“Mates,” I repeat.
“Yeah,” he says, scooting off his bed. “Jasper just got the latest update. It’s pretty sweet.”
“Sure.” I follow him out of his room, unable to keep my eyes off his bare skin. Would it kill the guy to put a shirt on?
Dane’s still watching a movie and ignores us as we head out back to the games room where Noah fires up the gaming console.
I drop onto the couch.
“Where’s Jasper?”
“Studying at the library, I think,” he says, clicking through the settings. “He has an assignment due tomorrow.”
Distracted by what he’s doing, he walks backwards and sits down, practically landing on my lap. He lets out a yelp of surprise, scooting away from me. It would becomedic if it didn’t reiterate just how straight my captain is.
“Sorry,” he mutters, his cheeks flaming.
“All good,” I reply, my jaw tightening.
Noah tosses me the controller. “You can go first.”
We spend the next hour playing GTA and trash-talking, and I slowly relax. Noah’s not a bad guy. I still don’t know what his problem was with me last year, but I’ve got to give him props for trying to fix it. Maybe we can be friends after all.
He keeps throwing covert glances my way as we play. Eventually, my curiosity wins out.
“You got something you want to ask me?” My tone is light, disguising the quiver in my stomach.
“What?” he asks, his eyes snapping back to the screen as he taps away at the controller.
“You keep looking at me like you’ve got something to say.”
“Nope,” he says, shaking his head.
“Okay.” I try to focus on the game, but my mind keeps wandering to his girlfriend. “What’s Hannah up to tonight?”
He doesn’t take his eyes off the screen as he shrugs. “Probably studying.”
“You two seem serious.” I wince at how it comes out, like I’m accusing him of something, but he doesn’t seem to notice.
“I guess.”
I glance over at him in surprise. “You’re not serious?”
“We’re just seeing what happens.”
“What does that mean?” I don’t know why I’m pushing it.
“Exactly what I said.”
I rub the back of my neck. “Right, sorry.”
“Why are you asking?”
“Just making conversation.”
On screen, he gets hit by a car and respawns in the hospital. He tosses me the controller, and I catch it, the plastic still warm from his hands. I un-pause the screen and manoeuvre our character out of the hospital entrance, jacking the nearest car.
“What about you? Are you seeing anyone?”
