He shook his head again.
“Do you know sign language?” Not that it would matter if he did since I didn’t know it.
He shook his head.
“So you respond using text?”
He gave me a thumbs-up.
“Good to know.”
He held up the egg carton, and his eyebrows rose as he nodded toward me.
“Do I want eggs?” I said, smiling. “I would love a couple. Thank you.”
Jinx flashed a smile, and I was pretty sure my ovaries started breakdancing.
He pointed toward the opposite counter, so I followed the motion. I saw a coffee pot.
“Do I want coffee? No. Not a fan. Any chance there’s juice?”
He pointed at the refrigerator. I took that to mean I was to make myself at home.
I ignored my ovaries’ demand to ogle his impressive stomach some more and went to the refrigerator to scope the contents. Like the rest of the house, there wasn’t much in it, but I was grateful to find a carton of orange juice. I grabbed it while Jinx produced a glass and set it on the counter.
“Is Waldo around?” I knew he wouldn’t answer, but I was one of those people who liked to fill the awkward silence with intruding questions.
Jinx pointed toward the back of the house.
I glanced outside, and it took a second to find the dog splashing in the swimming pool.
“Tell me that thing’s heated,” I said, although I didn’t look back to see if Jinx answered. “Is he…?” I laughed and moved closer, clutching the orange juice carton as I watched Waldo and Rule playing in the swimming pool. Rule had a ball, and he tossed it to the shallow end, following behind Waldo as he raced to get it.
Not in all my life had I ever seen anything as endearing as Rule playing ball with his dog.
Waldo reached the ball first, but before he could turn, Rule whistled, then gestured toward the steps. Waldo paddled over and climbed out, giving a full-body shake as he stood at the side.
It was a good thing I was watching the dog, or there was a good chance I would’ve imploded as Rule came out of the swimming pool. It was difficult enough to tear my eyes away when he grabbed a towel and began running it over the bare expanse of his chest, which had the muscles in his shoulders and arms flexing deliciously. Like Jinx, he had tattoos, though they didn’t cover as much real estate. And like Jinx, he had a set of drool-worthy six-pack abs.
Before I actuallydiddrool, I spun around and marched back to the island to pour juice into the glass. I found Jinx watching me, those arctic blue eyes moving as I did.
“Do you … do you, um, live here?” I asked, forcing my attention to the glass before remembering he wouldn’t be answering with words.
When I looked up, he nodded.
“Are you the only one?”
He quirked an eyebrow and pointed to Rule.
“Besides him?” I huffed a laugh. “And the dog?” I tacked on before he could point.
Jinx winked and smiled, so I took that as a yes.
Two smoking hot guys and their adorable dog. What more could a lonely girl ask for?
Of course, his answer spurred a few dozen questions I managed to choke down. I figured it wasn’t appropriate to inquire about what they were to one another. Brothers, friends, lovers … the options were endless. They didn’t look like they were related, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. I figured there was a good chance they were friends since they lived together, but that didn’t mean they weren’t also lovers. These days, assuming something was the best way to find yourself looking like an asshole.
“Hey.”
