There was a knock at the door, and Lucy glanced his way, trying not to let on that she didn't realize what was next. He forgot to tell her that Andy had become part of the act after the trainer started hooking up with Sydney.
"Huh. I wonder who that could be," Ryan said in a mocking tone, giving Lucy a small wink that only she could see.
He threw open the door and put a hand on his hip. "Andy?" he said in mock surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"Hey, man!" Andy replied as he casually walked in. "I thought we could get a run in before training and…Sydney?"
Ryan turned to see Sydney shaking her head as she stared down at the carpet. She looked like she didn't want to make eye contact with anyone. He was really enjoying this, and as he closed the door, he turned to see Lucy felt the same way he did. It was fun having a hot partner in crime who could roll with the punches.
"What are you doing here?" Andy asked his fiancée.
"Please don't," she replied quietly.
"Don't what? Don't ask why my girlfriend is here in Ryan McCloud's apartment?"
Ryan used to try and give Andy advice on how to make his "angry" delivery more believable. But today, he really didn't care how bad it was because it was too fun to watch this all unfold.
"Hey, Andy!"
"Hey, Lucy," he replied.
Ryan turned to her, trying to hold back the "hell yeah" and fist bump he wanted to give Lucy right now. He was so proud of her. Rolling with this whole thing as part of a team against Sydney and Andy was making this so much more fun. Seriously, that woman was so hot right now and it wasn't just because she was sitting on his couch wearing only his jersey.
"Lucy?"
Andy whispered her name, but the condo was so quiet, it was easy to hear.
"What's up?" she replied. "Hey, Ryan just made a fresh pot of coffee if you guys want some. It's actually really good."
She stood up, his jersey barely covering her ass, and he again had thoughts about what he would do with her if his friends weren't standing there with looks of shock and awe.
"For the love of all things, please put some pants on," Andy said.
"Why? Do my legs not look toned enough for the trainer?"
"No, they're just legs…and a jersey," he replied.
"And they look good in a jersey," Ryan added.
"Gross," Sydney said. "I mean, yeah, your legs do look good in a jersey, but it's Ryan's jersey."
"Damn right it is," he said proudly.
Lucy walked over to him, and he knew he was giving her a stupid smile. He knew he looked like an idiot as she stood up on her toes and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. But he couldn't help it. He was smitten, and it wasn't just because of the jersey. She was having fun with him, being a part of his world. And yeah, he was having some fun with Sydney and Andy, but he also felt genuinely happy that their secret was out and they wouldn't need to hide this from their friends.
He watched as she walked past them into his bedroom, closing the door behind her to put her pants on. He was honestly a little disappointed by that fact.
The condo was quiet and the three of them stared at the bedroom door with various levels of strange new emotions.
"So you and Lucy?" Andy finally asked.
Ryan smiled proudly. "Me and Lucy."
"And how long has this been going on?" Sydney asked.
Huh. He thought all of this was kind of going well, but he should have anticipated that question and he hadn't. What was he supposed to say? What would be the right answer that would make this sound real but not too real?
"Since June," he tried to reply casually.
