Filed to story: Once Upon a One Night Mistake Book PDF Free by Simone Shirazi
He bristled when she laughed, but before he could even think to voice his displeasure, her lips were on his, and they were suddenly falling onto the bed, soft pillows absorbing the shock of their weight.
But even though the actual impact hadn’t hurt, something sharp had scraped his cheek, and he turned his head to break the kiss.
Swatting her hands away, he reached up to touch his face, startled when he drew back to find blood on his fingers. His eyes darted up to the girl straddling him, but her gaze was trained on the red-specked diamond ring on her middle finger. It took her a moment to put two and two together, but a sheepish grin spread over her face when she realized her jewelry had been the culprit.
“Sorry,” she murmured insincerely, slipping the ring off her finger and tossing it to the side as if it were a mere toy. “Let me make it up to you.”
With that, she slid a hand behind his neck and brought his lips back to hers.
Tequila Sunrise
It was morning.
Taliana’s liquor-soaked brain could comprehend that but not much else. How she’d strung that coherent thought together with the way her head was throbbing was a mystery, but even in her semiconscious state it was clear she was hungover.
With a soft groan, she attempted to roll over and go back to sleep, wanting nothing more than to escape back into darkness, but something was keeping her firmly pinned to the mattress. When she finally dared to open her eyes, squinting against the bright sunlight, a sight she certainly hadn’t been expecting greeted her.
Lying with an arm draped possessively across her waist was a dark-haired, devastatingly gorgeous but completely unidentifiable guy who-thankfully-looked to be about Taliana’s age. Panic immediately shot through her, but instead of shoving him away, she froze and desperately began to rationalize.
If the fact that she was naked and hungover wasn’t enough to make her realize she’d gone home with some guy from last night’s party, the peacefully sleeping Adonis was a pretty good clue. Though one-time hookups weren’t really her scene, she’d been drunk and heartbroken enough last night that this wasn’t surprising. It was amazing what both could drive a person to do.
Sighing, she resigned herself to her fate and turned to admire her bedmate once more. He was classically handsome, and with just one glance it was easy to tell he’d broken plenty of hearts in the past. His long eyelashes seemed almost girlish compared to his strong jaw, giving him the look every male model strived for, and had Taliana still been in LA, it wouldn’t have surprised her if he actually was one.
But this wasn’t LA, she was in bed with someone she didn’t recognize, and the details of how she’d gotten there were a little hazy. She remembered arriving at the party, losing the twins, and then seeing her pathetic excuse for an ex-boyfriend. Everything else was a bit of a blur, but judging from how attractive this guy was even while softly snoring, Taliana could see exactly why she’d left with him.
Jesus, if this wasn’t the perfect public service announcement to get people to drink responsibly, then she didn’t know what was.
Deciding it was past time to make her escape, she slowly pushed his arm away and began inching her way out of bed, biting hard on her bottom lip to keep the contents of her stomach from coming up. She had a feeling the sound of retching would wake her bed mate, which would mean facing the awkward one-night-stand-morning-after greeting, a conversation that could border on downright painful. She’d experienced it once in the past and wasn’t eager for a repeat.
So as quickly as she could, Taliana hauled herself out of bed and pulled on her clothes as quickly as she could manage. Gritting her teeth, she managed to grab her shoes and somehow put on the four-inch heels without falling down. She could see her escape a few feet away, and she rushed to the door just as the boy let out a heavy sigh in his sleep.
Taliana had to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other, but she eventually got to the elevator and ducked inside, already exhausted from the short walk. The ride down to the first floor didn’t seem long enough and before Taliana knew it, she was stumbling out of the steel doors again.
All she had to do now was make it out of the hotel and she’d be in the clear, but that was a task easier said than done in the busy lobby. Nevertheless, she kept her head down and started out, though she didn’t realize how bad of an idea that was until she ran into something-or someone from the feel of it.
Something hot splashed onto Taliana’s chest, and she let out a strangled yelp as she pulled the fabric of her dress away from her skin the best she could. Someone gasped in the background, but she was too preoccupied with trying to wipe what appeared to be coffee off her to take much notice.
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” someone spluttered. “Are you okay, honey?”
Grimacing, Taliana spared a glance up at the horrified guy in front of her. “I’m fine. It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not!” he exclaimed as one of his hands worriedly flew out to touch her shoulder. “Forgive me, I wasn’t looking where I was going. Are you sure you’re okay? It didn’t burn you, did it?”
Taliana had to commend the guy for being concerned for a complete stranger’s well-being, but the fact that she was mere seconds from puking all over his expensive looking shoes made her wish she’d run into someone else.
“I’m fine,” she replied, drawing in a deep breath to keep down whatever still lingered in her stomach. “Really.”
The boy let out a light laugh. “Come on, I just spilled hot coffee on you. And from the looks of it, that’s an expensive dress. I couldn’t live with myself if I ended up ruining it.”
Before Taliana could even register what was happening, his hand slid from her shoulder and down to her chest where he’d spilled the coffee. Taliana’s eyes widened when his fingers skimmed across her collarbone, and she gasped in offense, but he didn’t seem to notice he’d violated her personal space.
“Oh dear,” he murmured, biting his full bottom lip as he assessed the damage. “I should get you home so you can get cleaned up. I’d take you up to my hotel room, but my, uh, visitor from last night has yet to leave so I’m trying to avoid him until he does.”
Taliana opened her mouth to protest, but he’d already grabbed her hand and was pulling her toward the exit of the building.
“I’m Jude, by the way,” he tossed over his shoulder, flashing Taliana a warm smile. “And that dress looks amazing on you-coffee stain and all.”
Taliana’s gaped at his forwardness. Either this guy was some complete psycho who was taking her to a back alley so he could murder her, or he was truly a sweetheart and actually did like her dress. For her sake, she hoped it was the latter.
“I’m Taliana,” she managed to mumble as she followed him out the doors, squinting against the sunlight. “And thanks, I guess.”
“Your last name wouldn’t happen to be Avilla, would it?” he inquired, raising one perfectly arched eyebrow.
Taliana froze. How the hell could he have known that? Was this guy some kind of stalker? Or had news of her LA exploits already reached D.C.?
Likely seeing the panic on her face, Jude laughed. “Relax, I know the twins,” he explained. “Marissa and Vanessa said you were coming to town, but I never thought we would meet like this.”
Taliana’s brow furrowed, but some of her worry faded. “You know the twins?”
“Of course I do,” he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “I know everyone. Now come on, I’ll give you a ride home.”
Apparently, they weren’t that tight if neither of the girls had told Taliana anything about him, but there she was, about to accept his offer. At least if he? was a psycho murderer, she wouldn’t have to suffer through the rest of this hangover.
“Thanks,” she said as she followed him to the black Audi parked on the street and allowed him to open the car door for her, not knowing what else to say or do.
Jude, however, didn’t seem deterred by Taliana’s lack of social skills. “So,” he began again after sliding into the driver’s seat and starting the car. “You went to the party last night, right? Did you have a good time?”
Oh, the answers she could have given him. “Yeah, it was…fun,” she said, offering a faint smile.
For the first time since they’d collided, Taliana got a good look at him. Jude had deep blue eyes, a fantastic smile, and dimples she was immediately jealous of. Even while sitting it was easy to see he was tall and in spectacular shape. Honestly, he looked like he wouldn’t have had a hard time taking someone down if they dared to mess with him, but with his bubbly personality and charming ways, it was hard to imagine this guy having very many enemies.
“Good answer.” He chuckled as he pulled out of the parking spot and into traffic. “It’s super nice to meet you, though. I promise I don’t usually come on to girls by spilling coffee on them. Then again, I don’t usually come on to girls at all. Guess I’m a little rusty.”
Taliana bit back a laugh and tried to ignore the fact that the pounding in her head was beating double time. “I never would have guessed,” she said, already feeling strangely endeared by this guy.
She’d known him less than five minutes, and she already knew she and Jude were going to get along just fine.