suite.
The sound of the shower running and the
mugginess of the steam that escaped from the bathroom filled the silent air
around me. The room was still dark, and the clock on the nightstand read five
in the morning.
“Shit,” I said out loud as I rubbed my
temples.
The last thing I remembered was running
into Hudson outside of the diner then going back to his hotel room. I must have
drank too much with him, which was a shame, because I couldn’t remember a damn
thing about the night before.
I heard the shower shut off and within
minutes, Hudson emerged with a white hotel towel wrapped around his narrow
waist. His upper body was a pure work of art, and I couldn’t take my eyes off
of him as he rifled through his suitcase and pulled out some clothes.
He slipped on his usual jeans and t-shirt
combination and slipped over to my side of the bed where he took a seat.
“Morning,” he said as he leaned down and
kissed my forehead. “You must’ve been tired last night. One drink and you were
out cold.”
I smiled, trying not to blast him with my
dragon breath. I took relief in knowing that we hadn’t slept together, and I
hadn’t missed out on any fabulous memories of that after all.
“I have an early call time today,” he
said. “I’m leaving town tomorrow. Going home. I really want to see you again.”
I smiled again. I wanted to see him too.
“Can you come over again tonight?” he
asked.
I nodded. If Hudson Smith wanted to spend
one more night with me, who was I to tell him no? Things with Luke had already
taken a turn for the worst, and I was pretty sure we were approaching
unsalvageable territory. I had nothing to lose at this point.
“Great,” he said as he flashed his
megawatt smile. “Come over around eight.”
I pulled the covers back up and settled
down deep into the soft pillows. I shut my eyes and tried to get a few more
hours of sleep. It was way too early for me to even function.
***
I drove back to my apartment a few hours
later, opting to shower in my own bathroom. I didn’t feel like throwing on my
greasy, diner clothes from the night before, as much as I really wanted to
shower in Hudson’s shower once again.
I threw off my dirty clothes and climbed
into my shower. As the water trickled down my back, I squeezed my eyes tight
and thought about the things Hudson had said. I couldn’t tell if he was just
really good with words or if I was being foolish and naïve, but everything he
said made perfect sense to me.
I thought about how angry Luke was. There
was nothing I could say or do to reverse the damage that had already been done.
If our friendship wasn’t strong enough for him to forgive me, then what
business did I have wasting my life trying to make it up to him?
I still loved Luke though. He was like a
comfortable pair of jeans, the kind you keep forever because they fit you just
perfectly and they just don’t make that style anymore. Even if they rip, you
still love the hell out of them. You wear them until they fall apart. And then
you mend them and wear them some more. That was Luke for me. But if I wasn’t
his comfy, old pair of jeans, there was nothing I could do about that.
I rinsed the conditioner from my hair and
the soap from my body and stepped out, wrapping my hair in a towel and tossing
a thick, fluffy pink robe around my body. I patted on a bit of moisturizer,
brushed my teeth, and headed out of the steamy bathroom.
As I crossed the living room and headed
towards my bedroom, I about fainted when I saw Luke sitting on my sofa.
“Luke!” I gasped. “Oh, my God. You scared
the hell out of me.”
I laughed, but I was still startled. I
was just relieved it was him and not some crazy, random stalker guy.
I pulled my robe tight. “What are you
doing here? You didn’t call or anything.”
I knew Luke had a key to my place, I’d
given it to him years ago in case I ever misplaced mine, but it was rare for
him to just stop by unannounced.
Luke
The sound of the shower running and the
mugginess of the steam that escaped from the bathroom filled the silent air
around me. The room was still dark, and the clock on the nightstand read five
in the morning.
“Shit,” I said out loud as I rubbed my
temples.
The last thing I remembered was running
into Hudson outside of the diner then going back to his hotel room. I must have
drank too much with him, which was a shame, because I couldn’t remember a damn
thing about the night before.
I heard the shower shut off and within
minutes, Hudson emerged with a white hotel towel wrapped around his narrow
waist. His upper body was a pure work of art, and I couldn’t take my eyes off
of him as he rifled through his suitcase and pulled out some clothes.
He slipped on his usual jeans and t-shirt
combination and slipped over to my side of the bed where he took a seat.
“Morning,” he said as he leaned down and
kissed my forehead. “You must’ve been tired last night. One drink and you were
out cold.”
I smiled, trying not to blast him with my
dragon breath. I took relief in knowing that we hadn’t slept together, and I
hadn’t missed out on any fabulous memories of that after all.
“I have an early call time today,” he
said. “I’m leaving town tomorrow. Going home. I really want to see you again.”
I smiled again. I wanted to see him too.
“Can you come over again tonight?” he
asked.
I nodded. If Hudson Smith wanted to spend
one more night with me, who was I to tell him no? Things with Luke had already
taken a turn for the worst, and I was pretty sure we were approaching
unsalvageable territory. I had nothing to lose at this point.
“Great,” he said as he flashed his
megawatt smile. “Come over around eight.”
I pulled the covers back up and settled
down deep into the soft pillows. I shut my eyes and tried to get a few more
hours of sleep. It was way too early for me to even function.
***
I drove back to my apartment a few hours
later, opting to shower in my own bathroom. I didn’t feel like throwing on my
greasy, diner clothes from the night before, as much as I really wanted to
shower in Hudson’s shower once again.
I threw off my dirty clothes and climbed
into my shower. As the water trickled down my back, I squeezed my eyes tight
and thought about the things Hudson had said. I couldn’t tell if he was just
really good with words or if I was being foolish and naïve, but everything he
said made perfect sense to me.
I thought about how angry Luke was. There
was nothing I could say or do to reverse the damage that had already been done.
If our friendship wasn’t strong enough for him to forgive me, then what
business did I have wasting my life trying to make it up to him?
I still loved Luke though. He was like a
comfortable pair of jeans, the kind you keep forever because they fit you just
perfectly and they just don’t make that style anymore. Even if they rip, you
still love the hell out of them. You wear them until they fall apart. And then
you mend them and wear them some more. That was Luke for me. But if I wasn’t
his comfy, old pair of jeans, there was nothing I could do about that.
I rinsed the conditioner from my hair and
the soap from my body and stepped out, wrapping my hair in a towel and tossing
a thick, fluffy pink robe around my body. I patted on a bit of moisturizer,
brushed my teeth, and headed out of the steamy bathroom.
As I crossed the living room and headed
towards my bedroom, I about fainted when I saw Luke sitting on my sofa.
“Luke!” I gasped. “Oh, my God. You scared
the hell out of me.”
I laughed, but I was still startled. I
was just relieved it was him and not some crazy, random stalker guy.
I pulled my robe tight. “What are you
doing here? You didn’t call or anything.”
I knew Luke had a key to my place, I’d
given it to him years ago in case I ever misplaced mine, but it was rare for
him to just stop by unannounced.
Luke
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