Malik slid his arm around Grey’s shoulders. “And look where we ended up?”
“Exactly.” Pecking Malik’s cheek, Grey rested his hand on Malik’s thigh.
“Oh, they’ve got you there, Tex.” Dante gave me a wry grin. “I have to say, I got queer vibes from him.”
“You did?” The corner of Malik’s lips rose.
“Stop it. All of you. He’s my tutor, and it’s against school policy for us to date. Even if we wanted to.” I had to end this conversation. I stood. “We should go to bed. We’ve got a long day ahead of us.”
With a heavy sigh, Malik said, “You’re right.” Grabbing Grey’s hand, he rose and lifted him up. “What about you, Dante? Are you staying up or going to bed?”
“I think I’ll watch some television for a bit if you all don’t mind.” Dante grabbed the remote from the coffee table.
“Goodnight then. I’ll see you in the morning. I’ll make us all a nice breakfast.” After kissing Dante’s cheek, I headed for bed.
FOURTEEN
COLTON
As I unlocked and opened the door to my apartment, my phone buzzed in my jeans pocket. Was Tex calling? Shutting the door, I slipped my phone out and Evan scrolled across the screen. “Shit.” Evan knew how nervous I’d been about meeting Dante. I’d done my best to hide that fact around Tex.
I answered the call. “Hello?” I stepped out of my shoes, flicked on the lights, and padded to my couch.
“Hey, are you still out with Tex and his ex-boyfriend?”
“No, we all went home. Tex has an early morning for the game tomorrow.” What town was Evan in again? “Where are you?” I glanced at my kitchen. I should drink some water before bed. I’d had more beers than I was used to tonight.
“Denver,” he said. “I’m dying to hear how this Dante was. Did you get along with him?”
“Yeah, he’s a nice guy.” Because, of course, he had to be if he was a friend of Tex’s. With a huff, I popped off the couch, strode into my kitchen and grabbed a bottled water from my refrigerator. “He’s damn good-looking too. I can see why Tex fell in love with him.” My chest pinched. Would Tex ever fall in love with me? He’d claimed he was falling…but that didn’t mean he was there yet.
“He is, huh?” Evan freed a soft snort. “Damn, Colton, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this jealous before.”
“Before? How about ever?” I’d had no one to be jealous of. Tex would be my first. How had I lived twenty-five years without ever experiencing love? Maybe it was another topic to discuss with my therapist.
“What did he look like?”
“He’s of Mexican heritage, so you know, he has the almost black hair and smoldering dark eyes. He had such confidence in himself.” I ground my teeth. “Not like me.” He went home with Tex. My stomach knotted into a ball. Tex would do nothing with him behind my back. I had to trust him. What they had was over.
“Colton, don’t you dare think you’re less than. You’re a good-looking guy, too. It’s about time you understood that.”
“Thanks, but…Dante was so easygoing. He doesn’t have any hang-ups about who he is.” I bit my lower lip. “I’m sure he doesn’t need to see a therapist to accept himself.”
“Maybe he has. How do you know? Did you ask him?”
Choking a scoff, I said, “No, of course not.” I drank my water. Evan was doing his best to make me feel better.
“Do you think there’s anything left between Tex and Dante?”
“Left? Like what, a romantic connection?” I thought back over our evening together. While I’d seen some affection from Dante toward Tex, I hadn’t seen Tex return it much. “No.”
“Then you’ve got nothing to worry about,” he said. “Tex doesn’t seem like a guy who’d play with your feelings.” He drew a breath. “And you’ve got some deep feelings for him, don’t you? I’ve never seen you as happy as you were on Saturday night.”
“Yeah, I do. I think…” Could I admit this out loud? My heart pounded in my ears. It was Evan. I could tell him anything. “I think I might love him.”
“Oh my God, are you serious?” He gave a warm laugh. “I’mhappy for you, buddy. You deserve this. It’s about time you let someone in.”
With warmth flooding my chest, I said, “Yes, I don’t think I had a choice with Tex. He made it easy.” Now I hoped I was strong enough to give him what he deserved.