Fuck, that sounded sick and twisted.
“Morning,” A gruff voice called out behind me.
Travis.
I had heard the familiar rumble of his classic truck when he pulled in but couldn’t muster up the courage to walk out and greet him.
Looking over my shoulder, I found him holding a drink carrier with two coffee cups in it and a look on his face like he didn’t know whether to flinch or grin.
“Is that a peace offering?” I asked, arching an eyebrow at him.
“Figured you were probably all up in your own head.” He handed me a cup. “Thought maybe I’d try to caffeinate the overthinking away.”
I snorted and took the coffee, shaking my head. “So, rip the band-aid off, tell me what happened.”
He took a seat on the bumper next to me and sighed before letting the silence stretch around us for a while. Finally, he put me out of my misery.
“We kissed.”
I nodded, letting his words sink into my mind as the caffeine started to hit my bloodstream. “Was it a good one?”
He groaned and widened his eyes.
Damnit.
“Well, shit.” I grunted.
“Don’t act like it wasn’t a grand slam when you had her in the equipment room all to yourself,” He deadpanned, “I saw enough to know better.”
“I’m not.” I whistled, taking another sip.
“You’re not mad?” He asked after a while, like he had been waiting to ask.
“No,” I replied instantly, and that made him blink like he wasn’t expecting it. “I’m—” I trailed off, trying to find the right words. They didn’t come easily, nothing about the whole situation did, but I leaned on the decades of friendship between us to lead the way. “Relieved? I’m relieved.”
His brow furrowed, “Relieved I kissed the woman you like? And that she enjoyed it?”
I laughed softly and shook my head again, “Relieved I wasn’t wrong. That she wants both of us.”
Silence again hung between us, but it wasn’t the bad kind.
“And you’re okay with that?” he asked cautiously, like he didn’t want to tip something over an invisible edge and ruin everything.
I looked down at the cup in my hands, fingers drumming lightly on the lid. “It’s weird as hell in a way,” I admitted, “But I don’t feel—threatened. I feel like—” I took a deep breath and looked over at him, finding his penetrating gaze locked right onto me. “Like we’re better at this if we’re not pretending it’s a race.”
Travis stared at me for a long moment before letting out a long breath, and I realized that was what he’d been waiting to hear.
“You’re saying you want to date her together?” He asked, looking for clarification.
My jaw flexed, I hadn’t said it out loud yet. Not even to myself. But the second the question left his mouth, the answer was there, solid and settled in my chest.
“If it’s what she wants,” I said quietly, “Yeah, I do.”
He didn’t say anything back, but after a long time, he held his coffee cup out to me, and I chuckled, bumping mine against his with a grunt.
That was enough.
A truce.
