Looking for Trouble(26)
Trouble crossed his arms, and Clay knew he’d screwed up. “As friends. I’m not fucking him, but someone sounds like he might be a little jealous if I were.”
“Pfft.” Clay turned away. “I’m not jealous.” He wasn’t. Sure, he’d wanted to fuck Dylan the night they met, and yeah, he thought Dylan was sexy as hell, but he wasn’t jealous. There was feeling behind jealousy. He’d never been jealous, and he sure as shit didn’t plan to start now. “Come on. We’ll head out early. We should celebrate.”
“Let’s go shopping. I need more work clothes. I can’t afford a lot, but maybe one more pair of jeans. Then I can make you dinner. You’re not buying anything.”
“That doesn’t sound like celebrating if you’re cooking.”
Dylan shrugged. “It’s fine. I like to feel like I’m doing something for you.”
Clay thought maybe he liked that a little more than he should as well.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Dylan
They’d gotten in a bit of a routine together. Every morning Dylan would get up and start coffee before getting ready. When he got out of the shower, Clay was always at the table with either a welding or a tattoo magazine and coffee, and he made them something simple for breakfast like a bagel or scrambled eggs.
They’d eat together and chat, and then Clay drove him to work. That was the part Dylan hated because he didn’t even open his tattoo parlor every day, and on the days he did, he always went home for a few hours before heading back in. Time and time again Dylan told him he didn’t have to drive him, that he didn’t mind getting a ride. Hell, even Troy had said he could pick Dylan up, yet every day Clay insisted. And maybe…just maybe, there was a little part of Dylan that liked it, no matter how bad it made him feel.
On the days Clay was tattooing, Dylan usually had a coffee or something with Troy before walking to Clay’s work. One day he’d watch Clay tattoo, another they’d just chat, and another he’d help Clay rearrange a bit. Then, they’d either go to the grocery store or just head home, where they took turns cooking dinner. Clay went out to his workshop often, and when he did, Dylan sewed or drew designs for underwear. He never showed Clay or told him about it, and Clay never invited him into his workshop.
They spent a lot of their evenings playing with Dakota, or talking, or with Dylan buzzing around and driving Clay crazy, which was another thing he liked more than he should.
Every day Dylan told himself he should try to give Clay the letter from his dad, but every day he talked himself out of it because he just… No matter how selfish it was of him, he didn’t want to do anything to rock the boat. Yes, it was temporary, but for now, he liked living with Clay, and really, it was the best way to save money for his car, so he used that for an excuse as well.
He shouldn’t let himself get used to it, but damn it, things felt simple, steady, and it wasn’t often that Dylan felt that way.
“Hello? Earth to Dylan?” Troy said, making Dylan realize he’d been spacing off. He hated it when he daydreamed at random times.
“I’m sorry. What were you saying?”
“Do you want to test a couple of new drinks and help me decide which one to roll out first? Chloe doesn’t like my coffee anymore. She’s trying to refrain.” Troy winked at the other employee. She was younger than them, having just turned twenty-one.
“You know that’s not it. My problem is that I like your coffee and treats too much, and I’m trying to eat better.”
“I was blessed with a fast metabolism.” Dylan waggled his eyebrows at her.
“I hate you,” Chloe teased.
They were slow, so Troy pulled out a paper with different drink ideas. They made three of them and set them down on the back counter. Dylan tasted the first one, which was good but a little bland for his taste. The second had this toasted-marshmallow flavor, like summer camping trips, but there was something slightly off about it, like something was missing. The third was his favorite, but for some reason, he went back to the second to taste it again.
“I love the third, but the second has me intrigued.”
Troy chuckled. “Intrigued, huh?”
“Yeah. I think he has some sort of mystery he’s not sharing with me yet.” Okay, he was talking about the drink, not Clay, though the same could be said for both. “You know what? It sounds strange, but I think we should add some raspberry. It’s good, but it needs a little kick. Something summer-y and fruity.”
“Sure.” Troy shrugged, made the drink a second time, but added a splash of raspberry flavor. He took a sip, licked those sexy lips of his, then took another sip. “This is good, Dylan.”
Troy handed the cup over, and Dylan took a sip. The slight raspberry flavor blended with the chocolate and toasted marshmallow. “Holy crap. This is good.”
“Yeah, I’m a little jealous you thought of it,” Troy teased, making him laugh, while at the same time, pride bubbled up in his chest. “Oh, you know what we can do?” Troy asked.
“Well, apparently I can make fantastic drinks, but I don’t know about you,” Dylan replied.
“Someone’s a little cocky,” Troy replied. “But really, we can each have a special or a recommendation. It might be a good marketing angle… Dylan recommends, Chloe recommends, and so on.”