Irritation danced down my spine. “Thank you for your opinion. I will file it away with the others you’ve given without asking.”
His lip almost quirked. “God, you’re annoying.”
We shared a smile.
“I appreciate you trying to look out for me, I do, but Cal and I really…we’re friends. We agreed that’s best, but even if we weren’t, I’d expect you to be nothing but nice andnormal.So, I’m going to say you asked me about a gift for Daniella when I go back out there, and you will behave.”
“Were you always this bossy?”
“Eh, I’m growing into it. Feels good. Fits me.”
“Be careful, alright? I know you. He’s not the guy for you, and the last thing I want is for you to be hurt. Because he will hurt you. He can change, but at the first snag, he’ll go back to that asshole who almost broke our team.”
I refused to judge someone on past behavior when they’d grown. Sure, Gabe meant well, and his words weren’t entirely wrong. IknewCal would crush me if I let myself continue down this path of feelings. He wasn’t my romance hero, but Istill wanted him. Even if it was just as friends. “Thanks for the warning, I’m well aware of who he is.”
“Good.”
“Now is that all?”
“More wine?”
“No, you little dog. I was planning on having one glass. One! And it’s been more than that because my tongue feels weird and fuzzy. That only happens when I’m almost drunk.”
He shrugged, not looking one bit sorry, and marched right on back to the living room with Dani and Cal. His warning couldn’t have been more obvious.Can we talk in the kitchen?Ugh. I had to come up with something plausible if Cal asked about it later.
A part of me didn’t want him to hear Gabe’s warning. It felt like betraying him, to hear someone else say the words I already knew. I blamed the wine fog for the heavy weight in my body, and I forced it away when I went back to join the group. We were having an aggressive game ofLife,as one does when the power is out. I didn’t want to get too cocky, but I was winning. Sure enough, I had enoughLifetiles to make me a billionaire, and I was not only tipsy but also smug when I won.
Lifeturned intoCards Against Humanity, then card games. Cal laughed three times, and I knew because I watched him like a hawk. He obviously gave nothing away, but the laughs made me hope he enjoyed himself. By the time I looked at my watch, it was almost midnight. On instinct, I yawned. “How is it already this late? Ooh boy.”
“I’ll get you water.” Cal got up and returned a minute later with a water bottle from the fridge. “You should hydrate.”
“You too!” I thanked him and took the cap off. He chugged his own, the tops of his cheeks a little pink. It charmed me. Was Cal Holt tipsy?
Gabe put the final game away in a closet before coming back out, arm around Dani. “You both drank too much to drive back. Stay here where there’s air.”
“I can call a rideshare if you’d rather I leave.” Cal’s voice wasn’t rude, but it was firm. “I had too many to drive. Usually I’m more controlled.”
“You were getting into the games, bro.”
“I know.” Half of Cal’s mouth curved up, Gabe smiling back at him, and I was all heart-eyed emojis. They’d bonded. How adorable.
“Don’t call a car. I have an air mattress, and the couch is great. Slept on there a few times.” Gabe tossed a green bag on the ground. “I have to work in the morning, but I can make breakfast before I go.”
Cal looked at me, uncertainty in his eyes, like he wasn’t sure what to do. I nodded, almost as if he wanted my permission, and his shoulders relaxed. “Thanks.”
“Sure thing. I gotta sleep though, or I’ll be shit tomorrow. This job thing is no joke.” He said good night, Daniella following him but not before making wide eyes at me and Cal.
I flipped her off.
But then it was me and Cal alone in their living room with a couch and an air mattress between us. A million and one questions raced in my head. He’d slept on my couch before, but things were different now. Somehow. I chewed on my lip as he handed me the water I’d set on the table. “Finish this, Elle.”
“Always taking care of me.” I smiled up at him, my heart beating fast despite the alcohol. “Walking me home, bringing me snacks, the storm, now.”
I wasn’t certain because he ducked his head, but I swore the tips of his ears turned red. A blushing Cal would kill me. Murder my feelings completely. My insides got warm and gooey, and I wanted to stare at him the whole night. Maybe say more thingsto make him get red. The infamouspunkhockey guy blushed because of me. I was drunk on the power. He took the mattress out and plugged it in. He didn’t look at me, and I knew he’d heard the compliment.
I poked his shin with my toe. “You ignoring me?”
“Hardly,” he said, all gravelly and grumpy. “Would you prefer the couch or mattress?”
