Yearn A. Ellis (carter reed .TXT) 📖

ran into Spencer in the hallway and he scowled at us. “Are you two having a conversation and being nice to each other?”

Rai stuck his head around the doorway as if highly interested in the answer.

“Whatever, it’s common courtesy for roommates to respect each other’s sleep and not be disruptive,” I said.

“Yeah, common courtesy for most, but you two haven’t ever really played by those rules.” Spencer cocked his head to study us and I wondered if what Khi and I had done would have been less obvious to our housemates if we’d plastered neon signs above our heads.

“We’ve been getting along better,” Khi offered.

“Besides, I’m only making sure he’s okay with me drawing while he’s awake. I plan to be asleep well before him because there’s no way I can fall asleep with his snoring.” I shrugged and continued toward our room.

Khi snorted. “Whatever. I don’t snore.”

“You do,” I quipped over my shoulder as I entered our room.

I found myself spun around and slammed against the door, Khi pressed against me. “I don’t.” A wicked hot grin teased his lips just moments before he crushed his mouth against mine.

Turned out, no movie was watched and no sketches were drawn before bed that night. And I was so spent and relaxed after our mutual orgasms that I had zero difficulty falling asleep despite the fact that Khi most definitely had a snoring issue.

Ten

Khi

Shit.

Shit.

Shit.

No, for real.

Fucking shit.

What had I gotten myself into?

Sex with Dre was amazing, no complaints there.

What I wasn’t prepared for was the unexpected connection.

What the fuck was up with the cuddling? Why did I wake up excited to spend a shift with him? Just sex wasn’t supposed to feel like this, was it?

My head was a jumbled mess when I walked into the kitchen.

“Coffee?” Dre asked with a hopeful smile.

“No,” I bit out and rushed from the house. But not before I saw the wounded look cross over Dre’s face.

Fucking hell.

I was an asshole of epic proportions. I had no clue how to do this. How did I go from hating the guy for a decade to fucking him and not despising the time spent with him? I’d stupidly thought I could fuck him and still keep him at a distance, but I’d been wrong.

So very wrong.

My feelings toward Dre had changed, but I didn’t know how to handle this alternate universe. Could I just move from hating him to liking him that easily? Was that even allowed?

Seems like you’ve done it, dumbass. Why make such a big deal out of it?

But I’d sworn I’d avoid entanglements after the catastrophe with Blaine and it wasn’t fair to put Dre in the middle of my fucked-up life.

Get over yourself. Your life isn’t that fucked-up. You were cheated on by a lying, drunk asshole. You’re better off and you know it. You’ve got a good job that you love, family and friends, and a home. Don’t use that as an excuse to push Dre away.

But the opposite of pushing Dre away was the part I wasn’t sure about—the part that scared the fuck out of me. There was still way too much of our past between us. Maybe we didn’t hate each other anymore, but it wasn’t like we had anything in common. Not like we had a future.

Right?

Sure, you only share the same friends, work together, and live together.

I huffed as I tossed my bag onto my bed in the bunkroom. Whatever.

When the door opened behind me, I tensed.

“We need to talk,” Dre announced as the click of the door locking filled the room.

“Look, I…”

“No, you look.” Dre stepped close, crowding me against the wall. “We said we weren’t going to let this get weird. But the moment we see each other in the light of day, you retreat back to the aloof asshole.”

I tried to interrupt, but Dre kept on. “I get it, it was just a damn cup of coffee, but you had your dick buried in my ass last night and I kinda thought things had changed just a bit. I’m not asking for a proposal, I don’t expect a promise of forever,” Dre’s voice caught. “But I like you—as weird as it is to wrap my head around after all these years—and I don’t think it’s a damn sin to do something nice for people you like.”

“I’m sorry. I’m not sure how to handle all of this. Blaine fucked me up and I can’t go through that again.”

Dre scowled and poked a finger into my chest. “Is there anything about me or what we’re doing that makes you feel like you’re back with Blaine?”

I closed my eyes and sighed. “No, you’re nothing like him. But I swore I wouldn’t put myself back in a vulnerable position. Last night, I was hit with feelings I hadn’t experienced in a very long time and this morning, I didn’t handle them well.” Feelings that, if I was being completely honest, I hadn’t experienced with anyone else. Ever.

“We’re fucking, that’s all, remember? I’m not a drunk, I’m not a gambler, I’m not a cheater. I’d like to think we can enjoy our time together and maybe grow our friendship.”

I tipped up his chin. “I’m sorry for being an ass.” I wasn’t sure how the hell I was going to adjust to this new situation, but the draw I felt toward Dre was strong enough I wasn’t willing to let it go just yet.

“I know we said it wouldn’t be weird, but I think it’s inevitable. How about we agree to talk about it when things are feeling weird and make the best of whatever time we’ve got?” Something crossed Dre’s face—sadness? I wasn’t sure, but I wanted to take the feeling away from him.

Dipping my head, I brushed my lips over his and sighed when Dre’s arms wrapped around my waist. “We’ve got like twenty minutes before our shift starts,” I suggested, knowing he was referring to time in the greater sense of the word, but not