And I watched him as his hand pumped and his hips moved more furiously. I had to place my hands back on his shoulders to hold, and I didn’t look away, not until his hand around my neck yanked me forward.

Reece kissed me as he found his release. No—­he didn’t just kiss me, he devoured me as he rocked into his hand. “Fuck,” he drew the word out as his one arm closed around me, gathering me close to his bare chest and holding tight. I buried my head in the space between his neck and shoulder, breathing in the crisp scent of his aftershave as I felt his heart start to slow.

Neither of us spoke for a long moment and then he laughed softly, the sound bringing a smile to my lips.

“Damn, Roxy.” He cleared his throat. “You’re going to make me want to keep you.”

My heart was tugged in two opposite directions as my befuddled head tried to make sense of what that meant. Already, I was beginning to apply a crazy amount of meaning to what he said. Did it mean that he wasn’t planning on it? This was just for fun? But he’d said he wanted to be more than friends. Did it even matter? No, it didn’t, because there was no lying to myself.

I wanted him to keep me.

Chapter 11

I hadn’t meant to doze off, but somewhere between watching Hilary remodeling an old farmhouse and David showing a peculiarly picky ­couple houses on HGTV, I’d fallen asleep on my side, with my back curled against Reece’s front.

I’d never fallen asleep on a couch with a guy before. Seemed like such a simple thing that I imagined millions of ­people took for granted, but it was something entirely new for me.

At first, I wasn’t sure what woke me up. I blinked open my eyes, confused. There was an infomercial on TV, selling the newest Bowflex machine. I stared at it for a moment, seconds from drifting back to sleep, when I felt Reece jerk behind me.

My heart jumped at the unexpected movement. His arm was lax under me, but when I looked over my shoulder, I could see the tension practically pouring off him. He was on his side but his face was turned up to the ceiling. His jaw was locked in a tight, hard line and his brows were furrowed. Every ­couple of seconds, those thick lashes would twitch. His lips moved, the words silent, but his chest rose with a sudden, ragged, and broken breath.

“Reece?” I whispered, but he didn’t hear me. His chest rose again, the breathing more rapid. I twisted onto my other side, facing him as I pressed my hand on his chest. “Reece.”

He jolted away, his gaze fixed on the ceiling, and for a moment, he looked so far away, as if he wasn’t even aware of where he was. Seconds ticked by and then he turned his head toward me. His expression relaxed. “Hey,” he murmured.