Chapter 1: The Unexpected Invader
"Damn it, Lucas... pick up your phone," Savanna grumbled for the tenth time as she turned the spare key to Loft 4B. No answer. She knew he was somewhere in Europe with no signal, at the start of his backpacking trip. But she needed a place, urgently. The black mold in the dorms was a death sentence for her lungs. "He wouldn't mind," she thought, justifying her intrusion. "After all, I’m the little sister."
Upon entering, the mess confirmed that Lucas was still the same slob. A team jacket tossed on the sofa, a glove and a baseball scattered on the floor. But there was a different scent... not Lucas’, but something more striking, a woody cologne she didn't recognize. Too exhausted to investigate, she dragged her suitcase up the spiral staircase. The mezzanine was tidier, the large bed inviting.
With no strength left for anything, Savanna simply shed her heavy clothes, leaving only her gray cotton t-shirt and white lace panties. She threw herself onto the bed and, within minutes, the day's fatigue won out; she fell into a deep sleep, face down, her face buried in the pillow.
...
About an hour later, the sound of the heavy metal door slamming downstairs didn't wake her. Nate entered the loft, his shoulder muscles throbbing after a double baseball practice. He had been living there for two weeks, looking after the place for Lucas, his best friend, who had rented him the space for a pittance while traveling.
Nate dropped his gear bag on the floor and his "SD" jacket on the sofa, focused only on a cold shower and the bed. He climbed the metal steps of the spiral staircase with heavy treads.
Reaching the top step, he stopped. His heart gave a jolt, not from fear, but from a pure and immediate visual shock.
In the middle of his bed, bathed in the soft golden light coming from the high windows, was a woman. She was sleeping soundly, face down. The angle didn't allow him to see her face, but the short t-shirt had ridden up a bit, and the white lace panties perfectly outlined the tempting and defined curve of her buttocks. The scene was so unexpectedly sexy that Nate stood paralyzed, eyes fixed on the sight. To him, it felt like he had just won the lottery: coming home to find a babe sleeping in his bed. He still hadn't managed to process how this happened, since he hadn't brought any girls to the loft.
"Wow..." the exclamation escaped his lips in a muffled whisper before reason could intervene.
Nate felt his throat go dry. The sight of those curves under the amber light of the loft was a test of endurance he wasn't prepared to face after an exhausting workout.
He forced a loud throat-clear, the sound echoing off the metal of the stairs.
"Ahem!" The startle was instantaneous. Savanna bolted upright in bed, her body reacting out of pure survival instinct. She sat up abruptly, her messy blonde hair falling over her shoulders, and her hands flew to the hem of her t-shirt, trying to pull it down.
"What—?!" she exclaimed, her heart hammering against her ribs. When her eyes focused on the tall, dark figure standing at the foot of the bed, the panic turned to shock. "Nate?"
Nate felt a punch to the gut as he recognized her face. That wasn't just "some girl." It was Savanna. The little girl he’d watched grow up, now transformed into a woman who occupied every inch of his forbidden thoughts.
"Savanna?!" His voice came out deeper than intended, a mix of surprise and defensive irritation. "What the hell are you doing in my bed?"
"In your bed?" She blinked, confusion clouding her sleepy mind. "This is Lucas's bed! And what are you doing here? I thought you were living at Sigma Delta with Leo and the others."
"I moved out of the frat last semester, Savanna. Family issues. Lucas rented me the loft while he’s traveling. I live here now," Nate explained, the words coming out fast as he averted his gaze to the ceiling, refusing to look at her legs glowing under the sheet. "Jesus, Savanna... put something on."
His tone sounded like a whip crack. To Savanna, it didn't sound like the tone of someone embarrassed, but rather someone disgusted.
"The dorm was condemned! Black mold! The other girls and I had to scramble, and I had nowhere to go!" she shouted, jumping out of bed and running toward her suitcase near the bookshelf.
Nate didn't wait to hear the rest. He spun on his heels and descended the spiral staircase with steps that made the metal ring.
"I’ll be downstairs. Put some shorts on. Now."
Downstairs, Nate threw himself onto the leather sofa, burying his face in his hands. Her scent was all over the mezzanine, and the image of those white lace panties was tattooed on his brain. He was breaking out in a cold sweat. He had to keep his distance. He had to be cold. It was the only way not to cross the line.
On the mezzanine, Savanna put on a pair of denim shorts with trembling hands. She felt a familiar sting of sadness in her chest.
"He couldn't even look at me," she thought, her eyes stinging. "He thinks I’m an intruder, an annoying child. He hates me so much he can't stand to be in the same room as me for two minutes."
She had no idea that, downstairs, Nate was trying to control his breathing so she wouldn't notice how much his body had reacted to her presence.
Savanna descended the stairs slowly, holding a book like a shield. She saw Nate sitting on the sofa, his "SD" jacket tossed aside, looking like an exhausted warrior.
"I’m so sorry, Nate. I didn't know. I’ll pack my things and..."
Nate looked up, his blue eyes flashing with something she interpreted as anger, but which was pure repressed desire.
"Don't be ridiculous. It's night, and you have nowhere to go. I'll call the guys at Sigma and see if my room is still available. You stay."
