KEIFER'S POV —
Morning doesn't arrive gently.
It hits like a slow realization—heavy, warm, unfamiliar—and for a second I don't move, don't breathe properly, because something is… different.
Something is on me.
I open my eyes—and freeze.
Jay.
Curled into me like she belongs there.
Her face tucked into my chest, her breath warm against my skin, one arm draped across me like she fell asleep holding on—and her leg—God—half tangled with mine, bare skin against skin like she forgot every rule she built.
I don't move.
Not even a little because if this is a dream—I'm not waking up.
My gaze drops slowly, taking it in like I don't trust my own eyes.
Her hair is a mess, soft strands falling over her face, her lips slightly parted, her expression… peaceful.
Not guarded. Not cold. Not distant.
Just… her.
And for the first time in years—She's not pulling away.
My chest tightens—not painfully, not sharply—but something deeper, heavier.
Something that settles.
Because this?
This isn't the girl who said I love him.This is the girl who came after me even if it was to yell.
the girl who stayed.
Who fell asleep like this.
Like she forgot she's supposed to hate me.
A slow breath leaves me, barely controlled.
"...liar,you still love me don't ya..," I murmur under my breath, not even sure if I mean her or myself.
Because if she really loved someone else—
She wouldn't be here.Not like this.
My eyes shift around the room slowly—and that's when I start piecing it together.
The chair.
My shirt—discarded.The bowl of water.The damp towel.Medicine strip on the side.
I go still.
Because I remember flashes.The door.Her voice.Her hands on me.And then—That.
Something soft ,warm against my lips i touched them with my finger and some of the lipstick's imprint came in my fingers.
She kissed me!!
While I was UNCONSCIOUS WTFFF!!!!!!
My jaw tightens slightly.
"…no way I missed you kissing me after those seven years...." I whisper.
But the memory lingers just enough to make my pulse shift.She took care of me.Stayed.Touched me.
And from the state of the room—She didn't just sit there and watch.
She fought me through it.
A slow, dangerous smile ghosts across my lips.
Because Attorney Jay Mariano—Miss Control. Miss Distance. Miss I-don't-care—I love someone else
Spent her entire night taking care of me.
My gaze drops back to her.
Still holding onto me.Still here and I don't move.
Not when her fingers twitch slightly against my chest.
Not when her breathing shifts.
Not when she presses just a little closer in her sleep like she's chasing warmth.
Because I know something she doesn't.
If I move—She'll wake up And the moment she does?
The walls come back.The distance.The fight.
So I stay exactly where I am.
Like if I respect the moment enough, it won't disappear.
But then—She stirs just a little.
Her brows knit slightly, her grip tightening unconsciously—and instinct kicks in before thought.
My hand moves resting against her back.
Not pulling her in.
Just… there.
Grounding.
And for a second—She relaxes and melts closer and my entire chest goes tight again because—Yeah.No.
There's no way she loves someone else.
Not when her body remembers me like this.
Not when she fits here like she never left.
Her head shifts slightly, cheek brushing against my skin—and I shut my eyes immediately.
Because if she opens hers and finds me watching—This ends.So I slow my breathing.
Keep it even.Pretend.
But inside?
Inside I'm wide awake.Aware of every inch of her.Every breath.Every second she stays and when she finally moves again—
Really moves this time—
I don't stop her.
I don't hold her.
I just… let her.
Because this isn't something I take.
This?
This is something she gives.
Even if she won't admit it when she wakes up.
Even if she runs.Even if she looks me in the eye and lies again.
A quiet smirk settles on my lips.
Because it doesn't matter.Not anymore.
I've already seen the truth.
Felt it.
Held it.
And now?
Now I know exactly where the cracks are in her walls and I don't break things recklessly anymore.
I dismantle them.
My eyes stay closed as she shifts again, closer to waking—and my voice stays silent.
But my mind is full in chaos....
You can say whatever you want, Jay…but your body and soul already chose me.
JAY'S POV —
Waking up feels… wrong.
Not the soft kind of wrong. Not the lazy morning kind. The jarring, heart-skipping, reality-crashing kind—because the first thing I register isn't the storm being gone… it's warmth.
Too much of it.
Too specific.
My lashes flutter, breath catching halfway as awareness creeps in—and then it hits.
I'm not alone.
I'm—
My eyes snap open and immediately widen.
Because I'm on him.
Not near. Not beside. ON.
Curled into Keifer Watson like I've been there all night, my arm draped across his chest, my leg tangled with his, my face pressed way too comfortably into skin that absolutely should not feel this—
Safe.
"Oh my GOD—" I inhale sharply, but it comes out as a whisper because panic hits late but hard.
What the hell am I doing???
I go still.
Completely still.
Because he hasn't moved.
His eyes are closed. Breathing even. Face relaxed in a way I've never seen before—no tension, no edge, no control… just quiet.
And that somehow makes it worse.
Because now I'm staring.
My eyes drift—against my own will—taking him in properly for the first time without anger clouding it.
His lashes are longer than I remember.
His jaw softer in sleep.
His lips—
I stop.
Blink.
Look away.
Then look back again like my brain has zero self-respect left.
"…since when did his lips get that soft looking?" I whisper to absolutely no one, mentally slapping myself.
NO JAY. Focus.
I shift slightly—just enough to test if I can move—and his arm tightens instantly.
Like instinct.
Like he felt it even in sleep.
My breath catches.
"Are you—are you serious right now?" I whisper harshly, frozen again because now I'm trapped.
Actually trapped.
His arm is around me now, pulling me closer—not aggressively, not consciously—but firm enough that I can't just slip away.
My heart starts beating faster.
Not panic.
Not fully.
Something worse.
Something confused.
"Okay… okay this is fine," I mumble under my breath, trying to rationalize like a sane person. "He's asleep. He doesn't know. I just need to—slowly—get out—"
But before I move again, my hand—traitor that it is—lifts on its own.
And lands on his forehead.
I freeze.
Wait.
…The heat is gone.
"…fever's down," I whisper, softer now, something loosening in my chest that I refuse to name.
Relief.It's just relief that's all.
I don't think about the fact that I stayed up half the night making sure it went down.
I don't think about the way his breathing had steadied under my touch.
I don't think about—
No.
Stop.
My fingers linger for a second too long.
And my eyes… betray me again.
Because now I'm looking at him properly.
Really looking.
The sharpness of his features.
The faint shadow of stubble.
The way his chest rises slowly under my hand—
"…you've got to be kidding me," I whisper, barely audible, because this is dangerous territory.
Because for a second—
Just a second—Everything else disappears.
The anger.The lies.The distance.All of it fades under something quieter.
Something heavier and I lean—just a fraction.Barely noticeable.
Barely intentional.But enough.
Enough that if my phone didn't RING at that exact moment—
I don't know what I would've done.
I jerk back like I've been burned.
Reality slams back into place so fast it makes me dizzy.
"Shit—" I scramble slightly, trying to grab my phone without waking him, heart racing for an entirely different reason now.
I manage to twist just enough to reach it.
Messages.
JERE:
Where are you?? Storm's over.
Call me ASAP.
I swear if you don't respond—I've already threatened three people and percy has already prepared for my assassination because I wasn't around you last night so call or text him!!!!
I exhale sharply. "Of course you have," I mutter, typing quickly with one hand.
Me:
I'm fine. At the banquet hotel. Send a car.
I hit send.Lock the phone.And then—I paused because I still haven't escaped.
I look down.
He's still holding me.Still asleep.Still—
"…this is ridiculous," I whisper, trying to carefully pry his arm off me.
I move his hand slightly.Nothing.
I try again.
Nothing.
"Keifer," I whisper, low and warning, even though he's unconscious. "Let go."
No response.
Of course.
I push a little harder—and suddenly his arm tightens again, pulling me closer like some subconscious reflex.
My eyes widen.
"ARE YOU—" I stop myself from yelling, glaring down at him. "Even unconscious you're difficult?!"
I try twisting out.Sliding down.Nothing works.
This is humiliating.This is illegal.
This is—
"Fine," I whisper through clenched teeth, shifting strategy, carefully untangling my leg first, then slowly easing my arm out from under his.
It takes effort.
Actual effort but eventually—finally—I slip free.
I stand up immediately like the bed is on fire.
Heart racing.Hair a mess.
Dignity? Gone.
I grab my heels. My bag.
Then I pause just for a second because he's still there.
Sleeping.
Peaceful.
Unaware of the chaos he caused just by existing.
My gaze lingers longer than it should.
"…this means nothing," I say quietly, more to myself than him.
And then I turn.
Walk out.
The lobby feels… normal.
Like the night didn't just happen.Like I didn't just—Nope not thinking about it.
I spot David almost immediately.
He looks up.
"Dr. Braselton," I say coolly, slipping right back into control like nothing cracked last night, "your friend Mr. Watson....was extremely drunk and decided my room was his destination last night..."
His expression doesn't change—but his eyes sharpen slightly.
"He had a high fever," I continue, holding out the key. "He's asleep in my room right now."
A beat.
"Make sure he doesn't do anything insane when he wakes up here is the key to my room.Room 143 and please don't even try to mention this to someone..."
David takes the key slowly.
"…noted thanks Ms.Mariano."
I don't wait for anything else.I turn.Walk straight out of the hotel.
The air outside is clean now. Storm gone. Roads open.
Like nothing ever happened.
The car arrives.I get in and as the hotel disappears behind me—
I lean back, closing my eyes.
Just for a second and for some reason—
The last thing I feel isn't anger.It's the echo of his warmth.
And that—That annoys me more than anything else.....