AUGUST | NH |

TWELVE

Niall

"It's late."

My fingers draw shapes across Archer's back as we lay in my bed, her soft skin against mine more than enough to make me feel like I'm right where I'm supposed to be.

I press my lips to the top of her head at her words, looking over at the clock on my nightstand.

1:47.

The red numbers stare back at me, teasing me like I can't make enough time for her. Like she'll be here one moment and gone the next.

Slipping away into a moment of time.

"Do you want me to take you home?" I hate asking the question because as selfish as I am, I want her here with me. "I can if you want."

Silence settles between us for a couple of minutes before she speaks, her voice soft and delicate like she's choosing her words carefully. "Ellis might wonder where I'm at."

"That's not what I asked you, Archer." Rolling over, I rest the majority of my weight on my forearm as I look down at her, my fingers pushing back a lock of her hair as her blue eyes draw me in. "Do you want me to take you home?" I watch as she shakes her head, her lips forming around the word no before I lean in, placing a gentle kiss to her lips. "Then stay. Stay with me, wake up with me."

Archer smiles at me, warming my body from head to toe as her teeth press into her plump bottom lip. "Okay, I'll stay."

Pressing my lips to hers, my fingers slide back into her hair as my thumb rests along her jaw, letting me deepen the kiss just enough that her body arches into mine. "Perfect."

"Niall?" Reaching up, Archer traces the curve of my jaw with the tip of her finger as I hum in return, waiting for her to finish her thought. "I'm kind of hungry."

I laugh, pressing a kiss to her jaw before getting out of the bed, holding my hand out to her. "Come on, you can borrow my shirt, then we can get you a snack."

After taking a bath earlier, I had already slipped on a pair of boxers and let Archer decide if she wanted to borrow any clothes. Much to my surprise and my delight, she declined.

Neither one of us fell asleep once we crawled into my bed, even long after we were wrapped up in my sheets. Instead we've been laughing and talking about anything and everything we could think about. Of course, I've stolen a few kisses, but that's besides the point.

"Alright peach, what are you hungry for?" Turning around, I catch her by surprise when my hands find her hips and lift her onto the countertop. "What'll it be?"

With my palms on either side of her thighs, I can't help but step even closer to her as she twists her mouth to the side, thinking over her options. "Do you have any brownies?"

"Brownies?" I parrot back to her.

Archer nods, laughing as I lean in to kiss her neck. "Yes! I love brownies, okay?!"

"Well, boy do I have a surprise for you." Turning around and walking over to my small pantry, I start pulling out the ingredients that I keep stocked at all times. "My mom had the absolute best brownie recipe."

"She did?" Bright eyes look at me from across the kitchen, watching every move of mine as I get measuring cups and a mixing bowl down from the top cabinet.

"Mhmm. Come here, we'll make them together." I hold my hand out to her, pulling her to stand in front of me. "When I was little, brownies used to be my favorite treat. Eventually she got tired of buying the ones at the store so she started going through recipe after recipe after recipe to find the perfect one."