Crap.
That is a little too close for comfort. I try to shift away, but it just moves with me. Shit. I don’t want to think about that hand wrapped around any parts of my body. How good it would feel. How good it would feel to be the one to finally have sex with Ollie.
Ollie.My best friend.
God, sex would complicate things way too much. It’s the last thing I need to be thinking about. But now that the thoughts are there, they won’t go away.
Of peeling him out of his sweater he always wears to work. Of seeing a blush creep up his cheeks. Hell, I wonder if it creeps up anywhere else.
Nope, danger zone.
I do NOT need to be thinking about that.
I need to get out of here before I can act on these feelings. Not when Ollie is tired and vulnerable after last night.
Seeing that darkness has finally started to settle through the windows outside, I extract myself from Ollie’s hold.
I lay him down on a pillow and tuck the blanket around him.
“Hunter?” He stirs.
“Sorry. I got called into work.”
“Sorry.”
I smile down at him. “Nothing to be sorry about.”
I pull his glasses off his face and set them on the coffee table. “You rest. I’m sure you’ll be feeling a lot better tomorrow.”
I turn to leave, but Ollie grabs my hand before I can go.
“Thank you for being here today. And last night.”
“Like I said, Ollie,”—I squeeze his hand—“there’s nowhere else I’d rather be. Now get some rest and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Stepping into my boots, I head outside. A cold bite of wind slaps me in the face and fuck, did I ever need that.
It helps cool every racing thought in my head. Ollie needs to go back in the friend box. Opening that boyfriend box was way too much for me.
Friend zone, friend zone, friend zone.
That’s all we’ll ever be. And I’ll be damn lucky to get to spend my life as his best friend. We’re too ingrained into each other’s lives to want to risk messing things up by turning this into something else.
Something different.
Sex complicates things. It always does.
Friend zone, friend zone, friend zone.
Now if I keep repeating that to myself, maybe I’ll start to believe it.
Chapter Seven
HUNTER
BLAME IT ON ZUMBA
“Hey, Hunter. You’ve got a customer up front.”
