Pulling out my laptop, I retrieved my last lot of notes and started to add any pertinent information that came up in the lecture. All the while, my mind whirled and my stomach threatened to relieve me of the chicken sandwich.
It felt like a long time ago I’d worried about Ethan’s stunner of a girlfriend after I kissed him, but it turned out to be Connorwho had one. That sneaky bastard had a beautiful—and apparently lovely—girlfriend hidden in the background.
This was nothing like Laura, who was such a horrible bitch that you knew Andrew was only with her for the connections. Nope. Lacey appeared to be the full package, not showing one ounce of jealousy over the chick who’d been sharing a house with her man for weeks.
Haze nudged me when class was over, and I packed my shit up and filed down to grab my assignment. The high grade scribbled across the side didn’t give me the same thrill it would have on a normal day, but at least one part of my life remained stable.
I shouldn’t care about Connor’s girlfriend, considering I was in a relationship slash situationship with two other men. While crushing a little on another.
There wasn’t a single fucking leg for me to stand on here in my confusion and hurt feelings.
And yet…hurt I was.
Haze stayed with me as I left the lecture hall, and I found myself heading for the room where Ethan’s class was held. The one I’d missed this morning. I knew he taught another class in here straight after mine.
Students were still filing out of the doorway, so I waited a few seconds and poked my head in to find him inside. Packing up his desk.
“I’ll leave you two to talk,” Haze said softly. “I’ll grab you a tray for lunch.”
I was hit with a shot of warmth and caring for the big guy, because apparently I was just going to crush, at one point or another, on every guy I shared a house with. “Thanks, H. You’re the best.”
He swallowed roughly, and I could have sworn the slightest pink tinged his cheeks as he turned and hurried off. By this stage, Ethan had noticed me there, and I was relieved to see hiswarm smile. “Hey, baby.” He stepped closer and brushed my hair behind my ear. “You look well rested.”
Resisting the urge to press my head to his chest—this was not the time or the place—I forced a smile in return. “I’m sorry I missed your class this morning. I honestly don’t know how I slept so deeply that I missed you all leaving, but I must have been tired.”
He settled back against his desk, and there was no sign of darkness of jealousy in his gaze. “You were snuggled into Connor, and for once, both of you slept. There isn’t a class in the world more important than sleep, so we left you be.”
“Lacey’s back!” I blurted it out, because apparently I was a psychopath with an obsessive mind.
Ethan straightened, that light heartedness fading. “Lacey’s back? Connor never said she was expected back this year.”
Everyone knew about her except me. Every-fucking-one.
“Where has she been?” If he thought my tight voice was odd, he gave no indication of it.
“She went to help build orphanages somewhere in Africa, I think. It was supposed to be a gap year, but she’s not even halfway through it.”
Build orphanages in Africa…Was he fucking kidding me? The saint with a sinner like Connor. It made no sense, and yet I couldn’t deny how nice she’d appeared at first meeting. Definitely the sort who’d take on an altruistic role during her gap year.
“No wonder Connor looked shocked as shit to see her racing across campus. Maybe she’s just back for a visit.” Like that was any better; Connor still had a girlfriend, whether she lived here or not. “More importantly, why didn’t he tell me about her?”
Surely Ethan would know his brother better than anyone, even if they did have a strained relationship. His gaze was assharp and observant as Haze’s had been, and it was that factor that had me realizing I needed to reel myself back in.
I’d been letting the little fantasy world I’d built in my head with Connor cloud my judgment, and with the veil of illusion abruptly torn from me this morning, I was having trouble dealing with reality. “You know what? It doesn’t even matter. Connor and I are barely friends let alone more, so the fact he has a girlfriend changes nothing.”
Except our movie sleepovers. Last night would have to be the one and only time.
“You and Connor went through a traumatic experience,” Ethan said gently, and I hated the sympathy in his eyes. “It’s understandable that you’d bond over it.”
“We areformertrauma-bond besties,” I muttered, which resulted in a wider smile from Ethan.
“Right. And just because Lace is back, doesn’t mean you lose that bond. It doesn’t have to change.”
That was where he was wrong, but I couldn’t argue about it any longer. “I should get to lunch. I just wanted to check in about my missed class this morning and see if there were any notes I needed. Did you end up having a pop quiz today?”
Ethan’s lips twitched. “Funnily enough, the mic wasn’t working very well today, so I just let the class spend some time working on their projects. No new material got covered, and the pop quiz is Friday now.”
My heart swelled, and it was enough to douse a fraction of my disappointment over Connor. I already had amazing guys in my life, and it was just greedy to want more. “You’re the best, Eth,” I whispered, getting all emotional. “I don’t tell you enough.”
