Page 48 of Unexpected

“Whoa.” He was silent for a moment. “Okay. Sorry. I was joking. Wow, I didn’t think you’d actually do it.”

Alexis wasn’t using me for sex, right? Maybe this had started out as just a fling. But for me, at least, it was so much more.

Still, I knew better than to push her. I’d learned that lesson the hard way, when she’d kicked me out of her room. I understood why she wasn’t ready to tell Sophia we were seeing each other, but I was beginning to wonder if she’d ever be ready. We continued to have sex every chance we got, but I felt a distance between us, a coolness.

“Hey. You okay?” Hunter asked.

“Yeah.” I dug my fingers into my hair. “Just stressed.”

“What’s going on?” Hunter might act like a tool at times, but he was a great friend. The best friend.

Where to start? “Sam’s wife, Indy, called to say that he isn’t doing well.”

“Is the treatment not working?” Hunter was very familiar with the ins and outs of testicular cancer after watching me go through it.

“It’s too early to say. It’s more that he’s struggling mentally. They were planning to have kids and…” I swallowed, emotion gathering in my throat. “His sperm counts are so low, it’s been difficult to get a good sample to freeze.”

“Shit,” Hunter said. “That blows.”

“Yeah,” I huffed. “It makes my problems seem insignificant by comparison.”

“What the hell is going on there? I leave for a few weeks, and LA falls apart without me,” he joked.

“Kind of,” I said. “Though I don’t think you’re responsible for Sam’s issues or the fact that my scholarship was revoked. Not to mention, the Hartwell Agency still hasn’t found a placement for me when this one ends.”

I’d been calling Renata every week, and I knew she had to be sick of hearing from me. But with the deadline for my tuition looming, I couldn’t exactly sit around and wait. Since I’d been counting on the scholarship, I hadn’t applied for any loans. And when I’d tried contacting the school for information about student loans, I was politely informed that the deadline had passed.

While my position with Alexis paid well, it wasn’t enough to cover tuition for my two remaining semesters plus rent. And I was running out of time to come up with a solution.

“I could loan you the money,” he said, and I knew he would. Hunter had a trust fund plus his successful business, and he wouldn’t miss the money.

“I know, man. And I so appreciate the offer, but I can’t.”

“Yes.” His tone was more forceful. “You can.”

I scratched the back of my neck. “You know I can’t. I would never want to risk ruining our friendship.”

“Okay. Well, the offer stands if you change your mind.”

“Thanks.”

“I’m afraid to ask, but is there anything else going on?” he asked. “You sound, I don’t know, surprisingly down for someone who finally got laid for the first time in over a year.Shit.” He paused, and I could imagine him hanging his head. “I don’t know how you went without sex for as long as you did.”

I laughed, relieved that we were back on more solid footing. “I bet you couldn’t go a month without having sex.”

“A month?” he asked in a haughty tone.

“Mm-hmm. Four weeks. Thirty days. And absolutely no sex.” I grinned to myself, knowing Hunter would never be able to resist a bet.

“And what do I get if I win?” he asked.

“Besides the fact that you won’t have gonorrhea?”

“Please. You know I always suit up. Speaking of, please tell me you and Alexis are being careful.”

“Yes, Mother,” I said in a singsong voice. I found it ironic that my manwhore of a best friend was suddenly concerned whether I was practicing safe sex or not.

“Well, we both know you’re a bit out of practice.”