Meet Me Halfway(33)

“Once.”

“And?”

He grunted. “And what?”

“Did you at least get laid?”

“Jesus, Layla, don’t ask him that.” I did not need the mental image of Garrett’s body sexing some other chick. Wait, other? No, any. Any chick.

She shrugged. She and I had never viewed sex the same way. She saw it as a simple activity for mutual pleasure that anyone could, and should, participate in whenever they wanted. I saw it as something personal. I’d never had a one-night stand. In fact, I’d only ever slept with two men, and both had been serious relationships.

“I’m just saying, it’s a win-win for you. Maybe you meet the man of your dreams, maybe not. But you could at least get a good night out of it. Lord knows your strung-out ass needs it.”

I glared at her, slapping the towel back onto the counter and reaching for the last pot. “Hard pass.”

She groaned. “Your soulmate could be waiting for you right now, and you don’t even know it.”

That had me bursting out laughing. “No man is waiting for this hot mess express. My baggage has baggage. I got suitcases and carry-ons, backpacks and purses. The entire fucking plane is full. If a man attempted to board, we’d plummet from the sky.”

She flung her hands forward, fingers spread wide, enunciating each of her words, “That’s why online dating is perfect for you. Put it up front that you have a kid and work a lot. Only the guys who are accepting of all that will message you.”

“Plus, the ones who want to take me out with the intention of slipping me a roofie.” I forced a laugh that didn’t quite match my eyes, but Layla didn’t accept the white flag I was clearly waving. She knew I was trying to brush off the conversation, and she’d decided she wasn’t playing anymore.

“You can’t be scared of men forever.”

Aware of Garrett’s vision burning a hole in the side of my head, I turned to face her fully. “I’m not scared of men, Layla. I’m just not interested in dating. I’m stretched thin as it is.”

“It’s been years, Mads. We’re social creatures, we’re not meant to be alone.”

“I’m not alone,” I said, but it came out snappy and defensive. Smoothing my voice back out, I said, “I’m happy with how things are.”

She shook her head, backing out of the kitchen. “No, Mads, you’re not. You’ve just decided it’s easier to let him win.” She raised her hand in farewell to Garrett, turning toward the hallway. “I’m going to steal your shower since Jamie’s in this one. Goodnight, Garrett.”

I watched her disappear into her bedroom, Sadie at her heels. The house was suddenly too quiet, the only sound being Jamie’s shower. My eyes stung, and I didn’t know what to do with my face.

Layla was brutal and honest, and she could be a real bitch, but she was rarely ever wrong about me. I loved the hell out of her, but sometimes I hated how see-through I was to her.

“I’m going to step out for a smoke before I head home. Come out, you look like you could use some air.”

I cut my eyes to Garrett, taking in the lines of his face and letting him do the same to me. I wasn’t sure how he knew, but that was exactly what I needed. “Sure. Give me a second to go let Jamie know where I’ll be.”

He could have gone ahead and stepped out, but he didn’t. He waited for me, pack in one hand, hoodie in the other. Opening the door, he stepped to the side, letting me pass.

Foregoing the chairs—because I wasn’t sure the thin plastic could handle Garrett’s bulk—I dropped down onto the stairs, cradling my knees to my chest and breathing in the crisp eastern air.

He lowered himself with significantly more grace than I had and sat next to me. He didn’t push, and I was thankful. We sat in companionable silence, each swimming in our own pool of thoughts.

I wasn’t sure how long we’d been out there, but I was jarred to the present when something covered my face. I panicked, spine snapping straight before I could suddenly see again.

A raspy chuckle sounded next to me, and I looked down to realize Garrett had pulled his hoodie over me.

“You’re shivering so hard you’re shaking the cement.”

“Asshole, I was not.” But I laughed, pulling it the rest of the way down and tucking my legs inside of it like a small cocoon. It was warm from being rolled up in his lap, and it smelled like him. When he finally stood and bid me goodnight, I watched him go, feeling oddly relaxed.

It wasn’t until later, after I’d read to Jamie and crawled into bed, two things became clear. One, I was enjoying the feel of sleeping in a man’s clothing way more than I should, and two, the entire time we’d sat outside, he’d never actually lit a cigarette.





Chapter Ten





I launched up from the bed, scaring the daylights out of Rugsy and whipping my head around to look at my alarm clock.

“Shit. Shit, shit, shit!”

The textbook splayed open near me told me everything I needed to know. I’d unintentionally crashed before setting my alarm. Again. Shit!

Dressed in only my borrowed, over-sized hoodie and underwear, I half-fell to the floor in my haste, flinging my bedroom door open and racing toward Jamie’s room. I cracked the door open enough to peek in and, remembering Layla passed out in the next room, whisper-yelled, “Get up, bud, we are so very late!”