“Seriously? Why didn’t you get your own apartment or stay in the dorms or something?”
“Money, B,” he answers with a wry smile. “It’s always the money.”
“Oh, right.” I cringe at myself. Money was always tight for Leo, and growing up, it was a majorly sore subject. He and Hudson roughhoused a lot, but the only time I ever saw him actually hurt Hudson was when we were twelve, and Hudson made a crack about Leo not getting anything for Christmas. Leo hauled off and punched him. He broke his nose, and Hudson never made the mistake of teasing Leo about his family’s financial situation again.
“It’s cool. That’s all behind me now. I’m a fancy pants lawyer, remember?” he jokes, and I chuckle, flopping down on the couch beside him.
“Right, the fancy pants lawyer sleeping on my couch.”
“Can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be,” he says, winking at me. My heart gives a little flutter, and my face heats. Is he flirting or teasing? I’ve never been very good at telling, which is why it was nice last night when Riot was so up front about his intentions. And, dammit, now my body is twice as hot.
“So, um, food?” I suggest.
“I’m good with whatever, just no—”
“Nothing too spicy,” I finish for him. “I remember.”
The sweet smile he gives me makes me squirm a little, like he can’t believe I’d remember something like that.
“Mind if I jump in the shower in the meantime?” he asks, plucking at his shirt and wrinkling his nose.
“Of course. For as long as you’re staying here, consider it your apartment too. You don’t need to tiptoe around me or anything.”
“Cool. Does that mean we’re going to use the sock on the doorknob method to avoid any awkward situations?”
I hadn’t even thought about Leo bringing hookups over. How long is he planning to stay here exactly? I imagine for a second walking into my apartment and finding Leo on the couch with someone, his bare ass on full display as he pounds into whoever the lucky man is beneath him. I can’t decide if I’d be more jealous or turned on. I shift in my seat, hoping to hide my growing erection.
“Um, sure,” I agree. I don’t expect I’ll be bringing too many hookups back here anytime soon. Hell, aside from Riot, Hudson is pretty much the only person I’ve fucked around with in the past few years, and I meant it when I told him last night that we need to cool things off.
“Hey, maybe after dinner we can play some Madden,” he suggests, jerking his head toward my PS4. I groan, and he chuckles. He knows I don’t like his damn football game. He also knows I’m absolutely going to give in and play with him, even if it means I’m going to complain and lose ten games in a row before he takes pity on me and lets us switch to a game I’m actually good at.
Leo hauls himself off the couch, and I pull out my phone to place an order with his favorite pizza place—extra cheese, green peppers, and mushrooms. It’s not like I’m trying to impress him or anything; it’s totally my favorite kind of pizza too.
When I finish placing the order, my finger hovers for a few seconds over the text icon, the habit of texting Hudson to come hang out almost too strong to resist. After the talk we had last night, I want to see him, if for no other reason than to prove to myself that even if we’re not sleeping together, nothing has really changed. We were best friends before sex got involved, and we can keep being best friends now that I’ve taken it out of the equation. But god knows what kind of drama might ensue if Leo gets out of the shower and finds Hudson here.
I sigh, sagging back on the couch. It’s like the second half of senior year all over again, Hudson and Leo having to be kept apart like vicious dogs while I’m stuck in the middle having to split my time and choose between my two best friends.
When I hear the shower shut off, I send Hudson a Nicolas Cage meme because I know it’ll make him laugh and then set my phone down.
The bathroom door swings open, warm, humid air billowing out into my small apartment.
“Pizza’s on its—” Words die on my lips as Leo steps out wearing nothing but a too small towel around his waist. His skin is glistening with water droplets, the dark trail of hair from his belly button downward drawing my attention. There’s the slightest bulge in the front of the towel, and I know if I let myself look hard enough, I’ll be able to make out the ridge of his cockhead. The towel knot over his hip is barely holding on for dear life, and the little devil on my shoulder cheers for it to fail.
“My eyes are up here, B,” Leo says, his rich, deep voice full of humor.
“Tsh, if you’re going to stand naked in my living room, you’re going to get ogled,” I say with as much bravado as I can manage to cover my mortification.
Leo throws his head back and laughs. “Fair enough. That can be our second roommate rule.”
“Our second?”
“The sock thing is the first,” he reminds me.
“Oh, right,” I give a weak chuckle.
He rounds the couch and reaches for his duffle bag, unzipping it and rifling through the clothes tightly packed inside it. The few boxes he had sent containing his other things line the wall outside my bedroom. If he’d had anymore, he would’ve needed a storage unit, but luckily there was enough space in here for what he decided to have shipped.
Leo pulls a pair of gray sweatpants out of the duffle, followed by a red t-shirt. Then, without warning, he drops his towel. I suck in a sharp breath and slam my eyes closed. As cavalier as I might pretend to be, I don’t think my heart can take the shock of finally seeing Leo’s dick after all these years. I mean, there’s no way it can be as epic as I’ve always imagined, right? Yes, Hudson’s cock turned out to be better than I’d been picturing, and now that I have Riot’s cock to compare to others, it’ll be a tough competition, but still.
He laughs again, and the sound rumbles through me like a ripple of thunder. “Thought I was going to get ogled if I was naked in the living room,” he teases. “You can’t get a man’s hopes up like that and then deny him the pleasure when the time comes.” He purrs the word pleasure like it’s the filthiest word in the English language. My cock swells against my thigh, and I hold up the middle finger in what I assume is still his general direction—unless he moved after I closed my eyes.
“I shouldn’t have given you a challenge like that. You’re going to basically live here naked now, aren’t you?”
“I don’t think you’ve given me much choice,” he concludes. “Your virgin eyes are safe now. I’ve got pants on.”
I snort. “My eyes are far from virgin, but thank you.” I open them and have to bite back a groan. Leo wearing a pair of gray sweatpants, clearly sans underwear, is no better than the towel. The outline of his dick is just as prominent and clearly a little excited now.
Fuck. I squirm in my seat, averting my gaze again before I do something stupid like confess to Leo that even sixteen years later, I still think about that stupid kiss. It was a bet—it didn’t mean anything to either of them—it was only my dumb ass that took something so innocent and turned it into a lifelong obsession with my two best friends.