Her doorbell rings, and I start to get out of bed, but she waves her hand in front of me.
“I got it.”
Tate had the bright idea to order food before we had sex so that by the time the order was processed, made, and then delivered, we’d probably be done with round one, surely working up an appetite.
If I weren’t already in love with her, that definitely would’ve been the nail in the coffin.
She wraps her robe around her body, and I can’t help but feel a little disappointed that she didn’t just grab my t-shirt that’s lying over the back of her chair.
But as she tightens it and then walks toward the front door, suddenly, I don’t care anymore because she looks fucking amazing.
She always does, but I don’t know. Since we slept together, it’s as if I see her in a different light.
Maybe it’s because I can finally stare at her, and admire her, without the guys giving me shit because we’re“just friends.”But now, I can stare all I want.
And she doesn’t care.
She loves it.
I catch her staring at me, too, and it’s crazy what that feeling does to you.
I throw my hands behind my head, staring up at the ceiling as the front door opens.
“Jere.”
Tate’s voice echoes through her apartment, and I jump out of her bed, trying to figure out my next move.
“I didn’t know you were coming over.”
I quickly gather my clothes and pull them on as quietly as possible.
I don’t know if I’m going to try to act like I’m not here or if I’m going to go out there and let him know I’m here, but at least if I’m fully clothed, it won’t seem weird.
“I was on my way to the rink to get in some extra skating time and realized that Fletcher and I carpooled to practice today, and I left my stuff in his car.”
“Oh, well, um, Fletcher isn’t here, so I don’t—”
“I’m not that stupid, Tate.” There’s a lightness in his voice. “Fletch, man, you can just toss me your keys, and I’ll get my stuff, and then I’ll drop them back off up here when I’m done. I won’t come in, though, just toss them in the apartment so I don’t interrupt anything.”
“H-how?”
“For starters, I saw his car when I pulled in. Which wouldn’t be weird, but then you lied about him being here. So between that and the morning, it wasn’t hard to piece together.”
I open Tate’s bedroom door, walking out to see Jere and Tate both still standing by the front door.
“Are you going to go tell the guys?” I scratch the back of my neck.
“No.” He shakes his head. “Look, I love both of you. I don’t care what you guys do in your free time together. I don’t care if you’re dating or just sleeping together or whatever might be going on; truly, it’s none of my business. All that I care about is you both being happy.”
“We are.” Tate rocks on her heels. “I kind of felt like youmight know.”
“That being said, Tate’s like a little sister to me, so if you hurt her, I will fucking kill you. I might have a bad back, but trust me when I tell you, I can still take you.”
“Got it.” A shaky laugh escapes my lips. “But what about if she hurts me?”
“She won’t. She likes you too much.”
Jere pats my shoulder and then places his hand out for my keys. I drop them into his palm.
