Always Have: A Bad Boy Romance(19)

Different. A guy with potential. Fun. Sexy. He checks all the right boxes. This is definitely a good thing.

I pointedly ignore the fact that I have to tell myself this is a good thing way too often.

I was caught up at work late, mostly because I’ve been sneaking off and working on design projects during work hours. Which is shitty of me as an employee, but I’m kind of over it. My admin assistant job is not where I want to be five years from now—hell, even a year from now. The thought of quitting to go full time as a freelancer is scary as shit, but I’ve decided it’s my goal. Since I started working on Braxton’s logo, I’ve put myself out there a little more and picked up a couple of new clients. It’s pretty exciting.

My year of change is finally starting to come together.

Everyone is already at the table when I get there, even Derek. Matthew’s looking at him kind of wide-eyed, like he can’t quite believe he’s sitting in the presence of a pro football player.

I’m not going to lie, that makes me preen a little bit.

“Hey, you guys,” I say as I take a seat next to Derek, “sorry I’m late.” A waitress comes and passes out drinks, including a tall glass of Red Hook for me. I turn to Derek. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, Braxton ordered for you,” Derek says, and takes a drink of his beer.

“Thanks, Brax,” I say.

Braxton lifts his glass, and I clink mine against his.

Food comes out, and we all have a few beers. The conversation is easy and relaxed. The guys talk sports. Us girls talk about random things—work, how Selene is addicted to some show and can’t wait for the next season. She and Aubrey seem to get along great, and for once Braxton is dating someone who doesn’t shoot daggers out of her eyes when she looks at me.

The meal winds down; Selene looks ecstatic. It’s been pretty much the perfect triple date, and I know she’s utterly joyous over it. It feels a little weird that I’ve barely spoken to Derek through the whole meal, but I chalk it up to all the sex-segregated talk at the table tonight.

“Hey, you guys,” Aubrey says, out of the blue, as we’re dusting off a plate of fresh cinnamon sugar donuts. “I have an idea. My family has a vacation rental over in Leavenworth. What if we all went? It’s a four bedroom, so we’d have plenty of space, and all we need to pay is the cleaning fee. What do you guys think?”

“Oh my god,” Selene says. “I love this idea.”

I glance at Derek, wondering how he feels about it. He can’t be interested, right?

“Sounds great,” he says. “As long as it’s before training camp starts, I’m in.” He smiles at me and puts a hand on my thigh.

I force a smile. Why am I so hesitant about this? I have to admit, we had a pretty fun dinner, all six of us. There are worse things than spending a weekend with friends. And a little time away with Derek would give us a chance to get to know each other better before he gets busy with football season.

“Yeah, sure,” I say.

“Awesome,” Aubrey says. “I’m pretty sure they had a cancellation a few weeks from now, but I’ll text everyone to confirm.”

I look down at my plate and pick at my donut. I swear I feel Braxton’s eyes on me. I look up and, sure enough, he’s watching me. What is he thinking? I wish I could f*cking read his face. I’ve known him just shy of forever, and he still has the ability to hide everything from me.

I glance away. I don’t trust myself to meet his eyes when he’s looking at me like that.

***


My phone rings, startling me awake. I suck in a quick breath and grab it, noting that it’s one in the morning.

It’s Braxton.

“Braxton, what’s wrong?” I say, trying to not sound like I just woke up.

“Hey Kylie,” he says. “Sorry, did I wake you?”

“Kinda.”

“Sorry, it’s nothing. I’ll let you go back to sleep.”

“No,” I say quickly, before he can hang up. “No, it’s okay. What’s up?”

He’s silent for a moment, but I can tell he’s still on the other end. “Can I come over?”

“Yeah, of course,” I say.

“Thanks, Ky,” he says. “Be there in a few.”

I drag myself out of bed, pull on some leggings, and throw a long cardigan over my tank top. I put on some hot water for tea, wondering what’s going on with him. Coming over at one in the morning doesn’t mean he wants to hang out. It means something is wrong.

I settle in on the couch with my tea, and it isn’t long before he knocks. He lets himself in with his key. He looks a little rumpled, like he went to bed in his clothes.

He’s still the most gorgeous man I’ve ever laid eyes on, but let’s not dwell on that.

“Hey,” I say, sitting up as he comes in. “What’s going on?”

He sinks down on the couch next to me. “It’s just been one of those days.”

My chest feels tight. I know he doesn’t mean work was hard, or his car broke down, or even that something happened with his girlfriend. He’s missing his parents.

He stares straight ahead for a while, and I just let him sit. He’ll talk when he’s ready, if he wants to. He’s just as likely to get up and leave without saying anything, and never mention it again. But somehow I can tell it helps him to sit here, whether he wants to talk or not. This isn’t the first time.