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I find myself entangled in both the sheets and Alex when I wake up the next morning. His body is draped over mine, radiating heat, and his arm is looped around my waist to keep my backside flush up against his front. Speaking of his front...I attempt to wiggle away from his very obvious arousal that's wedged up against my bottom.

Alex sighs, letting out quite a sensual groan, and pulls me even closer, his hips bucking ever so slightly.

I can still remember the minty taste of his mouth against mine, and the way his stubble scratched against my skin in the most delicious way possible. His kisses had been the perfect amount of sweet and rough at the same time. Just the thought of it has me wiggling again, but for a different reason.

"Would you stop doing that?" Alex asks, his lips at my ear. He nibbles playfully on my earlobe before planting a wet kiss on my neck.

I'm afraid to speak. I'm afraid to know what my voice will sound like when the desire to touch him is so strong. Will I sound needy?

Thankfully Alex doesn't require a verbal response from me. He rolls over, untangling his legs from mine and lifts his arms high above his head as he stretches.

In the dark I hadn't been able to see Alex's naked chest, I had only felt it, but damn is it a sight to behold. It's all tan skin and tight defined muscles with a small patch of dark hair leading from his belly button down below his boxers.

"You want some coffee? Or are you just going to continue drooling over me?" He asks with his signature smirk.

Have I been drooling? I touch the edge of my lips just to make sure, and then glare at the dimples in his cheeks. Why do they have to be so adorable?

Alex pats my leg and I can tell it's meant to be a friendly gesture, but his fingers are far too close to my inner thigh. I gulp, feeling my core heat once again.

He removes his hand slowly, watching his movement with hooded eyes. "Come on," he says, clearing his throat audibly. "I'll make some coffee."

I follow alex downstairs, still only dressed in his shirt, and into the kitchen. We pass Luke's room on the way down and I can't help but laugh when I find that he's still passed out in bed, half of his body hanging off the mattress.

Alex begins busying himself with measuring out coffee grounds while I lean up against the island counter.

"So how many roommates do you have?" I ask, resting my face in my hand as I watch him. "It just seems like a pretty big house."

"It's me, Luke, and Tyler," alex replies over his shoulder. He's put on a pair of black sweatpants that ride low on his narrow hips, but didn't put on a shirt. I'm completely fascinated by the way the strong muscles in his back flex and shift every time he moves his arms.

"That seems nice. You three are pretty close then, hey?"

"As close as three guys can be without sticking our dicks in each other's holes," a voice says from behind me.

I turn to find that Tyler is standing in the doorway with an amused expression, his thick arms crossed over his chest. Hazel pops out from behind him, rubbing her eyes groggily. Her blue eyes widen when she finds me standing in the kitchen, and then a devilish grin appears on her lips.

Tyler heads over to the fridge, hip-checking Alex out of the way, while Hazel saunters across the tile floor to stand next to me.

"What would you ladies like for breakfast?" Tyler asks as pulls out a large carton of eggs.

Hazel and I both make a face, scrunching up our noses at the idea of eating.

"They don't eat in the morning," Alex tells him as he places two mugs of coffee on the counter for us. "Cream? Sugar?"

"Yes please," I answer sweetly.

Hazel rolls her eyes at me and shakes her head. "Just milk for me."

Twenty minutes later, Hazel and I are sitting at the dining room table with Alex and Tyler sipping our coffees and watching them scarf down plates of eggs, bacon, and hash browns.

"So what are you two doing for thanksgiving?" Tyler asks in conversational tone.

I flinch involuntarily at the question, my grip on the mug tightening.

"I'm headed to Portland for our break to visit my family," Hazel says. She's been looking forward to the trip for quite some time.

Tyler nods along as she speaks, shoveling a forkful of breakfast potatoes into his mouth. "What about you, Mabes?"

This is one of the moments that Nichole prepared me for. Talking about plans for holiday breaks is part of normal college student conversation. Most people are excited to go home and see their families, and a lot of them just assume that everyone else is just like them. That they have at least some sort of family to go home to.

"I'm just going to stay at a hotel somewhere close to campus since they're closing the dorms for the holidays. Maybe study for our finals and order some take-out." I try to keep my voice calm as I speak, but Alex notices something in my tone and lifts his head to look at me.

Tyler's brows knit together in confusion. "You can't have take-out for thanksgiving."

"Babe," Hazel says in warning, shaking her head ever so slightly at him.

"Ty's right," Alex murmurs thoughtfully. "No one should be alone for the holidays."

Nichole hadn't prepared me for this. Neither of us had any idea during the last of our sessions that I would make more friends, or how that would change so many aspects of my life. There are now other people in my life besides Nichole and Hazel that want to push me to do things, to have new experiences.

"I'll be fine," I say, brushing them off. "I usually go to see my Aunt Jo and her family, but they're going out of the country this year on vacation. It's not a big deal."

Alex's jaw tightens and Tyler gives me an odd look before returning to his food.

My skin crawls under Alex's scrutinizing stare.
"I think I'm going to go call a cab," I murmur, pushing back my chair to stand up. "Thanks for the coffee. Are you heading back to the dorms, Hazel?"

"I think I'm going to hang out here a while longer," she replies quietly.

"You don't need to pay someone to drive you home," alex cuts in. "I'll drive you."

"You don't have to—"

He cuts me off with a firm shake of his head. "I'll drive you home, Mabes."

I agree to let Alex take me home, and he offers to walk me all the way up to my dorm room. The ten minute ride had been quiet for the most part, which had made me feel a little uneasy. We had kissed last night and both been  fairly sober, but I still dont know what that meant. Are we together now, or still just friends? Were we ever really only friends?

My head spins with the endless amount of questions that surface.

"Mabes?" Alex asks, waving a hand in front of my face.

I blink rapidly, crawling my way from my thoughts. "Yeah?"

"Are you going to answer my question?" He's staring down at me with an odd look, his head cocked to one side and his brows furrowed.

"Shoot, I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention."

He chuckles softly. "I can see that."

I smile apologetically and turn to face him, my back leaning up against my door. "You have my undivided attention now, I promise. What were you asking?"

Alex closes the gap between us, gingerly resting one of his large hands on my hip. "I was trying to offer you a place at the dinner table."

"Huh?" I'm distracted by the lazy circles his thumb is tracing into my skin.

"Thanksgiving. Do you want to come to Aspen with me for thanksgiving?"

A wave of heat washes over me, warming my cheeks. "W-why?"

Alex shrugs nonchalantly, his eyes lowering to his feet for a brief moment before returning to my face. "I don't like the idea of you being alone during the holidays. My family won't mind if I bring someone so you don't need to worry about imposing."

"Do you usually bring friends?" I ask dryly, but I'm secretly waiting for him to correct me. I don't want to ask him outright what we are, so I'm hoping alex will pick up on the hint and just tell me.

"Lucas came once, but then he hit on my sister so he's officially banned from any of my family get-togethers."

I bite my lip to stifle a laugh. "Well why are they meeting in Aspen? I thought you were from Maine."

"Oh I am, but my family owns a cabin there. They know I'm busy with hockey and it's an excuse for them to come ski so they wanted to have it there this year." His eyes narrow at the skepticism I'm sure is plastered across my face. "It's only a three and a half hour drive, Mabes. We can leave Thursday morning and I'll have you back to whatever hotel you're going to be staying at by Friday afternoon."

The idea of an actual home cooked thanksgiving dinner is tempting. The only one I remember attending was last year when Aunt Jo flew me out to Seattle.

"Okay," I agree cautiously. "But I'm bringing my laptop with me so I can study."

The dimples in Alex's cheeks appear as his lips spread into a victorious grin. He ducks his head, planting a kiss on the tip of my nose. "Great. And by the way, if you're up for it, you'll be coming as my date."

My heart flutters at his words, but before I can respond, he's already turning on his heel and heading back down the hallway.

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A date? Oh golly, mister, you sure know how to woo a girl...

Please point out any and all errors you find in this chapter. I was a bit too lazy to type everything out on the computer from my phone, and although I read through it a few times, there's just always a chance to f*ck up when it's your own work. Ya know?

My New Years resolution is to better my writing and be less of a procrastinator though, so hang on just a little while longer and I promise I'll be less of an asshole 😅😅