Pretending (Westshore Series #1)

Chapter Forty-One: You Did This To Me

TW: ED CONTENT

I wake up with a smile on my face. Waking up on Christmas morning with Warner sprawled out next to me in matching grinch PJs was a sight I never wanted to forget. I pull away to get up and check my phone but Warner tugs me back to him so that I'm nestled against his chest. His arms fall around me carefully, as if telling me I can pull away if I really want. But I feel so safe, so warm, that I can't come up with a single reason why I shouldn't stay in his arms.

I press closer, hiding my face in his chest and his arms wrap more tightly around me, his chest rising and falling. My hands come up to rest against his stomach, and the hard muscles tense under my touch. It was as if he was restraining himself, he seemed to do that a lot. It had been months and he still hadn't tried to have sex with me. We had done everything else so I was just waiting for him to let it get that far but he was always restraining himself. I was a virgin, but it wasn't by choice I just never had the chance, so it was concerning that he might think I wanted it to be some special occasion.

My phone buzzes again interrupting my less than holy thoughts, so I begrudgingly untangle myself from Warner's arms to look at it. He groans when I leave his arms but he shifts up and leans his back on the headboard so he can look at me. "Merry Christmas Jules."

"Merry Christmas Warner." I can't hold his gaze long because a wave of emotions overcome me.

Those emotions all leave my body when I read the texts from my mom.

Warner notices my change in mood immediately, "What? What's wrong?" he reaches for me.

"My mom is pissed; I need to go back to my house." I race around his room gathering my dress from last night. I was not putting it back on, so I guess I was heading back in Christmas pyjamas.

Warner did not look happy about me going back there, "Let me drive you back, I'll stay and then I can take you back here for tonight's Christmas dinner."

I mentally smack myself, I forgot I said I would attend Tracey's Christmas dinner. No servers or chefs just close family and I was included.

"She wants me to come alone, I'll text you and you can come when I'm done. I'm sure she just wants to spend some time together. It's Christmas!" I lie.

After bickering for ten minutes, I win like I always do, and go back to my house alone. I walk through the front door and expect my mom to hound me immediately, but I don't see her anywhere.

I spot some Christmas cookies on the counter; they are more for decoration in this household than for eating. But my hand starts to move towards one anyways. It was hard to restrict on holidays, I never had to before.

My hand grabs the cookie just as my mom comes into the room. It's like she has an alarm for when I touch junk food.

"Do you enjoy embarrassing me, Juliet? Is that it?" She looks pissed, her hands are on her hips, and she is glaring at my hand with the cookie, so I drop it.

"No, I don't."

"Then how do you explain last night?"

I thought back to last night, sure I ate some cake, but I didn't do anything obscene. "I didn't do anything." I regret the words as soon as they leave my mouth. I only angered her.

"You embarrassed me in front of my friends, you blatantly ignored the food I suggested. You pigged out on cake like well... a pig"

My face heats up at the insult.

"And then you left early without so much as a goodbye. You wonder why I never brought you to events before, this is why because you are an embarrassment. I thought you changed but clearly, that's not true."