Maybe This Time(56)

“You gonna see Zara again?” I ask, talking about the woman he went away with.

“Maybe,” he says, smiling mischievously.

I roll my eyes. “Your dick is gonna fall off one day.”

I laugh when I see him cupping himself and frowning.

“Touch wood,” I say, grinning. He looks down at his crotch again, looking confused.

I burst out in laughter. “No, I meant touch something wood. You know, when you say something and you don’t want it to happen, so you touch something wood. Like a table or something, not… that,” I point to his penis.

“Oh." Then his eyes widen with realisation. "Ohh,” he says.

“Oh, indeed,” I say, wiping away tears of laughter.

He chuckles. “You’re so weird.”

“Thank you for making me laugh.”

“Anytime. Now you gonna watch the movie?” he asks, raising a brow.

“Yep,” I say, in a much better mood now. Reid told me he loved me tonight, and I didn’t even get to enjoy the moment. The truth is, I love him too.

More than anything.

I just hope we can work this out.

Dash and Xander drop by, and I laugh when I see that my brother has gone to the grocery store and bought all the ingredients for his favourite meal. He actually brought them all to Ryan’s apartment and asked me if I would cook for him with puppy dog eyes he knows I can’t say no to. Dash looks hopeful, too, his violet eyes smiling at me.

“Where the heck have you been, Dash?” I ask him as I’m peeling potatoes.

“Around,” he says vaguely.

“You hardly come to the bar anymore.”

“Yeah, I’ve been a little distracted,” he says, looking down at his shoes.

“I’m always here if you wanna talk,” I say softly, studying him.

“I know, baby,” he says, walking over and kissing me on the forehead. “You know when I first saw you, I was gonna make a move on you.”

“What? Really?” I remember him checking me out that first day, but that’s about it.

“Sure, you’re beautiful, loving, there’s just something about you, Summer Kane,” he says, flashing me a crooked smile.

“So, what happened?” I ask, nudging him with my elbow.

“I saw how you looked at Reid, you were done for, baby girl,” he says, shaking his head at me. I blush, looking down at the potato. “I heard what happened. Didn’t see that one coming.”

“You and me both,” I say, enunciating each word dramatically.

“Well, you know where to look if the two of you break up,” he says, waggling his dark eyebrows.

“Ryan?” I joke.

“Ha-ha, very funny,” he says. “You want some help?”

“Sure, you can cut up some tomatoes for me. Thanks.”

“No problem. Don’t think I can handle any more Dynasty Warriors with those two,” he says, groaning.

I gape at him. “Dynasty Warriors is my favourite game. In fact, I’m the one who bought it!”

“That explains it,” he says, his lip twitching.

I point at his chest with my finger. “See. You and I wouldn’t have worked out.”

“Cos I don’t like that stupid game?” he asks, chuckling.

“Yes.”

“Does Reid like it?”

“Reid loves it,” I say.

“I’ll bet he does,” Dash says, his eyes twinkling.

“What does that mean?”

“It means I’m sure Reid likes anything you like, or at least pretends to. Hell, if you were mine, I’d play that stupid game, too, just to see you smile.”

My eyes flare in surprise. “That was... really sweet, Dash.”

He winces. “Yeah, let’s keep that between the two of us.”

We share a look. “Always.”





Chapter Eighteen


“I brought you coffee,” Silas says as he takes a seat next to me.

“You are a lifesaver, I really need to get this assignment done,” I say, grinning up at him. I take a sip of my coffee. Strong, just the way I like it.

“What happened to you?” I ask when I see his cut lip.

He touches his mouth with the back of his hand. “Just a scuffle.”

“Let me guess, I should see the other guy?”

He chuckles. “Exactly.”

“How’s your assignment going?” I ask him.

“Almost done,” he says.

“Lucky you,” I grumble, highlighting something in my text book.

“You seem happier today,” he observes. I haven’t seen Reid in three days, but we’ve been talking a heap on the phone. I’ve been really busy with class and Reid’s been busy with training, River and running the bar. I was in here yesterday and the day before, and so was Silas. We're kind of each other’s unofficial study buddies.