Chapter 10

Andrea opened her eyes as she felt the bus stop moving. It was still dark on the bus and when she didn’t recognize where she was, she quickly lifted her head up to look around.

“Ouch,” she said softly, rubbing her neck. She had fallen asleep with her head on Nick’s shoulder, causing her neck to be at an awkward angle. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she looked down at the floor and saw Annie and AJ lying next to each other, each covered up with a separate blanket. She was afraid to look over at Nick and see if he was still sleeping, but she didn’t know why. What is it about him that I can’t control? It’s been so long since I’ve been nervous about being next to, or talking to, or even thinking about a man.

She was about to get up when she realized Nick’s arm was wrapped around her. She tried to stand up, but his arm was too heavy for her to move. She thought she could slide out from underneath it, so she scooted down on the couch and turned her body around so that her stomach was towards the couch and her butt was up in the air. His arm was now lying across her upper back and she turned her upper body towards Nick, thinking she could just slip out from under it. Instead his fingers got caught in her curls as she was trying to pull her head out, and the result was her face in Nick’s lap and his hand on her head, stuck in her hair, with her butt sticking up in the air.

This is awkward, she thought to herself, trying to figure out a way to explain herself when he and the others woke up. “Only me, this would only happen to me,” she said under her breath as she heard Annie snickering from behind her.

“What in the hell are you doing?” Annie asked, as her snicker turned into a full-blown laugh.

“I’m stuck, and maybe instead of laughing at me, you could help me!” Andrea stammered back at her, with desperation in her voice. She then heard another laugh join her cousin’s, and knew AJ was awake. “Shut up, do not say a word,” she directed at him. “This is not what it looks like!”

“It never is,” he said, getting up to help untangle her hair from Nick’s hand.

“I knew it would come to this, I knew if I was patient, she would come to me,” Nick said groggily, awakening from his sleep from all the commotion. AJ and Annie busted out laughing louder this time, gasping for air between squeals. They didn’t hear the bus door open and footsteps approaching.

“Wow, this isn’t something you walk onto a bus and see everyday,” Brian chuckled from behind them.

“Mother of God, how many more people can share in my embarrassment?” Andrea asked, exasperated. “This isn’t funny! Will someone please get my hair untangled from his fingers so I can go into another room and die, PLEASE!”

The bus erupted with laughter. It was five minutes later before Andrea was free because no one could stop laughing enough to untangle her. She stood up, her cheeks blazing with redness. Nick stood up with her, and as she was turning to walk into the bathroom, he grabbed her by the arm gently and leaned into her ear.

“I could wake up like that every morning with you,” he whispered, giving her the sexiest smile she had ever seen. Then he bent down and kissed her. It was a quick, gentle kiss, but it meant more to her than he knew.

“Only time will tell,” she said to him furtively as she turned away and walked into the bathroom.