GRAYSON

As I led Nessa into my room, I thanked my lucky stars that it was somewhat clean.

A few books were strewn on my desk, one small pile of laundry in the corner, but that was it. Sheets were clean, garbage wasn't overflowing. Manageable.

After throwing my jacket over my desk, I turned to watch her enter. Everything about Nessa was hesitant, absolutely nothing like how she'd acted less than an hour ago. Settled on that baby grand, her head was thrown back, eyes blazing, legs spread. It was so easy to imagine her riding me like that.

Fuck, I needed to stop my mind from going down that rabbit hole. I'd already had to tuck in one hard-on tonight.

With a critical eye, Nessa watched me as she hovered near the door. I sighed.

"You can stop looking like you're afraid that I'm going to rip your clothes off and come on in."

The skepticism in her expression twisted into recognizable arousal, and I immediately knew I shouldn't have said that. I really, really shouldn't have said that. Because now I imagined a completely different scene, one where I slammed the door, pushed her up against it, and tore that dress off. And if I had to guess, Nessa's mind was in the exact same place.

This girl wanted me. We had that connection, and she knew it. Her body did, anyway. But I saw the hesitancy in her heart.

No wonder my friendly gestures had turned her off at first. No wonder they'd convinced her that I was only interested in using her. Jaxon, or whatever the hell his name was, bribed her into bed, into falling in love, took what he wanted, and left.

I hoped we met someday so I could break his nose.

Nessa stepped into the room, closing the door behind her with a gentle click. She looked around for a moment before clearing her throat and fanning a hand in front of her face.

"It's hot in here."

I turned to dig through my closet so she wouldn't see my smirk. The heat had nothing to do with the temperature in the room.

"Go crack open the window," I said anyway, pulling out some clothes for us both to change into.

There was a rustling, and when I spun back around, she stood at the window, staring out of it. A light breeze drifted in through the small crack, and her dress rustled against her legs.

Everything about her was...holy hell. I needed to thank Madie and Bren for occupying her room tonight because the idea of getting Nessa to myself for the next few hours was heaven. Even if I couldn't touch her. Even if we were just sleeping.

"Here are some clothes you can wear," I murmured, tossing the sweats on my bed.

Clearing her throat again, she peeked over her shoulder. "Can you uh—unzip me?"

Alright, maybe this wasn't quite heaven. No, it was some kind of test to see if I'd even make it past the pearly gates one day.

"Of course."

She moved her hair to the side, and I slipped one hand between her skin and the dress to grip it. The other began working the zipper down, revealing more smooth, olive-toned skin. And no bra.

A hushed goddamn slipped through my lips.

It was all I said, but Nessa must have been able to hear my thoughts. Shyness swam in her voice. "I don't have any fancy lingerie, and wearing my normal boring things didn't feel right with this dress."

"So the next best option is to wear nothing at all, huh?"

Nessa shrugged, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking if she'd gone without underwear, too. That slit in her dress had been so high on her leg earlier. One little slip on the piano, and—

Stepping in closer, I muttered in her ear. To distract me. "I know you were disappointed when I stopped playing tonight."

Nessa craned her head, glancing sharply back. "I—"

"Shh," I interrupted. She would protest with a lie, but we both knew the truth. She'd been sitting on an edge, one that killed me to sit back and watch. "I promise I'll make it up to you, Adler. But not tonight."

Tonight I needed her out of this damn temptation of a dress and on the other side of the room as quickly as possible. My restraint was dwindling.

The zipper caught on something, and I jiggled it, hoping that would do the trick. But it didn't, only resulting in Nessa's loose dress slipping down. Far enough that I caught a side view of the curve of her tits, which drove me crazier than this fucking zipper.

"Arch your back for me," I growled, more with irritation than anything else.

She did, and I yanked down, causing Nessa to fly forward into the window. And since I'd been leaning into it, my body followed. Hands flew up, pressing against the pane. Mine and hers, right next to each other. And fuck, her ass was making some serious contact with my groin.

Nessa gasped, but it was more than just a surprised gasp. It was a throaty, aroused sound that I knew came from having her bare breasts brush against cold glass. That groan of hers tore through my body like a heat stroke, and I dropped my head to her shoulder, sucking in the ungodly sound that attempted to escape my throat.

"You did that on purpose," she accused. Her voice was breathy, and I peeked to see it fogging up the window.

I honestly didn't. There was only so much torture that I would voluntarily endure in one night.

But I was having a hard time saying anything, afraid that something dirty would fall out if I opened my mouth. When I didn't respond or move, she whined my name, which sparked a heady lust in me.

"Grayson."

"I'm sorry," I choked, taking a step back. "I didn't mean to get so close."

That was definitely the truth. I could hardly handle being that close.

She hurried to pull up her dress and stepped away from the window with a glare. "No, you just wanted to tease me. More."

I chuckled. Well, she wasn't wrong there.

"Always, Nessa."

The glare hardened.

"I told you," I said. "I'll make up for it."

And I would.

Her scowl didn't disappear as she shuffled over to the bed, snatching up the clothes I left out. I turned around to give her privacy, beginning to unbutton my shirt. A few quiet moments passed before Nessa made a slight coughing noise.

"You can turn around now."

I did, stripping off my shirt as I spun to face her. My pants were unbuckled, but they still hung around my hips. In my opinion, I was decent. But based on Nessa's reaction, she definitely disagreed. Her eyes widened before rolling back, and then she picked up the remaining shirt on my bed to throw it at me.

"Put some clothes on, Wilder."

I caught the shirt with one hand, giving her a once over. Nessa looked damn good in my clothes, especially with the rosy flush on her cheeks.

"Excuse me for not being as quick as you to change. I didn't get any help."

Her eyes flicked over me greedily, and I realized that was another thing I shouldn't have said. Because now we were both imagining Nessa undressing me. And there went my balls, tightening uncomfortably. Tingling.

Taking a few deep breaths between my nose, I slipped the t-shirt over my head and kicked out of my dress pants.

"You can sleep in my bed. I'll take Brodie's."

She turned to the side, averting her eyes. "I'm honestly surprised with you. Not even trying to sleep in the same bed. What a gentleman you are, Everett."

"Only for you, darling."

Nessa slipped into my bed, hiding beneath the covers. Safe and sound, tucked away from my dirty mind.

Except she was in my bed, so that didn't exactly help things.

And she was biting her lip, fighting a smile.

"Are you tired?" I asked, collapsing onto the opposite bed.

She nodded. I heard a loud exhale, and her eyes fluttered shut. "Very."

All I could do was grin.

***

I woke up the following morning to the vision of a sleepy Nessa Elez, curled up in my bed on the other side of the room, and I wasn't ready to give the moment up.

Which was precisely what I told her when she eventually woke.

"Stay with me today, Adler. I don't have anything going on until a team workout tomorrow morning."

She shook her head, and her hair got all messy against my pillow.

"I have to work at noon," she mumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

Fuck. It was already 10:30.

"For how long?"

Nessa yawned and burrowed further into my pillow. "Until five."

I'd just spent over twelve hours with her, and five seemed like such a long time to go without.

"What are you doing afterward?"

A smile. "Studying for a bio test."

I chuckled because there was no way she was smiling about work and studying. No, that grin was contentment and satisfaction.

"Sleep well, Nessa?"

I didn't. Not really. My mind had hopped onto a hamster wheel, spinning and spinning as it replayed the night's events.

"Yeah." She rolled on her back with a sigh, eyes closed again. Only half-awake, this one. "I missed the smell of you on my sheets."

Two long seconds passed before she flew her eyes wide open, realizing what she'd let slip. A grin tore across my face, my heart doubling its speed.

"You're welcome in my bed anytime," I reminded her with a wink.

***

I spent most of the afternoon in the practice room.

There honestly weren't a whole lot of options when I decided I wanted to go into music. Performance, composition, education. Some colleges had a music therapy program, but Oakland didn't.

I wasn't much of a composer, and I didn't have the stamina or drive to pick one instrument for performance. I just loved music, all of it. I loved getting swept away in it, either when playing by myself or with an ensemble. I loved how it lit up the imagination and evoked emotion. And after I did a mentorship program in high school, giving lessons to underclassmen, it just stuck that music education was what I wanted to do.

But being in music education meant that I needed to learn the basics of every goddamn instrument, which meant a lot of practice.

Today, though, every note reminded me of Nessa.

I should have picked up a brass instrument or something to focus on today, but focus was the problem. I had none of it. I'd just wanted to get lost in something. Playing the piano was a poor choice, though. It was like I could still feel her. I could still picture Nessa sitting there above me, her breath hitching every time I played louder. Quicker. Poco-a-poco.

That was how I would to win over Nessa Elez. Little by little.

Eventually, I gave up and broke free from the Performing Arts Center to find a gray sky. Storms were in the future. Perfect for hot drinks and a movie, which got me wondering if I could bribe Nessa to hang out instead of studying. Taking a detour off-campus, I stopped at my new favorite coffee shop. The Grounds.

And damn, was there a surprise waiting for me inside.

The barista behind the counter was none other than the girl I couldn't get out of my head.

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