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Our next day in New Orleans flew by. We all slept in, actually, and then after lunch decided to go to the St. Louis Cathedral.

After that, on our way back from there, when Valerie and Jamieson left us to go to their next location, Poppy and I tried out a lot of street food on our way. A lot of street food, other than local New Orleans dishes that were traditional and fucking delicious, we tried some Mexican food as well. We stopped by a café on our way back to the hotel and now, as we finally walked back in, we were stuffed and exhausted.

She sighed dramatically and sat on the bed before falling back on it, resting her hands on her stomach. "I'm so full," she said, looking at me.

I lay down next to her, poking her belly.

She squealed loudly, kicking her legs up before giving me a hard punch in the arm.

"Ow," I laughed, rolling onto my side and grabbing her wrists.

She cracked up while shrieking, "Ah!"

I chuckled, moving closer and holding her wrists down on either side of her head as I moved on top of her, straddling her, my knees on either side of her hips. I stopped tickling her, both of us pausing.

She took in a few breaths, staring at me with her cheeks flushed, a tiny smile still on her face. Taking my moment of distraction for granted, she grabbed my shirt and jerked me down to her before turning us over, a small huff escaping her as she climbed on top of me, pinning my wrists above my head.

I watched in amusement. "Are we wrestling now?"

She leaned down, her lips brushing against mine but not quite kissing me. "Maybe. Do you think I can win?"

"Absolutely."

She giggled, pecking my lips.

"If I let you," I added nonchalantly.

She rolled her eyes and sat up, moving away from me. "I think I'd win either way."

I propped myself onto my elbows, watching her.

Sharply, she lifted a daring brow at me, asking, "What?"

I sat up, grabbing her by her shirt as she had done to me and pulling her in until we were only inches apart. "Nothing. I just like this position for you," I smirked.

"Aren't you cheeky?" she snickered, resting her arms on my shoulders. "I'm not usually on top," she shook her head, biting back a smile.

"Why not? You don't like it?"

"I don't mind it."

"It's not your favorite?"

She shook her head again, her nose scrunching up.

"Why?" I chuckled.

"It's tiring," she laughed.

I laughed with her, my hands slipping under her shirt and caressing her back. I felt the two little dimples at the bottom of her spine and she took in a sharp but shaky breath as I traced them.

She was wearing a plain white tank top with wide-leg jeans today but on top of her tank top, she had on a small blue button-up cardigan. With her hair in a high ponytail, she looked really cute and much younger than normal. I imagined she was like this in college.

"What do you think would have happened if we met earlier?" I asked her suddenly.

"Earlier? Like when?"

I shrugged, "Like in college."

She hummed in thought, tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. "I don't know. Actually, wait, I do," she laughed, "we would have competed, just like we did at work."

"Would we hate each other?"

"A little," she nodded, "but I think we could have been friends if I met you in college."

"Really? Why?"

"Were you like this in college?"

I paused in thought before answering. "A little nicer to people."

"That's why," she teased.

I smiled, watching her. "I was a dick to you when we met, wasn't I?"

She nodded.

"You know what I was doing, right?"

She just stared at me.

"I was trying to keep you away from me."

"And why did you do that?"

"Because I was scared to like you too much."

"Because...?"

"I thought you should be with a guy nicer than me."

"Well, I think you're perfect for me."

"Oh, yeah? Why's that?"

"That's because I've never liked anybody as much as I like you. And I've never been so serious about a guy before. I know we're not—"

"We are," I cut her off, knowing damn well what she was about to say.

She grinned in amusement. "Really? You didn't ask me to be your girlfriend though."

"Are we in high school?"

She snorted, "Do you seriously think only high school kids ask each other out?"

"Well, we're a secret, so I can't do that properly. But you are my girlfriend."

"I am, huh?"

"Damn right."

She grinned, "I'm glad." She ran her fingers through my hair, brushing it back before holding one side of my face, her thumb stroking my cheek. "Because I..." she paused teasingly. I lifted my brows, tilting my chin up. "I think I'm falling for you," she whispered. I turned my head to the side, kissing her palm before biting her finger, making her laugh. She slapped my cheek playfully, turning my head the other way.

"I think I already fell," I mumbled.

She adjusted her arms around me and leaned in, kissing me softly. I pulled her in closer moments before she pulled away, pressing a kiss to my cheek instead and keeping her lips there. I laughed, briefly glancing at her. "I want to take a nap," she mumbled against my skin.

"We've been taking lots of those, aren't we on a trip?" I asked.

"We're working, we're allowed to feel exhausted," she said, putting her head down on my shoulder, her lips brushing against my neck.

"You don't think we just like sharing a bed?"

"That too," she smiled. "Lay down."

I lay down, kicking my shoes off while she did the same before rolling off me and onto her own side of the bed.

She let her hair down, wincing a bit and massaging her head. "Are you sleeping?" she asked as I got up to draw the curtains and turn the lights off.

"Maybe, if I get sleepy," I replied, climbing over her, stealing a kiss as I did.

"It hurts," she mumbled, rubbing her head.

"Come here," I told her, gesturing with two fingers. She scooted into my lap while I sat against the headboard before I began running my fingers through her hair, using both hands to massage her scalp. She hummed in approval and closed her eyes and before I knew it, in minutes, she was fast asleep.

I stayed on my phone for a few minutes, replying to the few texts Jenny had sent me before looking at all of Blake's pictures that I got with her messages. I smiled, knowing it was still only late afternoon, I thought of FaceTiming her to talk to him. So, while Poppy slept, I went into the balcony quietly and called them up.

Instead of Jenny though, Colton answered the phone. I froze for a minute. Colton and I don't talk much and I never bothered either because I always got the feeling he didn't really like me. If he believes what his wife told him, as he should, then I don't blame him. I'd want my wife to believe my side of the story. "Hey," he nodded once.

"Uh, hey. Where's Jenny?"

"She just went to take a shower."

"Oh, is the restaurant closed today?"

"No, we just took a day off, our staff is still there."

"And how's Blake?" I asked.

"Right here," he answered, not showing him to me.

I paused before sighing softly, "Well, can I see him?"

He hesitated and then groaned softly, "All right. Here." He moved, setting the phone up against something in front of where Blake was on the floor, sitting on his baby mat, playing with a few toys.

"Hi, Blake!"

He looked up at the phone, his face brightening up before he crawled over quickly, picking up the phone. I hardly saw him, more of his forehead before he giggled, "Hi!"

I chuckled, spending a few minutes just speaking to him and listening to his attempts at talking.

After that, I joined Poppy in her nap.

It was almost seven-thirty when I woke up in the evening and found the bed empty with the sun almost completely set outside. I groaned, rubbing my eyes before calling out her name. "Poppy!"

The bathroom door opened quietly before she walked over. "Hey, you're awake," she chuckled, her hairbrush in her hand.

I held out a hand blindly and she walked over, taking it. I pulled her on top of me and she fell, losing her balance while laughing. "Where are we going?" I asked.

"To bars and clubs," she answered.

"Again?"

"Yes," she sang, pecking my cheek before climbing off. "Come on, let's go! I was just about to wake you up. I'm already ready, so I'm only waiting for you." I sat up as she flicked the lights on, making me wince. She left the bathroom door open until she had to change and I got dressed in the room itself after freshening up in the bathroom. "Can we go?" she asked as I fixed the sleeves of the white button-up I put on.

I rolled the sleeves up to my elbows to make it a bit more casual and still look decent enough.

But Poppy looked fucking gorgeous. Tonight, she had on white heels, the same as yesterday, actually, but with that, she had on a bit of a short, white satin silk dress that stopped around mid-thigh. It was driving me insane and I kind of wanted to rip it off but I felt like that would earn me a scolding. Her hair was pulled back into a bun but it wasn't too low, a bit higher.

"Let's go," I nodded.

She got up from the seats by the coffee table and walked over, putting her in mine before we left. When we got to the lobby, she unlatched her arm and while I hated it, I knew that it was only because of Valerie being here.

We left with those two and once we got to the bar, the four of us shared a table for the first hour, where we just had some snacks with drinks and called it dinner. After that, we finally split up, both of them going somewhere else in the bar on their own. I saw Valerie moving to speak with a stranger while Jamie went to get a drink. He was at the counter when a girl stood beside him and they started talking.

"Now, I won't ask you to dance since you already did that for me last night," she laughed, bringing the ghost of a smile to my lips. "But can we sneak away somewhere? I want to kiss you," she said, leaning across the table.

"Do you?" I sang, leaning in mockingly.

She nodded, grinning widely at me.

I took a quick look around before standing up and grabbing her hand, pulling her outside with me. There was a narrow alleyway that was completely empty right next to the bar, so we went there.

She watched me, slowly walking backward until she hit the wall. "What if we get caught?" She lifted her brows.

"We won't get caught," I reassured her.

"Really? Because what if—"

I cut her off, leaning down and kissing her, planting both hands on the wall and stepping closer so my body shielded hers. Even if someone saw us, she wouldn't be visible.

Her lips moved against mine, her hands sliding up and fisting my shirt before going around my neck, resting at the nape of my neck as she pulled me in deeper, softly humming in approval against my lips.

We both jumped apart when we heard the bar door open but I leaned forward instinctively, hiding her. We waited until the sound of people's laughter passed before I stepped away, standing across from her, both of us staring at each other.

Thunder crackled all of a sudden in the sky, taking us both by surprise.

"It's past midnight," she said, pushing off the wall, still staring at the sky. "Should we go?"

"Yeah," I nodded, getting closer to her. "Let's tell Jamie we're leaving though." So, we headed back inside. I walked to the counter, Poppy holding my arm, and we told him we were leaving now.

Poppy led the way out while I made sure nobody bumped into either one of us on our way out and as we left the bar and stepped out from under the shed, instantly, I felt water pouring down on me.

Well, that was unexpected.

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