“Andrew’s still out there,” she reminds me. “I can’t spend the night with you while he’s here. We traumatized him enough yesterday with the couch.”
“Yes, but we didn’t do anything untoward last night even while he was gone,” I remind her. “All we did was cuddle. It was completely innocent. We can do that again, but don’t leave.”
“Doesn’t matter.” She shakes her head. “He’ll think we’re hooking up if I don’t leave.”
“Not likely. The walls are paper thin,” I tell her. “He can probably hear this entire pointless argument we’re having.”
“I’d invite you upstairs, but we’ll run into the same problem with Bella and Mari. God, living with a roommate was so much easier when I thought I’d be single forever.”
“Leticia, seriously, your brother will be fine.” My hands rest on her shoulders. “And if he’s not, then he’ll have to deal. It’s as simple as that.”
She takes approximately one second to think it over before giving in. “Fine. But no funny business.”
“I promise to be a perfect gentleman.” I kiss the top of her head, relieved she’s staying. “You’re the one we have to worry about.”
“Excuse me?” She huffs. “You’re the one who literally begged me to stay the night. I resent the accusation.”
“Fine. I guess we’ll see then, won’t we?”
39
Leti
Can you help me out of this dress?”
I move my hair out of the way, reveling in the sound he makes as he sucks in a ragged breath when I reveal my back to him. He doesn’t say anything, just closes in behind me and pulls the zipper down until the material falls away from my body. I shiver as his thumb trails up my bare skin, tracing against my spine. For all his talk about being a perfect gentleman tonight, somehow I doubt one of us won’t try to make a move.
And it might be me.
When I came by yesterday, I left an overnight bag with everything I’d need to stay over for a couple nights. Pajamas, a change of clothes, toiletries, and a few items I picked up at CVS stashed at the very bottom. He hands me the bag now, and I thank him as I riffle through it for fresh pajamas. As I yank my shirt out, a small box flies from the bag and falls to the floor. I nearly bump heads with Julian in my rush to pick it up before he sees.
“Hey, don’t go giving me another concussion,” he jokes as his hand closes over the box of condoms mere seconds before I can grab it. Then, as slow waves of mortification wash over me, his eyes finally glance down to the packaging. “Oh…Leti—”
“We should get to bed.” I quickly snatch the box from him andshove it back into the bag. “I mean, not for that. Sleep. We should go to sleep.”
“If that’s what you want.” I hardly hear him as I hightail it to the bathroom to change.
“Can I ask you a question?” It’s only once I’m changed, face clear of makeup, and snuggled in bed, Julian’s arms around me, that this question comes out. Through the dim light shining through his window, I can make out his furrowed brow.
I stopped at CVS yesterday specifically for those condoms. Even though Julian and I haven’t really talked about the possibility of sex that goes further than what we’re already doing, I thought it was responsible to prepare for the day it might happen.
“Um, sure,” I say. “You can ask me anything.”
“When did you buy condoms? Is that…something you’ve been thinking about?”
“I bought them yesterday. Just to be safe, I guess. I wasn’t sure if what we were doing was headed in that direction or not.”
“Only if you want it to,” he answers my unspoken question. “Do you? Want it to, I mean?”
“I do,” I admit. “Definitely not now, though, with Andrew in the other room. Maybe not even tomorrow, but I sort of thought…”
“What, Leticia?” He kisses a trail up my clothed shoulder. “What’s in that big, beautiful, scheming brain of yours?”
“After our date,” I tell him, smiling. “The third date is when you get lucky, at least in movies. Not that they’re reflective of real life anymore, and I’m pretty sure four-year gaps between dates were never meant to be accounted for, but still.”
“You trying to get lucky on a technicality?” His smirk is positively infectious. “I’ll have you know that I am a man of honor. This will only be our third first date, madam. I have half a mind to make you wait for our first third date. Or our seventh tenth.”
“Now you’re just making shit up.”
