Chapter Nine: The Morning After
I woke up the next morning to find myself fully dressed. I hadn't even taken my shoes off before passing out. I immediately wondered how Nessie was feeling. I reached for my phone on the nightstand and checked for messages. One. My heart skipped a beat and I rubbed my eyes so I could see clearly. I opened the text message to find it was from Embry. Dang.
How did it go last night? Still a virgin?
Smug bastard. Embry met and imprinted on a very nice girl at his college last year named Amanda and they had recently moved in together. I hadn't known I was in a virginity losing competition with Em until a few months ago when he declared himself the winner. I typed my response to his text.
Not great. Long story. Hope yours went better.
I had two options. I could wallow in regret and self pity all day or I could try calling Ness before she left for school. Eventually, I decided to wallow. I showered and dressed and left the apartment a little late for work. The next eight hours passed by faster than expected. By the time my shift ended I was feeling confident enough to call. Bella, that is. Nessie had said she was going to talk to Bella. I needed to know how that discussion went. Her phone rang twice before she answered.
"Jake?" She sounded relieved I was calling.
"Hey, Bells? How is she?" I asked nervously.
"She's better, we had a good talk last night. I'm sorry I didn't explain the details of our friendship to her earlier, Jake. I didn't realize how much it would hurt her. I'm sorry I wasn't more honest."
"Sure, sure. It's not your fault Bells" I replied. She's always blaming herself.
"Thank you. She's here with me and wants to talk to you. I'll put her on."
The sweetest voice in the world came through the line. "Hi, Jake."
"Hey, honey. I'm so sorry. I miss you" I blurted.
"I'm sorry too. Can I see you tonight?" she asked.
"Really?" I questioned.
"We always spend Friday nights together" she reminded me.
"Yes, of course, Nessie. Let me just go home and wash up. I have grease all over me."
"Can I meet you at your place then?" she suggested shyly.
"Absolutely. I'll be there in 20 minutes. I'm still at the garage."
"Okay, see you then."
I couldn't keep from smiling all the way back to the apartment. Her voice sounded like she was as eager to see me as I was her. I arrived before Nessie and went inside to shower. I turned the faucet on as hot as it would go and stripped down. I washed my hair and body and then let the warm water attempt to soothe my tense muscles. The water was hot enough to burn anyone else's skin, steaming up the little bathroom quickly, but to me it only felt slightly hot enough to feel good. I heard when Nessie let herself in and called my name but she must have proceeded cautiously once inside because I didn't realize she had come into the bathroom until I shut the water off and heard her heartbeat. I poked my head out from behind the curtain careful to keep my lower half concealed.
