*******
"Are you sure you don't want me to give you girls a lift home?" Dylan asked. "It's quite late already. It really is no trouble."
"No, thanks, Dyl. We'll be fine," Kris answered. "It'll be good for me to see what nighttime public transport's like from here to Kane and Jazzie's, if I'm to stay with them during my three-month stint."
"You know, you're welcome to stay here with me and Ari, too," Dylan said. "You can easily walk to work from here."
"Thank you," she said sincerely. "But I don't want to intrude on your privacy."
Dylan chuckled. "I know this apartment is not as massive as Kane and Jazzie's house, but it'll be more convenient for you, so think about it. Ari and I seriously don't mind, as long as you can put up with the constant noise coming from our bedroom. We can get pretty loud."
Ari lightly slapped Dylan's arm, giving him a mock frown.
Kris laughed. "I'm used to bedroom noises. Jaz and Kane aren't exactly quiet, either. But thank you for the offer, Dyl. I'll think about it."
*
"Let's walk this way so we can burn off more calories," Kris said to Sam as they left Dylan's building.
Sam looked at her suspiciously. "You just want to pass by Trey's place again."
Kris answered her with a shrug.
"You do remember that you and Trey haven't spoken about officially being a couple, right?" Sam asked gently.
"Yes. Why?"
"I hate to say this, but what if Trey really only wanted a fling? So when he saw you with Blake last night, he decided it was time to end it because it wasn't really serious?"
Kris was silent for a second. "Trey told me I was the first girl he'd ever invited to his place. I was also the first he'd slept with overnight since his last serious relationship almost six years ago. He said he broke his rules for me."
"Really?" Sam asked in wonder.
"Yes. So you see, even though we didn't exactly talk about it, it seemed to me like we were headed somewhere as a couple."
"You think it wasn't just a line?" Sam asked.
Kris glared at her cousin. "Are you calling Trey a liar?"
"I'm just saying it's possible," Sam said defensively. "Ari told you he was the biggest playboy she knew, didn't she? Don't playboys have lines they use on women?"
"I can't believe you think that. But just to satisfy your curiosity, let's go back to Dylan's and ask him. He's Trey's best friend, so he would know."
"Oh, come now, Kris," Sam said exasperatedly.
But Kris was already heading back to Dylan's apartment. She didn't want to admit it to Sam, but she also wanted to know if what Trey told her was the truth.
She pressed Dylan's buzzer when they got there. "Hi, Dyl. We're back," she said through the intercom. "I just need to ask you a couple of questions."
*
"We don't need to go in," Kris said as Dylan opened the door wide open for them. "Just two quick questions then I'll leave you alone."
"Shoot."
"Just the honest truth, please, Dyl?"
"Sure."
"Apart from me, has Trey ever invited a girl—apart from friends and family—to his place?"
Dylan took a deep breath. "No," he answered definitively.
"Has he ever stayed overnight with a woman?"
"Apart from you, not in the last six years."
Her face broke into a wide, happy smile. "Okay. That's all. Thank you."
"Wait, Kris," Dylan said. He regarded her for a long moment before continuing. "Trey has deep-seated reasons why he doesn't want to get involved in serious relationships. I'm not sure if he has changed his attitude on that, even though he's broken a couple of his rules for you."
"What reasons? Does it have something to do with how he sees his mother?"
"You know about that?" Dylan asked in surprise.
"Yes. He seems to think of her as a gold-digger."
Dylan stared at her, seeming to decide what to divulge. "I'm sure his mother's antics have a lot to do with his view of relationships," he finally said. "He never knew his dad and he was only eight when his mother first left him and Rebecca in the care of his grandparents to run away with a rich Frenchman. She'd done that more than once—going back to them, only to leave them again and again."
Kris' eyes watered. She felt for Trey and wished she could heal his hurts.
"He likes you, Kris," Dylan continued. "But I don't know why he's avoiding you. I'd say he's afraid of how he feels. For all his self-confidence in other areas, he has a hard time dealing with emotional pain so he shuts himself out from the sources of it. You're pushing him out of his comfort zone."
She gave Dylan a grateful smile. "Thank you for telling me."
*******
"What do you plan to do?" Sam asked Kris as they took the longer route to the bus station.
"I don't know. I just want him to talk to me so we can sort things out. You do think he has feelings for me, don't you?"
"Well, it does look like it. But, Kris, the question is how much does he care? I'm glad he feels something for you, but what if his feelings are not as deep as you want them to be? I know that's not what you want to hear, but that's a very real possibility."
"You sure know how to lift up my spirits," she said dryly.
"Oh, Kris, you know I just don't want you to get your hopes up too high only to be disappointed. You'll be more crushed then."
Kris nodded, knowing Sam meant well. Sam had always been her voice of reason, the one who showed her all sides to the story when her impulsive nature only focused on what she wanted to see. But still, she could really use some supportive words right now. Trey meant so much to her—
They just turned a corner, and Kris froze. Her heart stopped for a beat before racing painfully in her chest. Even her lungs seemed to fail for she found it extremely hard to breathe.
There was Trey, hailing a taxi. A blonde in a tight-fitting red dress had both her arms around his neck while his was around her waist. She seemed to be whispering something in his ear. Either that, or she was plain kissing him.
He opened the passenger door, his hand lingering on the woman's lower back as she scooted inside the cab. Then he got in beside her and the taxi drove them away.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Trey looked out the window. The longer he sat at the back seat of the cab, with Connie rubbing herself against him like a cat, the more his gut wrenched.
It just didn't feel right.
He'd been fighting that sensation since he'd agreed to go home with Connie, and the closer they got to her place, the stronger it got.
Connie's hand started rubbing his thigh. "Is everything okay? You've been very quiet."
He gave her a smile. "Sure. Just thinking about something."
"Problem?"
"Yeah," he said with a sigh.
"Well, in my experience, the best way to solve a problem is to stop thinking about it for a while. Then you can revisit it from a different perspective. The best way to distract yourself from it is with some good, hot sex," she said seductively, placing soft kisses along his jaw.
He chuckled. He actually agreed with her. But again, the thought of having sex with Connie made his stomach twist in protest. Or was that his heart?
"We're here," Connie announced.
"I'll get this," he said, pulling his wallet from his back pocket.
"Okay, thank you," Connie said as she climbed out of the cab.
Trey pulled out some cash and gave it to the driver. "Can you wait here for me?" he asked. "I'll only be a couple of minutes."
"Sure," the cabbie said in surprise.
He joined Connie at the front porch of her apartment building. When she inserted the key in the lock, he stilled her hand.
"Connie, I'm sorry. But I'm afraid I can't go through with this."
Connie stared at him in surprise before smiling her understanding. "That's okay. It's a girl, right?" she asked.
He smiled at her. "Yeah."
She
nodded. "Well, Trey, it's a shame. But I understand. Hope you sort it out."
"Thanks, Connie. Sorry for ruining your night."
She laughed. "Hey, you just actually made my day. I can still live in hope that a man like you is waiting for someone like me. You can't be the only one of your kind in existence."
"What kind is that?" he asked curiously.
"The ones who can only get their dicks hard for the woman they love."
He stared at her, more than a little shocked with her words. "I…um…"
Connie chuckled at his discomfiture. "Hey, whatever. Thanks for the drink, anyway. At least I had one Climax."
He grinned. "Thanks, Connie. Take care."
*******
Trey listlessly checked his phone as the taxi drove him back home. He had a missed call and a text from Dylan.
*Call me please. Important.*
He frowned with concern as he dialled Dylan's number.
"Hey, bro. Where are you?" Dylan asked when he answered the phone.
"In a taxi. What's wrong?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing," Dylan said.
"What do you mean?"
"Why did you cancel on Kris earlier today?"
Ah, damn. He didn't want to talk about Kris right now. He wanted her out of his head and this wouldn't help.
"I didn't want Kris to think I was still interested in her so I decided it was best not to see her. You know how it works, Dyl."
There was silence on the other end of the line.
"I thought you liked Kris," Dylan said quietly after a long pause.
"Sure. But the latest events had me reconsidering. It made me realise how much I prefer the bachelor lifestyle—less hassle, less aggravation." Less heartache.
"But—"
"Dyl," he interrupted. "I'm not interested in being with Kris anymore."
"Don't you even want to hear what we talked about tonight? Ari and I had dinner with her and Sam."
He considered for a couple of seconds before answering. "No. There's no point carrying on about this. If you don't mind, I'd like to drop this topic."
At that moment, the taxi driver hit the brakes hard to avoid a car that ran the red light. Trey lurched forward, swearing in surprise.
"Sorry," the driver said. "Did you see that idiot? I almost hit him!"
"What was that?" Dylan asked.
"An asshole ran the red. We almost hit him."
"Where are you going, by the way?"
"I'm going home."
"Oh. Where did you go?"
"I just left the place of this chick I met tonight," he answered, glad of where this conversation was heading.
"You went home with someone tonight?" Dylan asked, disbelief evident in his voice.
"Yup."
"Right," Dylan said with resignation. "I guess there is no point talking about you and Kris."
"No. There isn't," he confirmed.
*******
Trey frowned as his intercom sounded. He was expecting Adam and Dylan for a meeting but he wasn't expecting them to buzz.
"Hello?"
"I'm here."
"Dyl? Why didn't you just come up? Did you lose your key?"
"Have you forgotten? You told me not to use it anymore," Dylan responded.
"It was only because…well, you can use it again. Come on up."
Trey shook his head, annoyed at the emotions that swamped him. Yes, he had recently asked his friends to not just walk in. But that was only because there were days when Kris had hung around his place until the guys arrived, and they could have been in the middle of...
He forcefully pushed that thought aside and prepared himself instead for some intensive grilling from Dylan and Adam. He hadn't completed some tasks that the guys were expecting him to deliver in today's meeting. He'd really tried to get them done, but he just found it impossible to concentrate.
The guys would wonder what the hell he'd been up to in the last three days. Well, he might not have done what he was supposed to do, but he had been road-testing their latest games app. Sure, that wasn't his job, but it was something that took his mind off the woman who haunted not only his dreams but his every waking hour.
The door clicked and Dylan strolled in. "Fuck, you look terrible," Dylan said.
"Gee, thanks." True, he hadn't shaved in a couple of days and his eyes must have shown his severe lack of sleep. But he was hoping no one would notice.
His buzzer rang again. He groaned. That must be Adam. What was the matter with these two? Couldn't they tell Kris wasn't in his life anymore?
Dylan was closer to the intercom and let Adam in.
Trey turned on the coffee machine, aware that Dylan was staring at him. He refused to acknowledge the attention, knowing where the conversation would lead. He didn't want to go there.
Adam arrived and Dylan pulled him aside to whisper in his ear.
Trey frowned at them suspiciously.
"All right, Trey. Let's hear it," Adam said as he and Dylan went to get their cups of coffee.
"Okay," Trey said, "I'm afraid I'm not quite done with some of my tasks. But I'll be working intensely to get them finished." He mentally crossed his fingers that he'd be able to do just that.
"How far away are you from finishing?" Dylan asked.
"Um. I don't know. Two days? Three?"
Dylan shook his head. "We agreed we can't be late with this, Trey."
"I know. But we're not due to present till the end of next week."
"But we still have to check and double-check everything," Adam said. "That's cutting it fine."
"Sorry," was all he could say. "I'll get it done."
"Fine," Adam said. "Okay, like I said earlier, let's hear it."
"Hear what?" he asked.
"Stop bullshitting. Look at you."
He sighed his acquiescence. "What do you want to know?"
"Tell us how you feel," Adam said softly.
He snorted. "What? Are you guys going to psychoanalyse me?"
"You don't want to talk about it? If you don't, we'll leave it," Dylan said to Trey's surprise.
"Thank you. No, I don't want to talk about it," he responded. "There's really nothing to talk about."
"Okay, fine," Dylan said, as he sat on the couch. "Since you're not done with your stuff, it might be better if we cancel this meeting and let you work. We'll just reschedule for Monday."
"Good idea," Trey said with relief.
"You will finish in two days, right?" Adam asked.
"Yes. I'll work all weekend."
Adam turned to Dylan and said in a low voice. "He's not going with us tomorrow, is he?"
"No," Dylan answered.
"Where are you guys going tomorrow?" Trey asked.
"We're having a get-together at Kane and Jazzie's place for Sam and Kris' last day in Sydney," Dylan said with an impassive expression.
Trey involuntarily swallowed. "Cool," he croaked. "Say goodbye to the girls for me."
"Sure. I'll tell Sam."
"Do you want to go with us?" Adam asked.
But Dylan shook his head. "Sorry. He can't."
"Yeah. We've just established I have work to do," Trey said wryly.
"It's not that."
"Then what?"
Dylan sighed loudly. "Kris wouldn't want you there."
Trey smiled mirthlessly at Dylan's comment, his eyes hardening. "Well, I suppose that's good. I don't want to go anyway."
"Yeah, we know. You don't have to worry about bumping into her on the streets either," Dylan commented.
"Isn't Kris coming back in a few days to start working at Blake's studio?" Adam asked.
"No," Dylan said simply.
"No?" Trey asked before he could stop himself.
"No."
"Well, when is she starting?"
"She's not."
Trey stared at Dylan, trying to digest his answer. "What do you mean she's not?"
"She's not working for Blake. So she's not coming back."
"Blake changed his mind about hiring her?" Trey asked in astonishment.
"No. Kris quit."
"She what?"
"She quit."
"Why? She hasn't even started yet." Trey didn't know why he kept on asking questions, but they burst out of him without his permission.
Dylan looked at him straight in the eye, his gaze intense and watchful.
"Since Blake's studio is so close to your home and to the clubs where you pick-up, Kris didn't want to work around here anymore. She didn't think she could bear seeing you get in a cab again with another woman you're going to have sex with."
All air left Trey's lungs in a whoosh. "What?" he asked dazedly.
"That night when you went home with a chick, Kris saw you getting in a cab with her," Dylan explained. "Apparently, you had your arms around each other and Kris assumed—correctly, if I may add—that you were going to the girl's place to sleep with her. That's why I'm not pushing this issue with you, Trey. Kris was utterly devastated, and if you really don't want a relationship with her then it's better she forgets about you."
"But…I didn't sleep with Connie," Trey mumbled, his mind in a jumble and his heart beating a thousand times a minute.
"What do you mean? You went home with her. When you called me back from the taxi, you'd just left her place." Dylan contented.
"I left as soon as we got there."
"Why?" Dylan asked suspiciously.
"I couldn't go through with it," he whispered.
"Why not?" Dylan pressed.
He shook his head, unwilling to say the words to answer Dylan's question.
"You're in love with Kris, aren't you?" Dylan said softly.
Trey raked his fingers through his hair. "What about Blake?"
"What about him?" Dylan asked. "Blake might be interested in Kris, but she doesn't want him. It's you she wants!"
"I saw them at a coffee shop one afternoon," he said in his defence.
"When you saw him wipe something off her face?"
He nodded.
"Kris told us about that. That was all Blake. She told him off for being inappropriate."
Secret Moves (Secret Dreams Contemporary Romance 3) Page 13