50 Shades of Hemmings (Part 1&2)

37

I slept in the next morning, feeling nearly as drained and confused as I had when my head hit the heavenly thread count pillow. I checked the clock and forced myself up. I assumed Alli had made it to work all right. She and Heath had gone out for drinks after dinner while I headed back to the condo. We'd made plans to go out on the town the following night, but maybe they needed alone time. Restless, I tossed and turned for what seemed like hours but finally fell asleep, never hearing their return. How she kept up like this I would never know.
I made myself at him in the kitchen, brewing coffee and frying up an omelet. I looked up some local yoga studios on my phone and found a class I could walk into just before lunch. As I devoured my breakfast, Heath came from the adjacent bedroom, looking more than tired. The long night had left heavy bags under his eyes, and for the first time, I noticed he actually looked older than Luke, fine lines fanning out from his dark hazel eyes.
He had the same toned chest and intense eyes as Luke, but while I could appreciate his obviously quality looks, I felt no attraction to him. Luke's appearance had sparked my attraction from the start, but so much more kept that flame alive. Other men had become invisible to me.
Shirtless, he shuffled to the coffee maker, filling an oversized mug to the brim, emptying it to a halfway point before he finally acknowledged me with a nod.
"Morning," he said, looking into his coffee cup.
"Long night?"
"Yeah." He rubbed his face and sighed.
"How was Alli this morning?"
"Uh, fine. She-" He paused. "She came home earlier than I did."
Something wasn't right.
"Is everything all right?" I asked gently, tiptoeing since I was prying into his personal life, though everyone seemed to think that was all right when it came to mine.
"Yeah, definitely. You know how it goes." He shrugged.
A tired and overused smirk that I had started to peg as bullshit marked his face. He was obviously trying to downplay something.
"Do you love her?" I blurted it out, surprising myself even as I said it. It was a bold enough question, let alone one to ask someone in as bad a shape as he was.
His gaze shot to mine, burning with an emotion I couldn't name, all trace of the bullshit smile gone.
"Obviously," he said.
He set his mug down hard on the counter. He sounded bitter about it, though. As if the reality of it stung him. The tone spurred me, my protectiveness kicking in.
"I hope so. Because she's hopeless over you. I've never seen her like this."
A tell tale twitch in his jaw appeared. The same one that tipped me off when Luke was on the edge.
"If you hurt her, Heath..." I lifted my chin, ready to make a point, but my empty threat fizzled as I delivered it. How could I hurt him back? Shielded by his billionaire brother and the lifestyle he afforded, he was sheltered. Threatening him was beyond pointless.
"I won't," he said, his voice clipped with fatigue and irritation.
When our eyes met briefly, I recognized a flash of pain behind them before he turned to go. I finished my breakfast and retreated to the bedroom to change while Heath slept off whatever had him looking so harrowed.

QOTD: Have you ever/do you do drugs??
AOTD: In high school I smoked fags (cigarettes) in year nine, then I grew up and realized how unattractive it was so, not anymore.

I've written 10 drafts. How many chapters should I upload today??