Page 55 of The Reluctant Roommate

“Wow,” Heidi said. “Who would have thought Jenga would be such intense foreplay?”

Morgan huffed a laugh, and the moment lightened. Her fingers gripped Heidi’s waist. “You should be the one thanking me for losing.”

This was the moment when they could move forward or draw back. Kiss more or clean the kitchen. She twitched, her feet tensing, preparing to take that one small step. Her nerves buzzed, and already she could taste Heidi’s kiss and Heidi’s skin, feel Heidi’s lovemaking.

No. Not like this.Not when there was so much turmoil in her life. And not while she was still being less than truthful with Heidi.

The tiny step forward became a larger step back. “We should start cleaning up.”

Heidi’s lips twitched. “That’s okay, Morgan. We don’t have to talk about me kissing you. You kissing me. Or what happens next, if you don’t want to. We can clean greasy pans and run the dishwasher.” She came closer and pressed a quick kiss toMorgan’s cheek. “Seriously, that’s okay. We both have a lot in our lives right now.”

She couldn’t answer. Didn’t know what to say. Instead, she picked up the discarded plates and started rinsing them under the tap.

Heidi came closer. She took each rinsed plate and started stacking the dishwasher. Out of the corner of her eye, Morgan saw she was doing it the way she did, with the larger plates at the back, not the Heidi-haphazard way. Their fingers brushed as Heidi took a dinner plate, and the accidental touch sent sparks up Morgan’s fingers.

As long as they could manage their attraction, this would work.

Chapter 26

Snow Day

The bright light filtered through the drapes, and Heidi scrunched her eyes. It was quiet, eerily so. She glanced at her cell phone. Almost eight in the morning. Normally, there would be the sound of cars on Clearmont Street as people headed toward the freeway and on to work. But the world was muffled. Unnaturally quiet.

She got out of bed and opened the drapes.Whoa!The world outside was blanketed in white. Cars in the street were humps of snow; only a few tire tracks marred the white road, and the boughs of the fir trees drooped under the cloak of white. And still the snow kept falling.

Heidi retreated back to bed and opened the weather app. More snowfall expected, up to another eighteen inches, and temperatures were well below freezing. This would stick around. Maybe she’d get her snow day after all.

Her mind fizzed into overdrive. Yesterday, alone with Morgan, had been a good day. A great day. A day when their friendship seemed stronger…and more than friendship.

Morgan had kissed her the first time in Oscar’s Tavern. The second time too.

She had kissed Morgan the third time last night.

Who would initiate the fourth? Because there would be a fourth time, Heidi was sure of it. Despite all the reasons they shouldn’t do this, despite Morgan’s secretive nature, Heidi was sure there would be more kisses. Whether there would be anything past that, she didn’t know. Because roommates to romance was still not a good idea.

But all the same…

An hour later, showered and dressed, she went downstairs, following the smell of coffee to the kitchen. Morgan wasn’t to be seen, but the door to the basement was open and the whir of the exercise bike sounded. A couple of minutes later, Morgan, dressed in leggings and a loose T-shirt appeared. Her face was pink and sheened in sweat.

Heidi grabbed two mugs and poured coffee.

“Thanks.” Morgan picked the damp T-shirt away from her skin and flapped it.

Heidi’s gaze snapped to the glimpse of flat belly.Nice.“Sleep well?”

“I never sleep well,” Morgan said. “My mind obsesses on the most ridiculous things, and that’s sleep gone for the rest of the night. I was awake at three again. Had a cup of herbal tea, doomscrolled. The usual.”

“Why do we always think of the apocalypse in the middle of the night? That’s a rhetorical question, but it’s a statement of fact. The world that’s rosy in midmorning is about to be annihilated at threea.m.”

“Facts.” Morgan nodded. “And thank you for not suggesting one hundred ways to get to sleep. So far, I’ve been told to count backward in threes, try mindfulness, do meditation, count sheep jumping over a fence, take melatonin, and regulate breathing patterns. Nothing works except sleeping pills, and I don’t want to be reliant on those.”

“I was going to suggest counting kangaroos leaping across a road, but now I won’t,” Heidi said, straight-faced.

“Good move.” Morgan sipped her coffee. She nodded toward the window. “Looks like you’ve got your snow day. The news is suggesting essential travel only. Already there’s reports of people stuck on I-70, and motels are full. Good thing this wasn’t when you planned to confront Serena.”

“I’ll call Robert later, confirm I won’t be in.” She tilted her head. “Would you have been working today? Or do you take the long weekend?”

“Oh.” For a second Morgan hesitated. “I wasn’t working today anyway. But there’s no snow days when you work from home.”