Chapter 75 Nighttime Crash
(1) 19 min lett
Alistair wasn’t that sad sack who got kicked out of the house like a
mangy mutt anymore. Now, he could fight his own battles without leaning on anyone’s coattails.
Here was the thing, though. It turned out that bothering Caroline didn’t annoy her at all–if anything, she seemed into it. Maybe she was stoked he finally saw her and Eloise as family?
If only we could be family forever.
He caught himself daydreaming about being family forever, then immediately felt like a gutter rat eyeing a diamond.
Caroline’s out of my league.
Alistair’s always known his place, and he kept telling himself not to get his hopes up.
It was crazy. With Rebecca, he couldn’t care less no matter how hot she tried to act. But Caroline? One look and he was head over
heels.
Maybe it was that “No one messes with you while I’m around” line that got to him. It was so sweet, it made him forget his place.
He shook off those thoughts and got back to reality.
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Sandra picked out an amazing watermelon–so sweet he stuffed himself. Big mistake. He woke up late at night bursting to pee.
The first night in Caroline’s room, he’d already decided not to use the en–suite bathroom. It felt too personal, even though they were
sharing a bed–innocently, of course.
So he planned to use the old bathroom in his old room if he needed to. He hardly ever got up at night, but the watermelon did
him in.
In the dead quiet, he listened for a few seconds, heard Caroline’s soft breathing, and then slowly sat up. He slid out of bed barefoot, grabbed his phone, and tiptoed across the soft carpet.
Thank goodness Caroline laid down thick rugs to keep Eloise safe -they muffled every step.
Once he got out of the bedroom, he stood up straight and walked normally. Using his phone flashlight, he headed to his old room. After days of non–stop work, it was finally transformed into a
library.
There were two whole walls of empty bookshelves. Caroline was having kids’ books delivered tomorrow, the kind Eloise would le.
Lucky for them, Eloise was already a bookworm. She loved
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flipping through picture books, even though she could barely read. She just made up stories as she went and seemed totally
into it.
If she hated reading, making her read all those books would be a
nightmare.
By the window, there was a cozy sofa and a small table. Someone stuck some pretty pink flowers in a vase–the perfect spot for reading, doing homework, or catching a quick nap.
Alistair knew the way to the bathroom like the back of his hand. He took a leak, getting rid of the extra fluids that had been making him feel all squirmy. He eyed that squishy sofa–it looked like the perfect spot to crash. For a second, he seriously considered just sleeping there.
But the thought passed, and he headed back the way he came.
The truth was he’d gotten used to sharing a bed. If Caroline woke up and found him gone, she’d grill him for sure. And that’d be the best–case scenario. If Eloise saw he wasn’t in bed with Caroline, the kid would probably think they were fighting again.
So Alistair crept back.
He felt around for the doorframe to get into the room. He remembered Caroline saying she couldn’t stand any light or noise
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when she slept, and she got super cranky if you woke her up.
He’d never seen her angry in the morning, though, since he’d never accidentally woken her before.
Once his eyes adjusted to the dark, he could make out shapes, even if everything was blurry. He wasn’t completely stumbling around in the dark.
He tiptoed back into the room, eased himself onto the bed, pulled the covers up, and was ready to doze off again. However, something unexpected happened.
Alistair was so focused on Caroline in bed that he accidentally collided with her as she suddenly emerged from the darkness. She was so small and light that she let out a little yelp and started falling backward.
Without thinking, Alistair reached out to catch her. The next thing he knew, she fell right into his arms. Feeling her warm, soft body against him, Alistair froze.
He stood there, stuttering like an idiot, not sure where to put his hands. “You… you okay?”
Caroline sounded a lot calmer than he felt, even though they’d both gotten spooked. “I’m good.”
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When their bodies touched, she could feel the warmth radiating from Alistair and the strong, steady thud of his heartbeat. Before she knew it, her own heart started racing.
Worried he’d notice, she stood up straight and took half a step back. “You okay? I didn’t mean to startle you.”
That was exactly what Alistair was about to ask. Caught off–guard, he just stammered, “Yeah, I’m good.”
“We’d better get some sleep. It’ll be morning soon.”
Alistair slept on the inside of the bed, Caroline on the outside.
He got up in the middle of the night and used the bathroom in his old room, while Caroline used the one in their bedroom. And wouldn’t you know it, they ran into each other on their way back!
Back in bed, their hearts were pounding like crazy–even faster than when they collided just now.
Caroline turned onto her side, burying her face deep in the pillow.
Why is my face burning up? If this keeps up, I feel like I may actually overheat.
Caroline had eaten plenty of watermelon, too. She woke up before Alistair.
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Instead of heading straight to the bathroom, she lay there, torn.
How well does the bathroom block out sound?
Sure, she’d already decided Alistair was the one for her, but they’d never crossed any lines. They were basically strangers living under the same roof, and the thought of using the bathroom while he was around made her blush.
After agonizing over it, she smacked herself mentally.
Duh! There are other bathrooms in the house. I can just use one of
those.
But just as she was about to get up, she felt the mattress shift on
his side.
Alistair was up first! Unbelievable–he’d had the same idea.
Caroline held her breath, pretending to be asleep. The moment he left, she shot out of bed and rushed to the bathroom.
Since when did a simple middle–of–the–night pee become so nerve–wracking?
She moved as fast as she could, determined to be back in bed, feigning sleep, before he returned.
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He tiptoed around, terrified of waking her up. She scurried back, praying to make it to bed unnoticed. And in the pitch–black darkness, with both of them half–blind, they crashed into each
other.
They didn’t get hurt, but their hearts were pounding so hard.
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