by Ashlee Price
First I fought a man with a guitar, then I tagged along on a shopping spree. It's been a long day. Not to mention that my head still hurts a little from all that drinking last night.
"I'm going to bed," I tell Steff as I walk to my room. "I have work tomorrow, so I need to get up early."
~
I'm running late.
I thought I would be the moment I glanced at the clock on my bedside table, but now I know it for sure.
If I don't hurry, I'm not going to be at the cafe in time for my shift.
I stand in front of the bathroom mirror and brush my hair in a rush. As usual, the waves put up a fight against the bristles.
"Oh, come on." I grab my hair and try to disentangle the brush from its web. "Cooperate with me for once."
"Need help?" Steff asks me from behind.
His turquoise eyes meet mine through the mirror.
"No thanks." I step back as I yank the brush free. "I'm..."
I stop as I realize something is pressing against my lower back.
Something long.
And hard.
Heat explodes in my cheeks. The brush falls to the floor.
"What the hell?"
I turn around and push him away as my gaze descends to his crotch. I've caught a glimpse of it before when he was wearing my robe, but it wasn't up then.
And it is now.
Magnificently, fascinatingly...
"Fuck!"
I shove him out of the way as I squeeze my eyes shut in an effort to blot the sight from my mind before it becomes embedded in my memory.
"Could you please wear clothes while you're in my apartment?"
I run off without a backward glance. Then I grab my things from the living room, slip on my shoes and leave the apartment in even more of a hurry than before.
I already have a feeling this isn't going to be a great day.
~
"What's the matter?" Lisbeth asks me as we wipe the windows of the cafe. "You seem down today."
"I'm okay," I tell her. "I just had a bad morning."
A terrible morning, I correct myself. I don't even want to remember it.
"What did you do yesterday?" she asks as she squirts some water on the glass.
"Nothing," I answer.
I know Lisbeth is my friend, but the fewer people who know I'm living with a guy, the better.
"What about you?"
"I did the laundry," Lisbeth says. "I'd rather have been out on a date, though."
I glance at her. "Didn't you meet someone on Tinder?"
Lisbeth frowns. "He lied about his height. I want someone who's at least six feet tall."
I turn back to the window. "Maybe you shouldn't be so picky about who you date."
"And maybe you should start dating, period," she rebuts. "You don't want to stay a virgin forever, do you?"
"Shh." I hold a finger to my lips before glancing at the customers in the cafe.
Thankfully, there are only two, neither of them within earshot.
"Seriously, do you have something against men?" Lisbeth asks in a softer voice.
"Nothing," I tell her. "I've just been busy."
"With what?"
"Working here. Writing songs. Playing in a band."
And having a hopeless crush on the guitarist.
"Oh, come on. It only takes minutes to make an online dating profile."
"And you seriously think someone would be interested in me?" I ask her.
"Well, maybe if you change your hairstyle and put on some makeup," Lisbeth says. "And cherry chapstick does not count."
I grab a handful of my hair. "Well, I wish my hair was less stubborn."
"Wearing a dress wouldn't hurt either."
I shake my head. "No thanks."
Lisbeth sighs. "A better attitude would help, too."
"I'm fine, Lisbeth." I place a hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to worry about me.
She says nothing.
"Oh, by the way, I still owe you money from the other day, don't I?" I reach for the wallet in the back pocket of my pants. "How much...?"
I pause as my fingers don't come in contact with leather.
Lisbeth looks behind me. "What's wrong?"
"My wallet. It's not here."
I must have left it on the counter or on my bed.
Shit. If only I wasn't running late.
If only I hadn't been so flustered by...
"Jess!"
A familiar voice calls to me from the entrance and I turn my head. My eyes nearly pop out of their sockets.
"S-Steff?" I rush to him. "What are you doing here?"
"You forgot this."
He places my wallet on my palm.
I frown. "How did you even know I work here?"
"I saw the logo on your uniform."
I roll my eyes. Does this guy notice everything?
"Ahem." Lisbeth clears her throat. "For someone who claims to be uninterested in men, you seem to have quite the specimen here."
Great.
"Lisbeth..."
"Hi. I'm Lisbeth." She offers Steff her hand. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name."
"Steff," he answers as he gives Lisbeth's hand a shake.
"Nice name," Lisbeth remarks. "Can I get you anything? Coffee? A sandwich? A back rub? A kiss? A bl-"
"That's enough." I grab Lisbeth's shoulders and push her aside. Then I turn to Steff. "You should go."
"Is that any way to treat a customer?"
Tom, the manager of the cafe, approaches us.
I frown. Not him, too. Can this morning get any worse?
"He's not a customer," I clarify. "He's..."
"Yeah. Who is he?" Lisbeth puts her hands on her hips. "Because I'd sure like to know."
Shit. Lisbeth and Tom are both waiting for an explanation.
"He's my..."
"I'm her new roommate," Steff explains before I can. "I just dropped off her wallet because she left it at the apartment."
I glare at him.
"Your new roommate?" Lisbeth's jaw drops. She turns to me. "You're living with him?"
"Yeah," I agree since I'm left with no other choice. "But you don't have to be jealous or worried that I've become promiscuous or anything."
Tom doesn't seem to believe me.
Quick, Jess. Think of something.
I can't say Steff is my cousin. I've already told Lisbeth about my cousins, and I can't just add one now.
What can I say?
Only one thing comes to mind.
I grab Steff's arm and give Lisbeth and Tom a wide smile. "After all, he's gay."
Chapter 4
Steff
Huh?
I glance at Jess from beneath raised eyebrows.
Where did that come from?
"No way!" Lisbeth gasps. "It can't be true."
She looks at me hopefully.
"But it is. Right, Steff?"
Jess squeezes my arm almost painfully before turning to me with her fake smile. It vanishes just long enough for her to glare at me in warning.
Fine. Fine. I get the hint.
I rub the back of my neck. "Jess is right. I'm afraid it's true."
Tom looks at me in surprise, then walks away with his eyebrows still crinkled. Lisbeth sticks out her lower lip as she stares at me. Her eyes look like they're about to well up.
"I'm... sorry?" I tell her.
"Now, now, don't cry." Jess pats Lisbeth's shoulder.
She turns to me. "You really should leave."
"Okay." I scratch my neck. "By the way, about what happened this morning..."
"Shush," Jess scolds with another glare.
I sigh as I watch her go back to the window she's cleaning.
I guess she doesn't want to talk about that.
Pity. She looked kind of cute when she was flustered, and I would have wanted to see that face again.
Well, she still looks cute now in her white blouse, her black capri pants and her frilled orange apron.
Especially the apron.
The thought of her wearing nothing but that apron makes my crotch throb.
Jess throws another glare in my direction. I take my cue and turn on my heel to walk out of the cafe. Once I reach the sidewalk, I hold my hand above my forehead to shield my eyes from the sun and look up at the sky. The vision of the white clusters amid the serene blue sea conjures memories of home.
Home.
I wonder how Mother and Father are doing. I wonder if Natasia and Viktor are happy now. I wonder if the twins are studying hard. I wonder if Danni is bored without me to watch over.
I hope they're all doing well without me.
I put my hand down and start walking.
I'm sure they're all fine and going on with their lives. I should do the same.
I glance at my watch.
It's still early. I guess I'll look around a bit before I go back to the apartment.
~
"Welcome back," I greet Jess from the living room couch as soon as she enters the apartment. "How was your day?"
"Good, in spite of everything."
She walks straight to the counter and sets a paper bag down on it.
"I brought you some food from the cafe since I'm too tired to cook," she says. "I've eaten as well."
I walk over to the counter and open the bag. The smell of roast chicken curls up to my nostrils.
I lick my lips. "Thanks."
"Don't thank me." Jess goes to the couch and takes off her shoes. "You're paying for food, remember?"
I walk over to her. "About this morning, I'm sorry I startled you..."
"I don't want to talk about it," she cuts me off again. "Just don't ever go walking around without clothes again."
"Sorry. Just an old habit."
Her eyebrows arch. "You walk around your house naked?"
"I sleep naked and I have my own bathroom," I explain with a grin.
"Okay. Well, you don't have your own bathroom now, so don't..." She blushes and looks away. "Just always have clothes on."
"Understood."
"Good." She stands up. "I'm going to bed."
She walks off but I place an arm on the wall to block her path.
She throws me a puzzled look. "Steff?"
I place my other arm on the other side of her head so that I'm hovering over her. She leans against the wall.
"You owe me," I tell her.
Her eyebrows furrow even more. "What?"
"You told your boss and Lisbeth I was gay," I remind her. "Which wasn't very nice of you, but I played along anyway."
Jess frowns. "Well, what was I supposed to say? I couldn't tell them you were my cousin because I've already told Lisbeth I have just four cousins. Besides, it's your fault for saying you were my roommate."
"They saw me hand you your wallet," I point out. "Should I have said I'm your boyfriend?"
She blushes. "Well, you shouldn't have come to the cafe."
"I only went there to bring you your wallet! You're welcome."
"I wouldn't have left it if you hadn't barged into the bathroom like that."
I grin. "I thought you didn't want to talk about that."
"I don't!" She looks away. "You're mean."
My eyebrows shoot up. "I'm the one who's mean? You told your..."
"I know, alright." Jess turns back to me. "Like I said, I didn't have a choice. Besides, I don't know you that well. Who knows? I might have been telling the truth."
My eyes narrow. Is that a challenge?
"For all I know, you..."
I cup her face and seal her lips with mine, silencing her. I feel her cheeks grow warm beneath my palms. Her lips quiver.
Ah. They're just as soft as I thought they would be. My cock swells in response. I can feel her lip balm rubbing off on mine. I can't help but want to taste it.
Suddenly, she puts her hands on my chest and pushes me away. Her gaze drops to her feet and her hair drapes over her face as her head bows down, but through the gaps, I can see the red tint on her cheeks.
I grin. "Now are you convinced I'm not gay?"
Jess says nothing. She just runs off into her room.
I lean against the wall and let out a deep breath.
What was with that reaction? I thought she'd glare at me and shout at me, hit me even. Instead, she ran away.
Why?
I stare at the ceiling.
Wait. Could it be that that was Jess's first kiss?
That thought sends a fresh thrill through me.
I grin and run a finger over my lips.
So I stole Jess's first kiss, huh?
Well, the kiss felt better than I thought it would. Even though neither of us used our tongues, I felt the heat all the way to my crotch. The bulge in my briefs is proof of it.
I might have been teasing her, but in the end, I was the one who got teased.
I scratch the back of my head and almost laugh at my own foolishness.
Well, I'll just have to tease her some more.
I rub my chin.
Now, what shall I do tomorrow morning?
~
"Good morning," I greet Jess as I set the plate of fried eggs on the table.
She stops on her way to the door. Her eyebrows furrow.
"What's this?"
"Breakfast." I pull out a chair. "You had a rough start to your day yesterday, so I thought today I'd try to help you start it the right way."
Jess's eyes narrow suspiciously. "But I thought you said you don't know how to cook."
"Well, I thought it wouldn't be bad to learn," I tell her. "Besides, it's just eggs."
I tap the back of the chair.
Finally, she sits down and stares at the plate.
"You made two fried eggs?"
"One with a hard yolk and one runny," I tell her with a grin. "I wanted just one egg that was both hard and runny, but I guess that's impossible."
Jess blushes.
Inwardly, I give a triumphant smile.
That's it.
"And I made coffee, too." I push the mug towards her.
She wraps her hands around it. "Smells good."
"You don't seem like you need it, though," I tell her. "You look like you slept well. Maybe you had a good dream?"
She frowns before lifting the mug to her lips.
Strike two.
Jess takes a sip of her coffee and puts the mug down. I move in to wipe the drop of warm liquid left on her lip with the pad of my thumb.
"You wouldn't want to go to work with..."
She pushes my hand away, wipes her mouth with the back of her own hand, and glares up at me.
Strike three.
"I don't want breakfast after all," she says as she stands up.
She grabs her things from the couch.
"What? No goodbye kiss?"
Jess clenches her jaw and says nothing. She opens the door but pauses at the doorway.
"Oh, by the way..."
"Yes?" I ask expectantly.
She throws me another glare over her shoulder. "Don't you dare show up at my workplace today."
"Don't worry," I tell her. "I'm going to stay in and do laundry. Want me to do yours, too? I should have room to throw in a few pairs of panties or-"
Jess slams the door shut.
I let out a sigh as I sit down. Well, that's a homerun.
Was it too much, though? Should I just have left her alone?
Then again, if I had, she would have run away from me anyway. She was already on her way out the door, in fact, probably still flustered from that kiss yesterday. And I'd rather she get mad at me than avoid me.
Besides, each time I see Jess's blushing cheeks and glaring eyes, I can't help but want to tease her even more.
This is turning out to be much more fun than I thought.
Chapter 5
Jess
He's toying with me.
As I tune my guitar behind the bar's back door just before the start of the evening's show, rec
ent events flood back into my mind and I scowl.
First, Steff kisses me just to prove he's not gay like I told Lisbeth, which I only did because I couldn't think of any other excuse. Then he makes jokes at me at the breakfast table and then touches my lips, probably to remind me of the kiss last night.
The kiss.
At the memory of his lips on mine, I blush. Then I scowl even more.
How dare Steff kiss me? Didn't he promise he wouldn't lay a finger on me?
I don't even know what's worse, the fact that he kissed me, which was only the second time I've ever been kissed-or the fact that I actually liked it.
Even now, my heart hammers in my chest and with each beat and heat ripples through my body, a heat that not even the cool night breeze that blows through my hair can seem to extinguish.
I run a fingertip over my lower lip.
This is what his kiss feels like.
"Is everything okay?" Kay asks as she sits on the bench next to me.
"Yes," I answer quickly. I flash her a smile as I put my hand back on my guitar. "I'm just getting ready."
"Good." She smiles back. "Because last time, I think you drank a bit too much."
I scratch the back of my head. "I did, didn't I?"
"And just now, you seemed deep in thought. First you looked angry, and then all of a sudden, you looked happy."
I blink. She's been watching me all this time?
And I looked happy?
"I was starting to wonder if you were going crazy," Kay says.
"Me? Crazy?" I chuckle. "Well, I think I've been crazy for a while now."
She chuckles too.
"But I'm fine." I squeeze her hand. "Thanks."
"Good to hear you're fine," she says. "Because frankly, I'm worried."
"Why?"
"Josh still isn't here."
My eyebrows go up. "He isn't?"
Josh is usually one of the first people to show up.
I glance at my watch. Only sixteen minutes before the show is supposed to start.
"Have you tried calling him?" I ask.
Kay nods. "But he hasn't answered. He hasn't sent me any messages, either."
I touch my chin. That is a little worrying.
Maybe he's with his girlfriend and something happened to her?
I shake my head. No, I mustn't think that.
"I wonder what happened to him," Kay voices my thoughts out loud.
Just then, Alice comes out of the back door.
"Is Josh here?" Kay asks her before I can.
Alice shakes her head and glances over her shoulder. "But someone else is."