“Nico definitely swings our way.”Our way. He puts a real emphasis on the wordour. “Go on, ask me how I know.”
“I don’t care, Oak.” Donovan rolls his eyes as he says it, cutting me an apologetic look.
“Ask me,” Oakley taunts in a singsong voice. My eyes bounce between the two of them in a strange mixture of curiosity and irritation. “Ask me.”
“Fine. How do you know that Nico likes dick?”
Oakley steps forward and nearly presses himself to Donovan’s chest as he speaks in a hushed tone. “Because he took minerealnicely the other night.”
Donovan’s eyes widen and the towel at his hips slips again as he moves to shove Oakley.
I can’t tell if he’s flirting, or trying to make Donovan jealous… or trying to make me mad. But I do know I don’t wantmy boyfriendstanding naked in the room while Mr. Pretty Face is grinning like an asshole and talking about fucking his crush. I’m not a saint.
“Oh my God, Donovan, go put some pants on before I take these off and hand them to you.” Donovan lets out a short laugh, then turns and jogs to his room when I start untying the string at my waist.
I don’t know if he just doesn’t want me to get cold, or if he knows I’ll flash Oakley my dick if I take them off because my underwear is still on his bedroom floor.
Oakley waits until Donovan has disappeared to advance on me. I’m pretty sure he’s used to his size being intimidating, or maybe he’s just used to people wilting around him because of his presence or fame.
Whatever it is, I don’t budge. I just tip my chin up so I can stare into his dark eyes as they narrow.
“What’s wrong with you?”
There’s no pulling punches, no pretending to charm me for an answer. Does he know it won’t work, or is he really justso protective of Donovan that he can’t manage to pull on the façade?
I easily slip on my mask, offering him a blank smile as I innocently take a few steps away, like he isn’t trying to back me into a corner.
Of course, I’m not being casual. My eyes are locked on the little table Donovan has by his entryway and the letter opener he keeps there. It’s shaped like a sword, and even though it’s pretty dull, I know a few vital places I could slip it that would be effective.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The answer is bullshit and we both know it. Oakley’s nostrils flare and he steps forward again. The flat of my palm slides across the cool tabletop, and I wonder how I can spin this to make it seem like an accident.
If I say Oakley attacked me, will Donovan believe me?
“I can tell when I’m looking at a monster,” he hisses under his breath, and I can’t help myself.
My head cocks to the side as I look him up and down.
“Is it because you see one every day in the mirror?”
Oakley’s eyes narrow, and he shifts forward at the same time my hand moves for the letter opener. I’ll have to figure out how to explain it later, because I can see it in his eyes.
He’s just as empty inside as I am.
“Uh, am I interrupting something?” Donovan’s voice makes me take my hand off the tabletop and away from the letter opener I was inching toward. It’s not smart, anyway… especially not when I watch Oakley’s eyes track the movement like he knew what I was doing.
There’s something off about him. People don’tknowmy intentions—the only reason he would is if he’d had the same intentions himself. And like a mirror to my feigned innocence,his body relaxes as he turns with that charming smile back on his face.
“No. Just getting to know your friend,” I offer, turning to look at Donovan. He has pants on now, at least. As much as I would have enjoyed him staying naked… it’s not like I could have stayed much longer anyway. I have a million things to do today.
Up until Oakley got here, I was fine with leaving Donovan to do them, but now…
My eyes narrow as I look between the two of them. I don’t like the way Oakley is looking at me, like he’s trying to see through me. This is why I don’t get close to people—I’ve never pretended that I’m a fantastic actor, or that I’m good at hiding the darkness inside me. I’ve been nothing but honest with Donovan, even if that honesty is edged with lies of omission that might as well be just as bad.
He’s not an idiot. If he wanted to see through my bullshit, I think he could. Sometimes when he looks at me, I think he does… and I think he sees me. The real me.
Or maybe the person I could have been if my life had never been shattered.
I just know that the way Oakley is looking at me threatens to fuck it all up… and it’s a problem, because I don’t think I can kill him and keep Donovan. If the little interaction we nearly had tells me anything, it’s that the two of us being alone together won’t end well.
