Page 77 of Next Level Up
“What?”
“Is that smoke, and I thought you were going home to grab something?”
He shrugs, dropping the bag near the hallway. “Didn’t think you’d smell it, and decided I’d go to the house tomorrow or something, stopped by some park for a smoke.”
Haven turns around on my lap, and eyes Tate with one arched brow. “Didn’t you say you were going to quit?”
“I did.”
“You just picked it back up for fun?”
“Something like that,” he mutters, pulling his hoodie off and tossing it onto the arm of the couch.
I sigh and let my head fall back against the cushion.
Tate’s grin flickers briefly before he stretches, glancing at the hallway. “Which one of you is taking the bed tonight?”
Haven raises her hand lazily. “Me.”
“I meant whichguy.”
“You can have it.” I say.
Tate lifts a brow.
I wave it off. “But at this point, I’m investing in an air mattress.”
“What, so you and I can switch off like bunkmates?”
Haven grins, imagining it. “Oh please do. I’d pay good money to see that.”
“You want me on an inflatable rectangle with no headboard and a slow leak in the middle of the night?”
“I want you in thesame room,” I say, stretching. “So I don’t have to feel like I’m third-wheeling in my own relationship when she climbs out of bed to go on the couch with you.”
Tate stares for a second… then snorts. “I’ll think about it.”
He disappears into the hallway, bag slung over one shoulder, peeling his shirt off as he goes.
I glance at Haven. “Air mattress?”
She shrugs. “Or rope.”
My jaw drops. She just winks and heads off to brush her teeth. When she comes back, her eyes are softer, her smile quieter. She crawls onto the couch beside me, tugging the covers high, one bare leg sliding against mine. “You still thinking about the quiz?” I ask.
She nods sleepily. “You still letting me top you mentally?”
I groan. “It’s not mental if you’re sitting on my lap like a queen.”
She hums. “You like it.”
“I like you.”
Her hand finds my chest. “Good. Because I like being the one who breaks your brain.”
23
Haven
