Free Guarding Sophie by Julie Brannagh

people who go to a movie and kiss through the entire thing?”
    â€œProbably,” she said. She felt his chest move as he laughed.
    â€œI guess this means we’ll at least have to start the movie first.”
    K YLE POINTED THE remote control toward the flat-screen on the other wall and clicked. The movie they downloaded popped up as the TV flickered on. He hit some more buttons on the universal remote someone had programmed before he moved in; the flames in the gas fireplace leapt to life too. He could envision a lot of happy evenings cuddled up with Sophie on his living room couch in the future, or at least during the six months or so a year he didn’t have to be back in Bellevue for football.
    She’d made a home here. He might live in Noel a few months a year between football seasons. He didn’t want to get ahead of himself, but he’d like to spend more time with her. He wondered if the sparks of strong attraction he’d felt for her would grow into a flame that might warm them both. Obviously, they hadn’t seen each other for years, but now he didn’t want to dwell on what would happen when he had to go back to his life with the Sharks, and she’d be here for months on her own.
    He wasn’t entirely kidding when he told her he had two guest rooms upstairs, either. She was in love with his kitchen; he had a state-of-the-art security system—it could work well for both of them. She could save the money she was forking out for rent to buy a car. He could sneak into Noel on his day off each week during football season and spend some time with her.
    They’d kissed each other a few times, and he was already moving her into his house. Maybe he needed to slow his roll.
    Maybe he should kiss her some more instead of planning their entire future in the next thirty seconds.
    He glanced down at her.
    â€œSophie?” he said.
    â€œMmph,” she said.
    Her head was on his shoulder, her arms still around him, but he grabbed the remote again and turned the volume down. Her breathing was deep and peaceful. She was fast asleep. He clicked the movie off and settled back into the cushions too.
    They could solve their problems tomorrow.
    K YLE DIDN ’ T DRIVE Sophie home last night. The combination of a delicious dinner, a little wine, and an evening full of laughter and conversation (and the luxurious couch the designer installed in his living room) was enough to lull them both to sleep. The sun was flooding his living room with industrial-strength light when he awoke. He glanced over at Sophie, who was still curled against him. She rubbed her nose with her free hand and made a little snorting sound in her sleep. She was adorable, and it was all he could do not to laugh.
    He felt his cell phone vibrating in his pants pocket and grabbed it out to look at the time. He stared at the readout in shock. He couldn’t remember the last time he slept until 10 AM on a weekday. Maybe it was the quiet. He didn’t hear traffic noise in Noel. There weren’t sirens. Nobody came to the door. The first night he’d stayed in his cabin, he couldn’t sleep because it was too quiet. He went out the next day and bought one of those white noise machines. He made a mental note to unplug the machine later. His lack of sleep didn’t have anything to do with the quiet. It was because he hadn’t been this relaxed in years. He was having the time of his life hiding out with Sophie.
    Speaking of Sophie, maybe he should wake her up. She didn’t have to work, but she might have things to do. He heard another little snort from her as she shoved herself into a sitting position. She smiled sleepily at him as she stretched.
    â€œHey,” she said.
    â€œHey.”
    They stared at each other for a few seconds. Her hair was rumpled. She was still rubbing the sleep from her eyes. A delicate flush rose in her cheeks, and he remembered how soft her skin was as he held her last