Page 36 of Embrace

I move farther into her room, taking my time checking out her things. Though it’s mostly just notes stuck to her walls as reminders. But I notice the tiny Christmas tree already set up on her dresser.

“Isn’t a bit early?” I point at the tree.

She scoffs. “Christmas starts in September, everyone knows that. It’s like the cardinal rule in my family.”

She ushers me over to the bed, then offers me every snack in her drawer.

“What’s that?” I ask, staring at the show paused on her laptop when she opens it.

“Oh, it’s a reality show. It’s kind of trashy and messy as hell. I don’t think you—”

“Getaway Island? I watched all of the last two seasons. I totally forgot that another one came out.”

Her mouth parts. “You did?”

“Yeah, the guys love it. We even hosted watch parties every week in sophomore year.”

“Wait, that wasyou? I went to almost all of those.”

I laugh. “Yup. There were so many people we got in huge shit from our captain when he found out that’s what we were doing.”

“Do you want to watch?”

“Sure.”

I stare at the plain white bed. “You sleep with one pillow?”

“Yes. Is that bad?”

“Kind of creepy.”

“What? How? I’m one person, hence the one pillow. More is just pompous.”

I shake my head but move to sit by her, reclining against the headboard, watching her excitedly pull up the most recent episode.

Scarlett is so animated while she watches, it’s kind of amusing. I thought I was loud when watching TV, but she’s got me beat.

“What a creep! He’s totally gaslighting her.”

And: “He just coupled up with the brunette. There is no way she’s going to be okay with this.”

The two cheaters on-screen start making out and Scarlett and I boo them. I don’t know when it happened, but she’s got her feet tucked close, her arms wrapped around her legs, as we lean into each other.

My arm rests behind her, and every time she moves, her soft hair brushes against my biceps. All I can smell is her citrusy scent.

As I’m sitting there, just breathing her in, I feel the exhaustion weigh on me. I don’t know when I drift off, but the next time I open my eyes, it’s to Scarlett staring at me, barely an inch away.

She jerks, flying away from me and to the opposite side of the bed. “Sorry! I was deciding whether I should wake you. Your neck was at an awkward angle.”

I stifle a yawn. “I should head out.”

“Or…you could just sleep here? Today was rough, and I’m not sure I trust you to drive home.”

“I’ll be fi—” I yawn again. “Fine.”

She raises a brow as if she’s won. “Right. Well, I’m a good host so obviously you can sleep on my bed.”

“I’m not taking your bed.”