“You forgot. I should be hurt.” He put his hand over his heart for added effect, but his smile gave him away.
“Today has been a day. I didn’t even go to work.”
“What are you talking about? I drove you there,” Dan asked as he placed the wine on the counter and reached for two glasses.
Before she could explain, she heard her bedroom door open. They both turned to find Christian walking out wearing nothing but a pair of black boxer briefs and a fitted white t-shirt, towel drying his wet hair. Mallory’s mouth went dry, and she nearly forgot Dan was standing next to her. Christian froze when he looked up, obviously surprised to see they were not alone.
“Why, hello there,” Dan greeted, breaking the silence.
“I forgot it was Friday,” Mallory said in an attempt at explaining why Dan was there.
“I’m Dan. I live downstairs,” Dan continued since words had failed Mallory. “We have dinner every Friday night. But since you guys clearly have other plans, I had better get back to my own apartment.”
“No, it’s not what it looks like. I needed a shower and the only clothes I had with me are the emergency items I keep in my bagthat go along with the spare uniform always hanging in my car.” Hurt flashed across his eyes. “I can throw on the clothes I took off and get out of your way.”
Mallory was still stuck in her freeze response. Inviting him over on a whim was out of her comfort zone. Having Dan see him half naked as their first introduction was a whole different level. As much as she teased Dan about walking in on something, she should have been able to take it in stride, but she wasn’t. Her heart was racing for a completely different reason than it had just a few minutes earlier, and her skin prickled as she broke out into a sweat just imagining how angry Christian might be over the entire situation.
“No. Stay. Don’t mind her, she’s not great with surprises, and me catching you like this is definitely a surprise,” Dan, a true godsend, continued to explain. “I probably shouldn’t go into detail, but when she was going through a rough time, we started having dinner every Friday night as a way to check in. And it became our thing. I wish I knew you were going to be here. I would have invited Ian, and it could have been a double date.”
Mallory finally broke free of her panic and found her voice. “Please stay. Both of you. It’s my fault for forgetting it was Friday. I’m so sorry.”
Christian, apparently sensing her panic, made his way over to her and put his arms around her. “It’s okay, I was just surprised. You don’t have to apologize. It’s been a crazy day.”
“I’ll grab you something to throw on. I’ll be right back,” Dan said before disappearing from her apartment.
Mallory returned to the stove to stir the food before it burned. Her cleansing breaths did nothing, so she closed her eyes and recited a few of her trusty affirmations. It was a struggle to keep the memories at bay. Her ex would have been furious if he was caught in any situation that could be embarrassing. Not Aiden. Aiden was just a place holder who couldn’t hurt her since shedidn’t have any deep feelings for him. The ex who put her in such a dark place? He would have made sure she paid for her error. Christian came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, placing a kiss on the back of her neck. It was his touch that began to bring her out of her thoughts.
“You’re shaking,” Christian whispered.
She didn’t realize her reaction had been as strong as it was. It had been a long time since she was hit with the bad memories. “I just can’t believe I let that happen. I should have told Dan not to come. I’m so sorry you were put in that situation.”
Christian held her tighter and kissed her shoulder. “You think no one has seen me in my underwear before? It’s not a big deal. I’m fine. We’re fine. I’m not upset about it.”
“Even if he was checking you out?” Mallory asked, her voice rising as she began to panic all over again.
Christian laughed. “Stop getting yourself worked up. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m very comfortable with myself. As long as I don’t have to worry about him checkingyouout, we’re good.”
Her muscles finally began to relax. He massaged her neck as if he could sense her tension, which helped to further relieve her stress. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch just before her door swung open.
“Here you go,” Dan said, walking a direct path to Christian. “Some sweatpants.”
They weren’t just any sweatpants. They were gray sweatpants. Dan gave her a wink as soon as Christian turned his back to go change. Mallory waited until her bedroom door closed before she spoke to Dan.
“Really? Gray sweatpants? You might as well have let him walk around in his underwear,” Mallory whisper shouted.
Dan shrugged, then took a third wine glass from the cabinet and filled each of them. “It’s all I could find that might fit him.”
Mallory, already feeling better about the entire situation, pointed her finger at Dan. “You are a liar, and you know it. He’s here for me, so no checking him out.”
Christian rejoined them in the kitchen, and the sweatpants were even more distracting than she thought they’d be. Between the fitted tee and the gray sweats that left nothing to the imagination, Mallory was struggling to have coherent thoughts, let alone speak actual words.
“What smells so good?” Christian asked before removing the lid from the pot of sauce and looking inside.
Dan’s eyes were as wide as saucers as he watched the exchange. He took his wineglass to the kitchen island and made it a point to look from Christian to Mallory, no doubt waiting for her reaction. Mallory hated it when anyone got into her space while she was cooking, and Dan knew it. He had learned that even as her best friend, he was not allowed to interfere with any of the cooking process.
Mallory snatched the lid from Christian’s hand and closed the pot. “Excuse me, sir. Hands off.”
Christian’s mouth curved into a smirk that she could only describe as devilish. Even though she suspected he was up to something, she was still caught by surprise when his hands gripped her waist, and he pulled her against him.
