"I will never tell anyone whatever it is you’re about to tell me."
"We kind of slept together. No one back here knows, not even my friend Indie. My brother would have killed us if he knew. It was so hard. He said he felt the same way, but it could never be anything other than friends because of my brother. And that was the end of it,” I shrug. “What ya going to do? It was just a high school crush and I haven’t seen him since. Thanks for holding me up all the way home.”
“No worries, I promised your parents I would look after you, and had to get you home safe. Your dad’s kind of scary.”
I laugh, “Only to men who do the wrong thing by me. I'm sure you'll be fine. How are you getting home now?”
“I live the next street over, so I’ll just walk, all good. Go get to bed, sleep it off, and if you're a good girl, I’ll come to take you for breakfast in the morning.”
“Thanks, Dad,” I laugh at him and stumble backwards, falling into the garden, laughing hysterically at myself. “Whoops, Dad’s going to kill me, this garden is his pride and joy.”
Blake reaches down and pulls me up. “Thanks for a fun night. You made me forget.” He’s still holding my hands in his, and I look up into his eyes as he stares back at me. My head is spinning and I’m not sure if I’m reading this correctly or not. Should I just kiss him? Then he quickly lets go of my hands and takes a step back.
“You're a mess, get to bed.” My ego is a little bruised, but he’s probably right. I salute him then stumble to my front door, fumbling around for my keys. Thank heavens I'm not in heels or I’d be on my arse again. I make it in the front door, turn and wave goodbye. What a night!
Chapter Three
Elena
Oh, my head hurts. I try to open my eyes but the light burns. Why didn’t I close the blinds last night? I need something for the pain and fast. I slowly open my eyes and let the light sink in, then sit up and pull back the sheets. Why am I naked? Oh my God, I didn't bring him back to my parents’ place, did I? How mortifying.
I check my phone. Ahh, it's 11:30am. I’ve missed half the day already. I haven’t slept in that long in forever. This room is doing things to me. Could be the paint fumes mixed with alcohol, though, I guess. What on earth did we get up to last night? I remember dinner, playing some pool, losing, drinking a lot of shots, then it's all a bit hazy. I pull on my PJs and dressing gown and tiptoe down the hall. The timber floor is cold under my feet, but I can’t find my slippers, so I’ll have to just suck it up. Painkillers are more important right now.
Luckily there's no one in sight. My parents must be out. Thank heavens! I don’t want Mum and Dad to see me like this. I grab the painkillers and a glass of water and head straight to the bathroom. I need a shower.
I throw back the painkillers and jump out of my robe. Turning on the shower, the hot water hits my back, and my body slowly returns to the land of the living. After an extra-long shower, I head back into my room. My head’s still pounding but it's bearable now. I need clothes. As I stand in my wardrobe trying to decide what to wear, my tummy rumbles loudly. I need food, I’m starving!
A message pings on my phone and I check to see that it's Blake:
Blake: How’s my drinking buddy holding up this morning?
Elena: Better after a shower and some painkillers. What about you?
Blake: Never been better. I feel kind of bad you got so smashed on my watch. I’m coming to take you for coffee to make it up to you.
Elena: You don’t have to do that. I'm a big girl and I can take care of myself. Plus, pretty sure this was all my fault anyway!
Blake: Ha ha, definitely was, but I’m out the front already so I’m taking you out.
I look through the blinds. Shit, he’s here!
Elena: Okay, give me a minute, I’m still in a towel.
Blake: No worries, I’ll wait for you out the front.
I need clothes quick. I pull on a pair of denim shorts, a bra, and T-shirt, grab my thongs and bag and run to the bathroom. I quickly chuck on some foundation and lipstick then pull my hair up in a messy top bun. I’m out the door within five minutes. That's pretty good for me.
Blake’s standing by the mailbox looking way too good after a night out drinking. He's going to think I’m a total mess.
“Hey,” I say, feeling a little shy after last night and having blurry memories of what we actually got up to.
“Hey, yourself. You look good for someone who got home at 2am and drank the better part of a bottle of tequila.”
“Thanks, I think. Was it really that late? Maybe you can remind me how I got home? My memory is a little blurry after we started playing pool.”
“That bad, hey? Well, it was your idea to wipe your memory. Don't worry, you didn’t do anything to embarrass yourself. I’m sure your Dad's plants will be just fine.” He points to the mess in the front garden. “You took a tumble.”
I slap my face. “Oh no, how embarrassing." I pause for a minute trying to think of how I ask this next question. "Did we…?” I gesture between us.
“I was a perfect gentleman. I’m not into taking advantage of girls when they're fall-down drunk.”
“Oh, okay, that's good. I mean, I would want to remember, that's all." My tummy rumbles again, so loudly I'm sure Blake heard. "Where are
