Page 59 of The Frathole

There’s that tension, but the confidence I’ve developed from working out my mouth with him makes it easier as I lean in. She moves close, studying my expression, our lips inches apart, before resting a hand on my chest. At least I think it’s hers, until it starts pushing me back.

“Okay, okay, we get the point,” Ryan insists, forcing me away.

“What?” Gisele asks. “Doesn’t he need to practice kissing?”

“No, I think we’re good there. Right, Mart?”

“Last time you said he needed to kiss me,” she says. “Oh, I’m sorry, are you not comfortable with that?” She directs this to me, her eyes wide with concern.

“I’m actually over that issue.”

“So it’s not an issue anymore,” Ryan states.

“It wouldn’t hurt to make sure,” Gisele says, and the way she’s debating this with him, it sounds like she actually wants to kiss me, which is a first for me in a while.

And judging by the tension in Ryan’s jaw and shoulders, if I didn’t know him as the big manwhore he is, I’d say he was jealous.

He flinches, scratching at his neck like he does when he’s agitated. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess a little kiss would be totally fine.”

“Hey, man, looking good,” comes from nearby, and Dax approaches Ryan, offering a fist bump and stopping to admire his physique in his costume.

I was feeling fine until now, but suddenly that tension is backas Dax and Ryan smile at each other.

“Great job at the challenge tonight,” Dax says. “You really kicked ass with the arm wrestling. Not that I’m surprised with these guns.”

Dax rests his hand on Ryan’s arm, and my tension ratchets up a few notches. Dax would fuck around with Ryan in a minute, and Ryan’s so promiscuous, I have no doubt that given this new thing we’re discovering, they’ll hook up at some point. I don’t know why it bothers me so much. Maybe I’m jealous about how easy it is for him, like I was when I kept catching him with girls.

Still, discovering he’s interested in guys because of my mouth doesn’t mean he owes me anything, but maybe because I’m not like him, some part of me feels like he does.

“You okay?” Gisele asks, pulling my attention from the guys.

“Did you think I was doing badly?” I ask, assuming she’s talking about the exercise.

She chuckles. “No, you just seem…off right now.”

She must’ve picked up on my discomfort with the way Dax is chatting up Ryan. Not that I have a right to be uncomfortable about that. It’s not like we’re dating. Fuck, he’s helping me figure out how to flirt with girls so I can maybe have a chance with Angie, so this whole thing is ridiculous.

“I’m fine, Gisele. As you’ve probably noticed, this is really fucking awkward, and I don’t need any help in the awkward department.”

“You’re too hard on yourself. You’re very attractive, and I think you have an adorable personality.”

“Is Ryan paying you to say this? Or is it helping you with your acting?” I’m only slightly joking because a part of me feels like that’s what this must be.

She shakes her head and steps toward me. “If you’d approached me at a party, I’d be very interested in a guy like you. And I knowplenty of girls who would feel the same.”

Now my face is warm.

She sneaks a glance toward Ryan and Dax. “You know, maybe you should kiss me now. It’ll be easier without Ryan hovering over us. I think it’s making you too self-conscious.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

She laughs. “Marty, you are ridiculous if you don’t get that I’m into you. I want to kiss you.”

Not sure why that’s so hard for me to believe, especially when she can’t seem to take her eyes off me.

She creeps closer, resting her hand on my side, near the chest plate. It’s a nice sensation, and once again, I’m getting twitchy, reminding me I’m most likely bi.

As I lean toward her, I’m waiting for her to pull away or laugh in my face, but she closes her eyes in anticipation. Excitement rushes through me as I move in—before a hand against my chest is shoving me back.