The Billionaire Next Door Hates Me

Chapter 5

Chapter 5 — The Hoodie Incident

SOPHIE'S POV

The hoodie was warm, ridiculously soft, and absolutely not hers. Sophie stared at herself in Nathaniel West's bathroom mirror, tugging the sleeves over her hands. "This is a problem." She looked down at the oversized black hoodie hanging almost to her thighs. "It smells like him." She immediately regretted saying that aloud. "Okay. Definitely a problem." A knock sounded on the bathroom door. "Sophie?" She froze. Nathaniel. Of course. She had gone into his apartment to borrow the hair dryer because hers had decided to die halfway through drying her hair. Then she'd gotten cold. Then she'd noticed the hoodie hanging over the back of his chair. She had told herself she'd only wear it for five minutes. Five minutes had become twenty. She opened the door a crack. "What?" Nathaniel stood in the hallway, his expression unreadable. Then his eyes dropped. His hoodie. On her. His gaze traveled from the sleeves covering her hands to the hem brushing her thighs. Silence. Sophie swallowed. "I can explain." "I sincerely doubt that." "It was cold." "There are blankets." "I didn't see them." "They're on the sofa." "I wasn't looking at the sofa." His eyes returned to her face. "What were you looking at?" Sophie opened her mouth. Nothing sensible arrived. "Your... hoodie." His eyebrow lifted. "So you decided to steal it?" "Borrow." "You didn't ask." "I was going to." "When?" "Eventually." Nathaniel stared at her. She crossed her arms. The sleeves swallowed her hands. "Stop looking at me like that." "Like what?" "Like I've committed a felony." "You entered my apartment." "You gave me permission to use the hair dryer." "I did not give you permission to search my wardrobe." "I wasn't searching." "What were you doing?" "Freezing." He looked at the hoodie again. "Take it off." Sophie blinked. "Absolutely not." Something flickered in his eyes. Amusement. She caught it immediately. "You're enjoying this." "I'm not." "You are." "I'm trying to understand how you managed to turn borrowing a hair dryer into theft." "It's not theft if I return it." "When?" She shrugged. "Eventually." Nathaniel exhaled through his nose. "You're impossible." "And you're stingy." "It's a hoodie." "Exactly. You have approximately seven hundred." "Fourteen." She stared at him. "Fourteen?" "Yes." "Why do you know the exact number?" "Because I own them." "That's somehow worse." He stepped closer. Sophie instinctively moved back. Her shoulder touched the doorframe. Nathaniel stopped. For a second, neither spoke. His eyes dropped to the sleeves covering her hands. Then he looked away. "Keep it tonight." Sophie blinked. "Really?" "Yes." "You're not going to demand it back?" "No." "You're not going to threaten me with the police?" "I considered it." She laughed. He almost smiled. Almost. Sophie looked down at herself. "Thank you." His voice softened slightly. "Just don't stretch it." She looked at him. "Is that your biggest concern?" "Yes." "Liar." His gaze met hers. Something quiet passed between them. Then he cleared his throat. "Good night, Sophie." "Good night." He turned away. Sophie watched him leave. Then closed the bathroom door. She looked at herself again. For some reason, the hoodie didn't feel like a joke anymore. It felt comfortable. Safe. And that thought made her stomach twist. She shook her head. "Nope." She grabbed the hair dryer. "Not going there." The next morning, Nathaniel discovered Sophie had stolen something else. His coffee mug. He stood in the kitchen staring at the empty cabinet. "Where is my mug?" Sophie walked in wearing the same hoodie, a pair of loose shorts, and one sock. She was carrying his mug. Nathaniel stared. She followed his gaze. "Oh." "That's mine." "I know." "Then why are you drinking from it?" She took another sip. "Because it was closer." "There are six clean mugs." "They're boring." "It's a mug." "Exactly. This one has personality." He reached for it. She moved it behind her back. "No." "Sophie." "Buy another one." "It's mine." "Was." He stared at her. She smiled. Then his phone rang. He answered without breaking eye contact. "West." His expression changed almost immediately. Sophie stopped smiling. Nathaniel listened. "Today?" A pause. "Send it to the office." Another pause. "No. I said I don't want anyone discussing this with the press." His voice had lost its usual dry humor. It was colder now. Serious. Sophie watched him quietly. "Understood. I'll handle it." He ended the call. She lowered the mug. "Everything okay?" He looked at her. For a moment, she thought he might actually answer. Instead, his face closed again. "Fine." Sophie nodded. "Okay." She turned toward the counter. Nathaniel watched her for a moment. She hadn't pushed. Hadn't asked again. Somehow, that bothered him more than if she'd kept questioning him. "You can keep the mug," he said. Sophie looked over her shoulder. "Really?" "Apparently it's yours now." A smile spread across her face. "Thank you." He picked up his coffee. Then glanced at her outfit. "You've been wearing that hoodie for twelve hours." Sophie looked down. "Yes." "You need to give it back." She smiled. "Maybe tomorrow." Nathaniel stared at her. She took another sip from his mug. Then walked away. He watched her disappear around the corner. His gaze dropped to the empty space where his hoodie had been. He should have been annoyed. He was. Probably. Except when he pictured her wearing it again tomorrow, he found himself thinking something far more inconvenient. He didn't mind.