The Lonely Drop by Vanessa North Read Free Book Online

more?” I try to gyrate my hips, but he stops me with a hand on my chest.
    “We’re going to put you to bed,” he grumbles.
    Grouchy-ass. I frown at him. “Aren’t you having fun?”
    “They called last call fifteen minutes ago. It’s time to go home.” He leads me out the front door, and I’m blasted by the cold air. I shudder all over.
    “Shit, you were wearing a coat. Where’s your coat check ticket? I’ll go get it.” He holds out his hand.
    “Come find it, loverboy,” I taunt, gesturing toward my pocket. “Guess correctly and you win a prize.” I shimmy my hips a little, giggling.
    “Okay, one, don’t call me loverboy. Two, you’re never drinking tequila again. Now reach in your pocket and get the ticket out. Please.”
    “You said we were going to have fun.” I pout. “I’m offering you a guilt-free grope. Have at it.”
    “You’re being an ass,” he growls. “Get the ticket out.”
    “Fine.” I dig the ticket out of my pocket and thrust it at him. He disappears inside, leaving me shivering on the sidewalk. When he comes back, he drapes my coat gently over my shoulders.
    “I had the bartender call us a cab,” he tells me, holding my coat closed around my chest. “It should be here any minute. Do you want to stay at the hotel tonight so I can keep an eye on you?”
    “So you can seduce me?” I waggle my eyebrows at him.
    “So I can make sure you don’t choke on your own vomit.” He grimaces. “How much did you have to drink?”
    “I don’t know. Caleb and that bear he went home with each bought me a shot. Plus the ones we did together. And that beer…” I start ticking them off on my fingers, but I keep losing track. A car pulls up next to us, and I realize it’s our cab when Kevin bundles me inside.
    The cab stinks like tequila. Huh. Actually, maybe that’s me. I close my eyes for just a moment but I must have dozed, because Kevin is hauling me out of the cab and into the hotel. I let him lead me to the elevator, then to his room. He strips me down to my boxers and tucks me into the king-sized bed.
    I watch sleepily through half-closed eyes as he folds up my clothes and sets them on the desk. He picks up my T-shirt, lifts it to his nose and smells it as he glances over at me. He must think I’m asleep, because he watches me for a minute, a soft smile on his face. I want to ask him what that smile means, but I’m too tongue-tied by tequila and my own timidness to speak up. Finally, he sets my shirt down on top of my jeans and strips out of his own clothes.
    He turns off the light and slides into bed behind me.
    “Goodnight, Nick,” he whispers.
    “G’night,” I mumble into the pillow. I freeze for a moment, caught out feigning sleep, but then his hand strokes over my back in a soft caress, and sleep catches up with me for real.
    ****
    Oh. My. God.
    The desire to tear my own brain out of my skull is only dampened by the fear of loud noises anywhere near my head.
    Like the hotel alarm clock noise screeching away mere inches from me. I pull the pillow over my head, groaning. My mouth tastes like something died inside. Tequila? Oh, fuck me.
    A heavy weight leans against my back and the noise, blissfully, stops.
    “Sorry, Nick.”
    The weight moves away.
    “Kevin? Why am I in bed with you?” I clench my ass a little, relieved to not feel any signs of penetration.
    He laughs, dropping a hand onto my shoulder and rubbing lightly. “Because you were pretty wasted last night, and I wasn’t going to send you home alone. Do you remember?”
    “We went dancing.”
    “And drinking. Tequila. Also beer. And God knows what else.”
    “Some guy asked if we would fuck him together.”
    “You do remember.” Kevin laughs again. “Anyway, yeah.”
    “We didn’t…?” I hate not remembering everything.
    “Some dance-floor shenanigans, but that’s it.”
    Oh thank God.
    “Thank you.” I let go of the pillow and roll to my side.
    “For what?” He smiles at me and the fuzzy