Page 8 of Their Little House Tristan (Five Little Roommates #2)

Bellamy

Mondays were the worst. Someone should ban them. Altogether. Start on Tuesdays.

The problems seemed to build up momentum during the weekend and then smack me in the face come Monday morning.

That added to the distraction in my life that was Tristan, and I was grumpy as a hornet. On my second coffee. And nothing was helping.

If only bills weren’t a thing. Monroe’s rent was reasonable, especially with the safety and security we got with living among people who understood us. It was the price of my education that needed paying, mostly.

Came with the territory.

I walked in after a long day, hoping Tristan was home. We had played together a few times and watched some movies together, but neither of us mentioned a word about the other night at Chained. Not the kiss. Not the palpable attraction. None of it.

We had a good time together. I learned about the things he liked, and he seemed eager to learn more about me too.

We even helped each other with things around the house. I felt comfortable with him in a way I hadn’t with anyone else. He didn’t judge. He was kind and loving and accepting.

I had a feeling someone had hurt him in his past, but we hadn’t gotten into any conversations beyond the surface.

When I walked into my room, he was sitting on my bed, which was surprising. He hadn’t been in there yet. We had only interacted in the common areas of the house.

“Tristan?” I asked, putting down my briefcase on the chair. “Is everything okay?”

He nodded. “I wanted to talk to you.”

I took my suit jacket off and sat down next to him. His tone worried me. Had someone hurt him? Was something wrong?

Had I done something to distress him?

“Please tell me what’s going on,” I said. My heart was heavy thinking that this new friend I had, a new best friend, was upset with me.

“I was working today and… I’m getting ahead of myself. I’m so nervous.”

I put my hand over his. “There’s no reason to be. You can tell me anything. We can talk about anything. No judgment here. You are always safe to talk to me.”

He nodded. “I know. Thank you.” Tristan paused for a few moments then turned his hand and threaded his fingers with mine. “Do you remember the daddy from the other night?”

“The one who was staring at us while we kissed?” I asked. The daddy who had stood out among the rest and the only one we had even talked about.

“That’s the one.”

“What about him?” I stopped myself from coming to any conclusions or ruminating about what he might be talking about.

“I ran into him today. I don’t think he knew I worked there, but he came in and we started talking.”

Uh-oh. All promises of not jumping to conclusions went out the door. “That’s nice. Was he kind to you?”

Tristan nodded. “He was. He wanted to know if we wanted to play with him sometime.”

“Us?” I asked. “As in both?”

“Yeah.” Tristan shrugged. He was so unsure of himself sometimes. I wondered what caused that. I wished I could erase all of his fears. He was such a wonderful person, even if I had only known him for a short while. “What do you think?”

“I don’t know. What did you tell him?”

“I told him we would discuss it. He actually suggested we talk about it first.”

I blew out a breath and kicked off my shoes. “Is that something you want? Are you—have you been looking for a partner? A daddy?”

Tristan nodded. “I want one. I need one. Someone to help me take care of myself. Someone I can be safe with.”

My heart sank. It didn’t sound like there was room for me in this scenario. “I hope you find one soon, then. You deserve a good and loving daddy.”

“That’s where you come in,” he said, instantly confusing me.

“What do you mean?”

“We haven’t talked about the other night. I want to clear things up before I even make a decision about James.”

“Is his name James? He looks like a James. Strong and capable.”

Tristan nodded. “He does and, yes, that’s his name. The other night has been playing in my head over and over.”

“I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it, either. How did you feel about it? The kiss?”

A blush rose on his face. Okay. We might be on the same wavelength here. After all, it was Tristan who had kissed me. “I really like you. More than a friend. More than a roommate. That kiss. It was short and sweet, but it’s filled my dreams.”

I wrapped my arm around his waist, pulling him in for a hug. He looked like he needed it. “It’s been on my mind as well. I wanted to talk to you about it, but the last thing I want between us is awkwardness.”

“Me too. Kissing you…it feels like a dream.”

“I would love to kiss you again.” The statement, while fully true, burst from my mouth without permission.

“I would like that too.” He tore away from my hold. “But is it okay? Two littles?”

I ran the back of my hand across the soft skin of his face. “Is this something you want? Are you attracted to me?”

“I am. You look especially good when you come in from work wearing that suit.” He laughed, and the sound eased both of us.

“You look pretty cute when you get home from work as well. Would it be okay if I kissed you again? You know, make sure we still like it?”

Tristan nodded, and no more words were needed. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his, gently at first but soon after, he reached for me, tilting his head, asking for more. We kissed and held each other for a few minutes until both of us were breathless.

“I still like it,” he said, getting up from the bed.

“Me too. I was thinking about macaroni and cheese with broccoli trees and mini sausages for dinner. Would you like to join me?”

His smile lit up my whole life. “I would like that very much. Are you cooking? Because I kind of suck at it.”

“I will cook. No problem.”

He began to walk out but looked back one last time. “How about we watch a movie in my room afterward? In our pajamas?”

“That sounds amazing. I’ll come get you when the food is ready.”

“Thank you, Bellamy. You’ve made me feel so at home here and with you.”

“You’re welcome. See you soon.”

We parted ways but only for a while. I showered off the stress from the day, or most of it, and put on some comfortable clothes and went to the kitchen. The short time it took to put together dinner gave me a chance to think things over. We hadn’t spoken more about James, but at least we’d settled what was unspoken between us. Did James only want to date Tristan or me, or both of us together? Those were the things I wanted to get to the bottom of, but for now, I was over the moon with excitement that Tristan liked me the way I liked him. The way Colter and Dallas liked each other.

I knocked on his bedroom door a while later to find him in some cute jammies. He was on his tablet. “Ready to eat?” I asked.

“Yes. I’m starving. And I was hoping we could watch one of my favorite movies tonight? And then maybe one of yours?”

That sounded like a dream.

“I like that idea, but we both have work tomorrow.” Tristan looked disappointed, and it broke my heart. “We have time for one though. I can pick next time. I’m not going anywhere.”

He gifted me the softest smile. “I’m not going anywhere either.”