I wake up with a throbbing headache and an all-over ache that screams I overdid it last night. "Ugh, what the hell happened la-" I cut myself off, eyes widening as I take in the sight beside me. Christian. Asleep, naked, and... right here.
"What the actual hell!" I scream internally, my heart pounding against my ribs. Please, please tell me we didn't... Not last night. Anything but last night. I tentatively lift the blankets, and the knot in my stomach tightens. Bare skin meets bare skin. No clothes. Nada. "Fuck, we totally did..." The worst part? I was sober. Or at least, relatively so.
What the hell came over me? Was I that desperate to forget Ace? So vulnerable that I succumbed to Christian? It feels like a betrayal, a messy, tangled knot of emotions I can barely comprehend.
Oh god, what do I do now? Christian always disliked me, or at least he made it seem that way from the start. If he wakes up and sees me here, naked, next to him... He's going to freak. And I'll be mortified. Maybe, just maybe, he was drunk enough to forget everything. Last night was a weak moment, a blur of vulnerability and a desperate need to feel something, anything, other than the dull ache of Ace's absence. Right?
I carefully try to slide out of bed, my muscles protesting with every movement. I need to get out of here, to escape before Christian wakes up and my world implodes. As I reach for my discarded clothes, strewn across the floor like evidence of my poor decision-making, a low groan rumbles from the bed.
Shit.
His eyes flutter open, the mismatched blue and hazel swirling with sleepiness. For a split second, there's a flicker of confusion, then realization washes over his face, hardening his features.
"Hailey?" His voice is rough, laced with a dangerous undertone I've only heard a few times before. "What the hell are you doing in my bed?"
My throat constricts. I can't meet his gaze. "I... I don't know. I... I got to go." I scramble for my clothes, fumbling with the zipper of my dress.
"Don't you dare walk away from me," he growls, his grip tightening on my wrist. "What happened last night?"
My breath hitches. "I honestly don't remember everything," I stammer. It's a half-truth. The alcohol had blurred the edges, but the sharp, undeniable pull of attraction, the burning need to fill a void, that was crystal clear.
He stares at me, his eyes narrowed, searching. "Don't play coy with me, Hailey. You know damn well what happened."
And suddenly, I'm trapped. Not just in his bed, but in a complicated web of desire, regret, and the looming threat of the secrets I know he's hiding. The secrets that could destroy everything.