Page 6

Jackson

Walking out of my room the next evening, I couldn’t help but laugh. This was what she had planned, yet she was mocking me for playing video games with my friends last night?

Thea was sitting in the exact same spot as me on the couch with only her dark, messy bun on show. She was watching a guy on TV whose jaw line looked like it had been sculpted with a chisel, and wearing a suit which made him look smarmy as hell. Typical Thea. Always going for the conventionally handsome guys.

“You can’t be serious?” I said, shaking my head as the guy on the screen declared his love for a beautiful woman on the screen. It would have been believable if there weren’t another ten girls standing behind her, eagerly awaiting the same speech. If I had blue eyes that could pierce a soul, I’d be drowning in pussy like this guy.

Thea’s head popped up from over the couch, giving me the luxury of seeing her narrowed, catlike eyes. “What do you want, Baseball Cap?”

“Nothing,” I said, jutting my chin toward the TV. Then I glanced at the pile of snacks placed on her lap. With grapes, peanut butter banana bites, and kiwi, her snack pile was a lot healthier than mine. “This looks like an awfully familiar setup to mine last night.”

Her brows creased, and she pushed up so I could see her entire face was contorted in disgust. The crinkle in her nose only emphasized the freckles speckled across it, making her seem marginally less threatening.

“Difference is, I’m not playing mindless video games. I’m watching The Baseball Bachelor.”

I pushed out my lips, pretending to think before I said, “So it’s worse. At least I gained an extra two thousand followers last night and received an email from a company about an endorsement deal.”

She groaned, rolling her eyes to the ceiling, enhancing her long lashes. “They’re all bots, and the email’s a scam. Trust me, Baseball Cap, no one is interested in watching you play with anything.” Her distrust was a given, considering she knew nothing about the gaming community, but it was somewhat insulting. Just because her brother was destined for the NFL, didn’t make her better than me. How the hell Tanner and Thea gestated in the same womb at the same time, I’d never fully comprehend. They were just so … different. Tanner would never judge. He was humble and celebrated his friends. Thea was snarky as hell and had a snarl which could rival a pit bull.

“And these relationships never last,” I added to try and sour her mood as much as she had mine. Her mouth dropped and she shook her head, tutting like I’d committed the most cardinal of sins.

“Tell that to Bachelor Shawn. Three kids down the line, and he’s happy and still very much in love with his wife.”

“And how many times do they haul him out as the only success story of a franchise that has spanned longer than my lifetime?”

“Every season, obviously.”

“So … he’s still making money out of being the only successful bachelor?”

“You’re just cynical.” She pouted her bottom lip, and I flicked my gaze to the TV for a second.

Unsurprisingly, the bachelor had moved on to his next girlfriend. Gah, it sounded weird saying that when he had like twelve of them.

“Besides, you can’t judge a show you’ve never seen.”

“Sure I can. You judged my games without ever playing them.”

She turned to the TV and sunk back into the couch, suggesting that our conversation was over. It wasn’t. I had the final say in that. Rounding the couch, I found Thea snuggled tight into a fluffy purple blanket, and laughed. “I really hope you aren’t wearing that ugly onesie again. With that and the blanket, you’re going to die of heat exhaustion, and I won’t be here to save you.”

She shifted under the blanket, and I expected her to toss it off, revealing another hideous onesie. Maybe this time it would be leopard print or something equally jarring. She didn’t, though. She just sat there, stewing in her annoyance. “Even if I was dying of heat exhaustion, you’re the last person I’d accept anything from.”

“Wow, Pyro. You hate me that much? You’d rather die than accept any of my fluids.”

I smirked as her lip curled, and she gagged. “Don’t make me hurl, Jackson.”

“Then don’t cook yourself in a blanket, and we’ll be good.” I turned on my heel, headed to the kitchen counter, and grabbed my keys out of the little bowl.

“Where are you going?”

“Why do you want to know? Having people over?”

“No. I just wanted to know how long I have on my own.”

“Don’t worry, Pyro. Unlike you, I happily follow rules, and I’m more than capable of not returning here until ten thirty. Have a good night,” I said sarcastically as I strolled down the hallway. She didn’t respond, not that I expected her to.

When I reached for the door, I turned back to her. “Oh, by the way, same rules apply for you that applied for me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“No masturbating on the couch.”

Her mouth dropped, and the sick satisfaction I got with annoying her came right back. “I do not—”

Not sticking around to hear her, I walked out of the door, happy that she would be ticked off and thinking of me for the rest of the night. Meanwhile, I was going to have a delicious dinner with two of my closest friends.

“This food is delicious, Britt,” I said with a mouth stuffed full of roasted potatoes, carrots, peas, and beef. If I’d have known what a good cook Britt was, I would have married her myself. “You are incredible.” Smiling, I took her in from across me, and a blush creeped onto her cheeks. What a treasure. No wonder Matty was so protective of her even when he couldn’t have her. He must have known about her beef.

I snorted, thinking about Britt’s beef … Yeah, I bet he sampled her beef curtains before they made it official.

“I made it.” Matty, the man sitting next to the beautiful woman opposite me, interrupted my thoughts and drew my attention to him. Without a word, he flung his arm over her chair, gently tugging it toward him.

He made the beef?!

Well, maybe I needed to marry him instead.

I shoveled more potatoes onto my fork and said, “Oh, well, thank you, Matty, for creating such a delicious meal. Did you make the sauce? I might need to get the recipe.” Not that I’d be able to use it since I was a terrible cook and risked burning down the apartment block. A fire that would only come second to Thea’s, and I refused to give her something to taunt me over. She already had enough ammunition on that front, it seemed.

“I didn’t make it for you,” he gritted out, his knuckles going surprisingly white, considering he was only holding a fork.

“Matty,” Britt hissed, elbowing him in the side. “Be nice.” Her hair was curled, which was unusual for her, and she was wearing a tight black dress with a V-cut. She looked like she’d made an effort, which seemed odd since they were planning on staying in tonight.

He huffed out a breath as he looked back at his wife. “I am being as nice as I can be to a guy who showed up to our house uninvited when we had plans.”

“Plans?” I looked between the two with confusion. “You told me you were staying in when we talked at the gym this morning. I didn’t think it would be a problem.”

Matty’s jaw flexed, his knuckles still white. Hmm … interesting. Why was he so angry about this? Then it all started to come together.

Matty making a fancy steak dinner …

The candles all over the room …

Both dressed awfully nice for a meal at home …

The soft piano music playing in the background …

Matty was trying to get laid, and here I was, shoveling his beef into my mouth, cockblocking him like an oblivious motherfucker.

Slowing my chews, I placed the cutlery on the table and said, “I’m sorry if I ruined any of your plans. I honestly didn’t think you had to work this hard to get laid once you were married.” I wiped my mouth with my napkin and waved my hand between them. “I just kind of thought it happened.”

Britt shook her head, a small laugh leaving her lips as her cheeks heated. “Jackson, please don’t be sorry. It’s okay. That’s not what we were doing. At all.”

I raised a brow before pointing my thumb over my shoulder. “Are you sure? I can go if you’d prefer?”

“Yes.”

“No. No. Don’t do that.” Britt slapped Matty’s chest, which barely made a move against my floppy-haired friend but emphasized the giant rock glinting on her finger. Seriously, how much money did Matty have to afford something like that? “Matty was just joking.”

“No, I wasn’t,” he grumbled.

She rolled her eyes. “Ignore him. He’s just in a crabby mood because I told him my brother Bryce is coming over this week before his game.”

“Ah, Bryce. He’s the big one, right?” I puffed out my shoulders to make the point. Bryce Brennon was a football player who didn’t get much attention. Probably because he was a third-string quarterback, but we all couldn’t have Tanner’s level of publicity. Britt nodded, and I huffed out a laugh. “Then I’m not surprised you don’t want to see him. What do you say to a guy after you boink his sister and marry her without anyone knowing?”

“Jackson …” came another grumbled warning from Matty.

Was I ticking him off?

Whoops.

Britt wrapped her palm around Matty’s hand, soothing him. “Bryce actually really likes Matty. It’s Sam we’re still working on, but we’ll get there with him, won’t we?”

Matty grumbled, and as I watched their interactions, I couldn’t help but admire them. They were just so … cute. I couldn’t think of a better word to describe them, which was weird, considering I was used to them being friends secretly pining for each other. Now they were married and living together in the span of a few months.

“Is it weird being married at twenty-one?” I asked, not thinking about what I was saying. Something I did a lot.

They gawked at me, and I shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, you’re still in college. I know you both only have a semester left, but it must be weird, right? All your friends are going out, drinking, and sleeping with random people, yet here you are. Living by the beach in domestic bliss.”

When I say living in domestic bliss, I meant they were thriving in domestic bliss. The house was more like a castle than the small beach house they’d originally described. The view alone was breathtaking, and the modern take on a Californian beach house suited them. Matty bought it—another reason I should have considered marrying my best friend—but I was too late … and I wasn’t Britt.

“None of our friends are sleeping with random people. Except you.”

“Not true,” I huffed out on a laugh, and looked out the window behind Britt and Matty. It was dark, but I could still make out the waves crashing against the rocks. It really was peaceful here. Much more peaceful than at my house with Thea.

“Name one other person we hang out with that isn’t in a committed relationship,” Matty said, bringing me back to the conversation.

I screwed up my face, thinking about what a ridiculous comment that was. Let me see … Devin was also married, but he had been out of college for three years, so he didn’t count. There was also Adam and Hayden who got together after Matty tried to push Britt onto Adam. That was a disaster waiting to happen. Adam was out, then, Aiden and Alyssa were doing whatever the hell they were doing, and Tanner … Well, shit. I was the only one who was fucking around. Not that I’d done it in a while. I hadn’t had the time or inclination ever since Thea moved in. Something about her judging glare and knowing she could hear always seemed to put me off.

“Wait, when did that happen? When did I become the only solo amigo in the group?” I frowned but then smiled because I was happy being on my own and away from the pressures of someone else’s expectations. It was good being me.

“Is that what you are? Single?” Britt asked with more judgment in her voice than I liked.

“Yeess …”

“I’m not sure that’s how I’d define you.”

Furrowing my brows, I studied her longer than I was sure Matty liked. “Are you trying to imply that my hand and I are in a relationship? Because if so, that’s cold, Britt. Stone cold.”

Matty smiled, the first of the night, but I’d let him off. He was clearly upset about his lack of sex tonight.

“No, but thank you for the graphic I could’ve lived without.” Britt’s nose crinkled as she waved me off, and I sat up straighter, looking between them.

I grinned. “What? You don’t like that idea? How about this? How about next time you and Matty are having relations, my hand and I could also have relations in the corn—”

“No.” Matty’s fist hit the table, his knuckles still white. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think the guy needed to get laid. He narrowed his eyes, and I smiled. Why did I enjoy ticking him off so much? Oh, that was right. For three years, he tried to pretend he wasn’t obsessed with Britt, and once he finally got her, he couldn’t stop showing off, gloating like he was special.

“Aw, Matty. I get it. You don’t want to share. Honestly, though, I think it’s more Britt’s call than yours, considering she had to share you for so long.”

Silence.

Whoops. There I go again, saying things I knew I shouldn’t. Sometimes, I just couldn’t stop myself. Words always came pouring out of me like verbal diarrhea.

Britt’s eyes were wider than our dinner plates as she side-eyed her husband, waiting for his reaction. Oh, fuck, could I feel the tension now … It was my own fault. Even if the statement was fact. He’d left Britt sidelined for years while he sorted his own shit out, not that I knew what that shit was. Matty was a private guy.

“I didn’t share Matty. He was going through some personal things, and I merely waited until they were figured out.” Britt wrapped her hand around Matty’s and squeezed.

I raised my hands. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” I might’ve only been apologizing because I had nothing to do for the rest of the night and didn’t want to be kicked out. I still believed every word. Funny, I always viewed Matty as the mild-mannered one of us, yet here he was, looking at me like he was thinking of the most painful way to tear my limbs off.

“So, why does Sam hate you?” I changed the subject because I still had at least another hour before I’d be allowed back in my apartment, which I couldn’t blame Thea for after I locked her out last night. The memory still easily draws a smile to my face.

Britt and Matty eyed one another. “He doesn’t hate Matty. He just wanted us to have a real wedding so he could be in it.”

“Real wedding?” I said with raised eyebrows, and frowned. “There’s going to be another one?”

“Considering the only guest at the real wedding was a Britney Spears impersonator, I’d say it is important to do it again the right way,” Matty stated.

Wow, what a crank he’d become.

“Wow. So, you’re going to be married twice before I’ve even gotten married once?”

“Why is that a shock to you?”

“I don’t know, it just makes me feel old.”

“Do you even want to get married?” Matty asked.

“I’m not ruling it out, but I gotta admit, I’m really starting to feel left behind here.”

“The first hurdle is to find someone who can stand to be in your presence for an entire evening.”

“He’s got that,” Britt said, a smile forming on her lips, and that piqued my interest.

Wait a minute, was the threesome still in the cards?

“Britt’s mine.” Matty drew Britt’s chair even closer, glaring at me. Dogs peeing to mark their territory were less obvious than him.

“Well, then I guess it will just be me and my hand tonight,” I said, patting the corners of my lips with my napkin before placing it on the table. Then I took a swig of my beer and looked between the happy couple. “So, what’s next? Netflix ’n’ chill?”

It was the first time in the night that Britt’s smile faltered, and she eyed Matty warily. Okay, maybe that comment earlier wasn’t an invitation, and maybe, just maybe, I’d overstayed my welcome, but what was I supposed to do? I had an hour until I could go home, as I had no doubts Thea wouldn’t let me in until ten thirty to make a point. I didn’t want to sit outside just so she could gloat when she opened the door.

“Netflix ’n’ chill? We, uh, thought you were going home after dinner,” Britt said with a high-pitched voice. Well, there goes my dream of a threesome. Damn, Britt would look so good between us. Matty grumbled again, and I knew that was my cue to leave.

“Home?” I blew out a breath and waved her off. “Pfft. I wouldn’t call living with Thea home. Tanner maybe.”

When my eyes connected with Britt’s, I saw the smirk behind her gaze. What the fuck had I done to deserve a look like that?

“And what’s so funny, Mrs. Mathieson?”

“Nothing.” Her lips pursed in a way that suggested it was most certainly not nothing. “It’s just … the way you say her name.”

“Who’s name? Your name? Are we back to watching you in the bedroom, because I’m more than down for that? Just let me know where you want me to sit. Come to think of it, can we make sure the angle is not one where I have to stare at Matty’s ass the entire time? I want full prime-time view of your beef cur—”

“Jackson,” Matty growled. Was he always this moody? Had Olana shielded me from this?

I raised my hands, protesting my innocence.

“I was talking about Thea,” Britt said.

I frowned. “Thea? What about her?”

“See. Right there.” She pointed from across the table, almost jumping out of her seat. “You said it in this low, rough kind of way.”

“Did I?” I cleared my throat and took a sip of my beer, suddenly feeling a little hot under the collar.

“Oh. Oh, look.” She tapped Matty’s hand and tipped her chin in my direction. “You can see it too, right? He’s blushing.”

“I don’t blush.” I was feeling a little heated; however, that was from the beer I’d been drinking

“Oh, you’re right.” Matty grinned.

“I’m not blushing.”

“Are you sure?” Britt waggled her brows at me.

I looked to both sides of the room and wondered if I was imagining things. I didn’t have a thing for Thea. She glared at me with the heat of a thousand fires on the regular, and that didn’t interest me.

“I’m sure. Why has her name even come up?” I asked.

“You mentioned her, and I don’t know, I guess I always thought you had a thing for her.”

“He did,” Matty interrupted, making Britt suck in a sharp breath.

“What?”

“Yeah, Matty, what?” I asked, perplexed.

“Come on, J. You can’t hide it. We all saw it when she first started at Covey. You were all over her. Calling her Queen T and letting her eat my chips. I can’t count the number of times I found you guys at home together, giggling like you had your own inside jokes.”

“I could say the same thing about you and Britt,” I retorted.

He raised Britt’s hand, flagrantly showing off that rock again. Like I needed the reminder he was loaded.

“And look how that ended up.”

Britt swatted his hand away.

“Aww,” Britt cooed.

I waved the entire topic off.

“It’s not the same. She seemed nice at the start, but that all changed when—”

“When what?” Britt asked with an eager smile.

“Uh.” I thought about it but came up blank.

“Yeah, when?” Matty added.

Something that I’d been pushing to the back of my mind came back to me. “I, uh, guess when Tanner told me to back off.”

“He did what?! Does Thea know?” Britt stared at me, waiting for an answer.

“Why would she care?” Matty asked.

I didn’t wait for Britt’s response. “It’s not as bad as it sounds. Tanner apparently thought I was interested in Thea. Admittedly, when I first met her, I thought she was pretty cool. The minute she started insulting me, though, everything changed.”

“Wait, did she break your heart?”

“No.” I thought back to the first insult she ever hurled my way right after I broke things off with Grace after figuring out I wasn’t interested in her. It was straight after that Thea started calling me Baseball Cap and snarling all the time. It was about a week later that Tanner told me to back off his sister, as if anything would ever happen. “I wasn’t interested in her romantically.”

“Pfft.” Britt blew out a breath.

“It’s true. I’ve never been interested in having a girlfriend, and I definitely don’t want to piss off our QB1, so when he came to me, concerned I was going to break his sister’s heart, that was enough of a red flag for me to back away from that friendship.”

“Sure, that’s why you did it,” Matty added with an eye roll.

“I did. Look, I know my easygoing nature and nice-guy attitude can appear flirty, so I backed off, not wanting to give the wrong impression.”

“Aww, that’s so cute.”

“Cute? What’s cute about it?”

Britt couldn’t contain her smile. “You gave up the girl you’re really in love with to keep your best friend happy.”

“That’s not what happened.” My lip curled. Britt was all in for these love stories, but she seemed a little eager for this to become something it wasn’t.

Britt bit her bottom lip and looked at Matty before turning back to me. “I know I shouldn’t say this, but I think Tanner was right to be concerned. I think Thea’s always had a thing for you.”

I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Thea had a thing for me? I was more likely to become a rocket scientist, and considering my grades, that would never happen.

“Do you think?” Matty asked Britt, who nodded vigorously.

“Oh yeah.”

“Have you been drinking, B?”

She lifted her water bottle, giving it a little shake and making the water swish around the plastic, mesmerizing me for a second. “Nope, I’ve been on the water all night.”

“Well, then you must be high on something. Thea can’t stand me. When she looks at me, my balls shrivel into raisins out of pure fear she’s going to pulverize them.

“Your shriveled raisin balls were another image I didn’t need in my head,” Matty said.

“You can thank your wife for that one.”

“I don’t know. I think she still likes you. The way she spears the insults at you is impressive.”

I pursed my lips, mulling it over. “Mm-hm, maybe you’re right. Maybe she can’t stand me because she knows she can’t have me.”

“Yes! It’s like an enemies-to-lovers situation.” Britt laughed.

“No. No. We will never turn to lovers. Have you seen her furry purple onesie?”

“No?”

“Trust me. She does not want me to see her as a sexual being. There’s no way she’d wear an outfit like that around me if she did.”

Although, the more I thought about it, the more my mind drifted to pulling the zipper down the front and revealing … what?

A lacy purple teddy underneath?

Fuuuck.

Why did my mind go there?

Why was I now thinking about her stepping out of that stupid outfit and shimmying over to me with her curves expertly hugged by purple lace? Why was I thinking about her sinking to her knees in front of me?

I shook my head, pretending I didn’t find that image enticing.

But shit. Thea between my thighs, shuffling closer to my crotch. That would be a sight. Not just because it’d be hot as fuck, but she’d no doubt be complaining about how her knees hurt or it was too cold to be wearing so little. I smiled, thinking about all the ways I could shut her up with my cock. Yeah, sinking my dick into her defiant lips would be nice. It’d be like killing two birds with one stone.

What the fuck was that about?

Why the fuck was I getting hard at the prospect?

I discreetly adjusted my pants, thankful I had the wooden table hiding my wood beneath it.

“How much longer do you have together before Tanner gets back?”

“Just for clarification, there’s nothing together about me and Thea. We are living very separate lives. The only thing remotely together is the fact that our beds rest against the same wall.”

Britt’s smile grew, and she said, “I give them four days” all while looking at Matty.

“Nah. Jackson doesn’t have restraint. I give them two.”

I clutched my chest and stared at them with mock shock. “Oh, so that’s what I am to the two of you now? A bet?”

“Dude. You bet on when Britt and I would get together. I’m just returning the favor.”

“Yeah, but your situation was different. We were all pretty sure that you were secretly fucking the entire time, anyway.”

“Under that logic, how can we be so sure you’re not secretly sleeping with Thea?” Matty asked with a raised brow.

“We aren’t. Believe me. If I was getting secret roommate sex, I’d be in a much happier mood. I would also not be right here with you. I’d be back home boinking her brains out.”

“That’s a good point.” Britt raised her hand and nodded.

“Anyway, since we’ve finished dinner and my Netflix ’n’ chill suggestion went down like a lead balloon, I’m assuming you want me to leave?”

“You’d be correct,” Matty said before Britt could say anything else.

“Matty. Be nice. He’s our guest.”

“An uninvited one at that.”

“Okay, well, before I start a marriage dispute, I’m going to be on my way.” Glancing at my watch, I thought I’d be safe. By the time I got home, it would be around ten, so surely, she’d let me in thirty minutes early. It wasn’t like she was doing much at home, anyway. I shouldn’t catch her in any compromising situations either, considering I told her she couldn’t masturbate on the couch.

But ….

Visions of Thea’s hand stuffed down her jumpsuit came to mind, her brows furrowed as she bit down on her bottom lip, holding back the impending orgasm.

I shook that thought out of my head.

What was wrong with me?

This girl annoyed me to no end, and, all of a sudden, I couldn’t stop thinking about her.

Pushing back, the chair scraped against the floor, I grabbed my phone from the kitchen counter.

“Will you tell Thea I’ll text her to arrange lunch next week?”

I flicked my gaze back to Britt, curling my lip. “You kick me out, and now you think I’m Thea’s secretary?”

“Watch it,” Matty snarled. “That’s my wife you’re talking to.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry, Britt. You’re lucky to have a man that stands up for you. If you guys want that threesome, just let me know.”

I skirted out of there faster than Matty could catch me, snickering. Why didn’t anyone else appreciate my humor?

As I drove home, I couldn’t stop thinking about Britt’s words.

Crush on Thea?

It was ridiculous. She was my best friend’s sister. Nothing more than a girl I was forced to live with. It didn’t matter how hot she was. I wasn’t interested in her. Not now. Not ever. There was also the teeny-tiny fact that she hated me. There was no heat simmering behind her eyes. Unless she was thinking about all the ways she could burn me alive.

I pulled up to the apartment twenty minutes early, and her lights were still on, so I blew out a breath. She was still up, no doubt watching that insufferable show. Wasn’t it like three hours long or something stupid like that?

It was too cold to stay out here, so my only option was to head upstairs and deal with her snarky ass until I got to my room.

I trudged up the stairs, taking each step slowly in an attempt to make it take longer. She was probably up there yelling at the TV, only to take it out on me when I opened the door.

When I got to our floor, I rested my head against the door, hoping to gauge the mood she was in. My brows furrowed when I heard nothing. Maybe she’d already gone to bed and left the light on for me? Pfft. Like she’d ever do that.

Pushing open the door, I slowly peeked my head in, not surprised to see Baseball Wives on. There was a blonde on the screen ranting about some other woman.

“Thea?” I murmured, suspicion lacing my tone. Why did I have the feeling she would pop out of our coat closet and make me shit my pants?

I rushed past the closet and stepped into the living room, then stopped short when I saw a rumpled mess of black hair poking out of the fluffy purple blanket Thea had been wrapped in before I left.

My fingers itched to turn on my foghorn app and scare her awake. I didn’t, though. After all that crush talk with Matty, I shouldn’t. I didn’t want them thinking I cared about seeing her wide, surprised eyes as she clutched at her heaving chest, angrily saying my name.

Walking a little closer, I grinned when I saw a permanent marker on the table. Not sure why it was there, but I’d like to put it down to fate. Clearly, I was meant to draw a tiny little mustache on Thea in a Friends homage.

Grabbing the Sharpie, I quietly kneeled in front of her. Then I shuffled toward her before ever so gently picking up the blanket with my thumb and forefinger, moving it off her body.

She barely moved, and there was a split moment where I thought I might’ve correctly predicted her demise and she’d suffocated.

When she groaned and dropped her arm out of the blanket, I was surprised to see her milky skin on display.

No onesie?

My mind flitted back to when I saw her earlier, and I realized I hadn’t actually seen what she was wearing before I left. Not that it mattered.

With awe, I traced the freckles on her arm with my gaze. So many. How had I not noticed all the freckles marring her pale skin?

She shuffled against the pillows, and I froze, holding my breath in fear the breeze would wake her up.

This was a dangerous game I was playing.

Still holding the marker, I studied her, coming up with a plan on how to draw the mustache without disturbing her.

As the light from the ceiling reflected off her face, I couldn’t help but take in her features.

Okay, even I could admit she looked cute while sleeping. The angry crease between her eyes was relaxed, and her lips, well, wow. I’d never noticed how plump and pouty they were, but that was probably because she wasn’t berating me for the first time in a year.

I pulled the marker lid off with my teeth, and just as I was about to swipe her face, she took a deep breath.

My hand wavered. Could I do this? If she woke up, I’d be dead. She’d no doubt chop my balls off and eat them in front of me.

An insidious thought slipped into my mind. What if she didn’t eat them but licked them? Her pink tongue poking out of her mouth to savor my taste before those dainty little hands of hers massaged my balls.

Yeah, that would be nice.

Thea’s green eyes popped open, and she took in the situation. I had nowhere to go and was leering over her with a pen in my hand.

She screamed loud enough to wake the entire building, and I startled backward, letting the marker fall out of my hand so I could steady myself against the coffee table.

“What the fuck are you doing?” she yelled, pulling herself up. Ah, there she was again. So feisty. So angry.

Her eyes were narrowed, her chest was heaving, and I couldn’t stop looking.

“You’re not wearing a bra.” It was all I could focus on, the two tiny points raised just under her silky tank top. One I’d never seen her in before. Shit. How did I not notice how big Thea’s breasts were? My mouth salivated.

Her breathing slowed as she covered her chest with the fluffy blanket and stared at me with disgust. I couldn’t deny I was disappointed. “Why the fuck are you looking, pervert?!”

I raised my hand, waving it in front of her. “I couldn’t help it. You were right there, and they were right there. It was almost like they were trying to say hello to me.”

“Stop talking about my tits.”

For the first time in my life, I held back the question on the tip of my tongue, which ironically was where I wanted her nipples to be. Why couldn’t we talk about her breasts? They were beautiful. Or at least what I’d seen of them. Ideally, I’d need a closer inspection before I gave my full evaluation.

“You’re an asshole,” she griped before gathering up the blanket and rushing to her room.

The move might have covered her front, but she didn’t realize how exposed her back was. Namely, her ass.

Where in the hell did she get those boxer shorts, because, damn, I wanted to buy her a pair in every color. Another thing I’d never noticed about Thea. She had a thick booty on her. It was jiggly in all the right places, and I wanted to grab it, squeeze, and watch it twitch while I sunk into …

When the door slammed shut, a little thrill ran up my spine, and I wouldn’t lie, I got a little hard. Just the tiniest bit.

She grumbled from behind the door, and I dropped my gaze to my lap.

My half-mast boner was on display. Did I want to admit to myself it was because of Thea? Nope. It had nothing to do with her and everything to do with my lack of sex since she’d moved in.

That was it.

I didn’t have a crush on Thea. That wasn’t possible.