings for him, too? That she’d break up with Danny on the spot and agree to be Bradley’s girlfriend?

He lay there in utter silence, his thoughts racing. Soon, Carissa’s breathing evened out, and he glanced over. She was sound asleep.