At four in the morning, Claire Grace scrambled out of bed. Without even putting on her slippers, she darted to the living room and gently cracked open the door, poking her head out to glance at Lucas Zeller's room.
"Oh, come on! That idiot actually left his door open and went to sleep inside?" she muttered, recalling his smug expression earlier.
"If you regret rejecting my proposal, you can sneak into my bed in the middle of the night. My door is always open for you," he had said, so confidently it made her want to scream. He'd said it as if he were sure she'd give in.
"Hmph, as if I would ever—wait, why am I standing in front of his door?" Claire froze, then turned to look at her own bedroom door. Her jaw dropped, forming a perfect "O."
No way! Somehow, she had unconsciously closed her own door. Now, here she was, locked out, wearing just her pajamas and without her keys. What was she supposed to do?
After pacing back and forth for ten minutes, Claire finally crept into Lucas's apartment. She figured she'd borrow his phone to call Sarah to come back and open the door. To her surprise, Lucas's bedroom light was on, and the door was ajar. The rest of the apartment, however, was pitch dark.
Using the faint light from his room, Claire rummaged around his living room but found no phone. Then she remembered: Lucas had just moved in earlier that afternoon. It made sense there wasn't a landline yet. That left only one option—she'd have to borrow his cellphone.
Standing at the threshold of his bedroom, she hesitated. Should she sneak in and take it, or wake him up and ask?
Sneaking in made her feel like a thief. But waking him up? He'd definitely tease her about sneaking into his room at night, claiming it proved his point. Either way, this whole mess was her fault. Why had she been so curious to see if he'd really left his door open?
Just as she wavered, Lucas's deep, lazy voice startled her.
"Snail Girl, how long are you going to pace around? You're making me dizzy."
Claire froze, eyes wide. Lucas turned his head to look at her with an amused smirk.
"You weren't asleep?"
"I was. But I have a fever and a headache. Took me forever to fall asleep, only for you to wake me up," he grumbled, though his gaze softened when he saw her.
"I wasn't noisy! I was walking so quietly."
"But you were making a racket in the living room. What were you looking for, anyway?" he asked. At first, he thought there was a burglar. Then, seeing it was her, he decided to play along and wait for her to come into his room. But after holding still for so long, he was starting to get stiff.
"I, uh..." Claire hesitated. If she explained, he'd laugh at her for sure. But she couldn't just linger here all night. Sarah might not even return by morning. Finally, she blurted, "I wanted to borrow your phone to make a call."
"Come and get it. It's under the pillow next to me," Lucas replied, beckoning her with a crook of his finger. His eyes glinted mischievously.
"Under the pillow? Didn't you always keep it on your bedside table?" she asked suspiciously.
"Snail Girl, I'm impressed you remember that," Lucas teased, his lips curling into a smile. "But without you, all my habits have changed."
"That's ridiculous. Keeping your phone under your pillow is bad for your health. Haven't I told you about the radiation before?" Claire huffed as she stomped over, climbing onto his bed to reach under the pillow.
"You liar!" she snapped, glaring at him when she found nothing.
"I told you, I don't mind if you sneak into my bed at night," Lucas said, clearly enjoying her irritation.
"You—!" Furious, Claire raised her hand to slap him, but Lucas caught her wrist effortlessly. With a swift motion, he pulled her closer, and she landed against his chest.
"Why do you need the phone so badly?" he asked, curiosity flickering in his eyes. It was easy to misunderstand her intentions, but he knew Claire wasn't that kind of woman.
"I'm not telling you," she muttered, glaring at him.
"Fine, suit yourself," Lucas said with a shrug, wrapping his arms around her. "As long as I can hold you like this and be your pillow, I'm good."
"Ugh! I need to call Sarah to come unlock my door, okay?" she snapped, wriggling to free herself.
"Don't you have your own key? Wait—don't tell me you locked yourself out," he said, his tone half incredulous, half amused.
"What else would you think?" she shot back, glaring daggers at him.
"But it's almost dawn. And wait—you're living with Sarah?" Lucas raised an eyebrow, feigning shock.
"Why do you ask so many questions? Are you lending me the phone or not?" Claire jabbed a finger at his chest.
"It's not that I won't lend it to you," Lucas replied, trying to hide the shiver that ran through him at her touch. "But think about it. Would Sarah really get up, take a cab, and come all the way back here just to open the door? And how would you feel about waking her up in the middle of the night for this?"
"I..." Claire faltered.
"Exactly. You'd feel bad, wouldn't you? So just stay here tonight. Don't worry, I won't force you to do anything," he said with a cheeky grin. "Although, I wouldn't mind if you forced me."
"Go to hell!" Claire glared at him. "Don't you have another bedroom?"
"Sorry, Miss Grace. I just moved in. This is the only bed in the place," Lucas said, his voice entirely too smug.
"So, Mr. Zeller, are you suggesting I share the bed with you?" Her tone turned icy.
"If that's what you're offering, I wouldn't object. But I'm a gentleman, so I'll sleep on the floor," he said with a dramatic sigh. "Even though I'm burning up with fever and might get worse. But hey, a few hours of sleep should be fine—"
"Just shut up and sleep!" Claire growled, jabbing him hard in the chest before yanking the blanket and curling up on her side.
Lucas exhaled in relief, grinning to himself. Who would have thought the cold, sharp-tongued man would one day resort to such antics to win over his wife?
Perhaps, after all, there's always someone who can conquer you.