“What?” My pulse spiked as I gaped.
“Let me in.” She pushed past me and stomped into the center of the main room, planting her hands on her hips. “If you were gay, you could have just said so. I don’t have a problem with it.”
My eyes widened. “What do you mean?” How could she know? “I’m not gay.”
“Then why were you with Tex on Saturday night, clearly together? I saw you kiss each other.” She tramped toward me, pointing at me. Poking at my chest, she said, “I’m not blind. I saw it.”
My brows hit my hairline. “Y-you were there? At the Coach House on Saturday night?”
“Yes, I was there. My friend wanted a change of scenery, so we chose that place and…” With a taunting smirk, she said, “There you were, you and Tex and some other guy. Are you a threesome?”
“What? No.” As my hands trembled and my nerves unraveled, I strode to the couch and fell onto the end. “Evan was there. He’s my friend who plays hockey. We went to his game and, and…”She saw us. She knows.Will she report me? My gaze flicked to her, crossing her arms on her chest. “It’s not what it looks like. We, uh, we started dating after you and I stopped seeing each other.”
“Oh, really.” She harrumphed and then crossed the room to sit beside me. “If you’re dating a guy and you’re not gay…then what are you?”
“I’m, uh, bisexual.” I hadn’t admitted this to many people and never thought I’d admit it to her. Wringing my hands in my lap, I said, “Please don’t tell anyone.”
She grabbed my hand and held it. “Jesus, Colton. What sortof person do you think I am? I left you both alone last night. If I were a jealous bitch, I would have confronted you there.”
I snuck a peek at her. Could she possibly be on my side? What were the odds? “Okay.”
With her gaze softening, she said, “I just wish you would have confided in me. I wanted us to be friends.” Her lips quirked. “I knew I saw something between you two.” As her breath caught, she said, “You’re still tutoring him, aren’t you?” She freed my hand.
I could lie. No, I had to stop lying. “Yes, I am.” I hung my head, my gut twisting into knots. “Please don’t turn me in.”
Shaking her head, she said, “I wouldn’t do that either. I think it’s a stupid rule, anyway. It’s not like you’re his professor and grading him.” She scoffed. “I just wished you’d have liked me enough to break some rules.”
“Yeah?” I stole a glance at her. Had I hurt her more than I’d thought? “I’m sorry, Sara. There was something strong between Tex and me I couldn’t ignore.” I shifted closer to her. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“I know.” She huffed a laugh. “You’re a pretty secretive guy, you know that?” Her gaze swept to mine. “It’s hard to get to know you. I tried, but…” She inhaled deeply. “We had some fun during our tutoring sessions, didn’t we?”
“We did. I enjoyed your company.” I sucked my upper lip between my teeth. “Do you need more tutoring sessions?” I could accommodate her, but I wasn’t sure I’d have time to hang out with her.
“Nah, I’m doing okay in my accounting class now.” With a sigh, she slapped her thighs and rose. “I need to go home.” She glanced toward my dining area. “It looks like you were studying.”
“Yes, I was.” I stood and followed her to the door. “Why didn’t you just call me?” It wasn’t like I lived close to her.
Grabbing the doorknob, she said, “I didn’t think you’danswer your phone.” She faced me. “And I figured you wouldn’t lie to my face this time. I needed some closure.”
“Closure…” An ache floated across my chest. I hadn’t thought one date required closure, but what did I know? “Again, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’m glad you found Tex. You two are cute together.” Placing her hand on my shoulder, she kissed my cheek. “Bye, Colton. I’ll see you around.” She opened the door and walked out.
I stared at her back as she stepped down the stairs, her hair bouncing around her shoulders. “Holy fuck.” I’d dodged a bullet. But maybe I was being overly cautious. Maybe my worldview was a little skewed.It’s hard to get to know me?
THIRTEEN
TEX (TRAVIS)
Iitched to speak with Colton. I should have talked him into letting me stay with him last night. I should have woken up in bed with him and…I glanced at Malik and Grey, laughing and teasing each other at the sink while they washed our breakfast dishes.
With a sigh, I sank deeper into our sectional. That could have been Colton and me this morning. I could have prepared breakfast and then cuddled him in bed. An ache wound through my heart. It was hard as hell to wait until the semester was over.
My phone buzzed on the coffee table, and I picked it up. Shit, it was Colton. Did he somehow know I’d been thinking about him? As a grin curled one side of my lips, I answered. “Hey, how are you?”
“I…don’t know. Sara just left. She showed up unannounced.”
Heat tingled in my chest. “What did she want?” Was she trying to get back together with him? Why appear at his apartment for anything else?