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Wiggling a little, I rolled onto my back and then watched as they rocked their fists three times, and Coop did rock but Jake did scissors.
“Dammit,” Jake said with a scowl. “Youalwaysdo paper.”
“I know,” Coop said smugly. “That’s why I did rock. I get the first dance.”
Laughter swelled up in me. “It’s fine, Jake gets the second.”
“Then Archie and Bubba can fight it out for third,” Coop suggested before settling his hand on my stomach.
“Nope,” Jake said. “Archie gets the third dance, and if Bubba wants one, he can ask.”
Coop sighed, but another one of those wordless conversations seemed to pass through them.
“Guys?” At my question, they both focused on me. “What’s going on?”
“With what?” The too innocent look didn’t fool me.
“Coop.”
He sighed, then flicked a look at Jake. “You told Bubba you didn’t mind if he rode with us tonight.”
“I did…is that a problem?” They had left it to me, right?
“No,” Jake said softly. “It’s not a problem. But neither of us want you to feel like you have to do something. The thing with Bubba is…”
“Messy,” Coop supplied. “You haven’t really talked about it.”
I shrugged. “What is there to talk about?” If we were going to talk about this, I needed to get up. Before I could do more than shift, Jake pressed a hand to my shoulder.
“Hey, it’s us. We get it. Bubba was an idiot. Then you broke up with him.”
“I know,” I said, trying not to snap. “I was there.” Then my mother moved out. I’d had a great week. Just when I thought it was as bad as it was going to get, something else happened. I didn’t want to even look forward to Homecoming, despite the guys’ attempts to make it awesome. They were doing everything right, but my luck seemed to wax and wane between wow, they all like me and it feels good to be with them, to wow, my mom and everyone else hates me and my life was imploding around me.
Not really a win-win.
“Frankie,” Coop said, rising on his elbow so he could meet my gaze. “Whether you want to talk about it or not—and yes, I’d prefer you not sit on the things hurting you anymore.” The knowing look in his eyes was hard to avoid. “You also have a lot of crap you’ve been dealing with. Our job is to make it easier, period.”
“That means,” Jake said, picking up the thread. “We aren’t letting anyone do anything you don’t want to do. Bubba’s my friend—our friend—no lie. He can be your friend and you can be his, whatever you want. But you don’t have to do a damn thing you don’t want to do.”
“So, if you’re uncomfortable,” Coop tacked on. “Then you tell him no, and we’re one hundred percent on your side.”
It was terrifically sweet, and my eyes burned a little. “He’s your friend, too.”
“He is,” Jake said with a nod. “You’re more.”
A shiver worked its way along my spine.
“Dance with him. Don’t dance with him. Take a picture. Talk to him. Whatever you want, but if you don’t, then no one is making you.” For a minute, he lifted his gaze from me to focus on Coop. “No one.”
“Agreed,” Coop said after a few seconds. That came out a little more reluctant than his earlier statement.
“But you don’t agree,” I called him on it, and Coop caught my hand and pulled it up to kiss.
“Yes, I do. I just…I feel for Bubba. Doesn’t mean I don’t think he was an idiot. ‘Cause trust me, I told him he needed to get his head out of his ass. At the same time, he’s human. He screwed up. At the heart of it, I know it’s because he cares about you.”
“He just has a really shitty way of showing it,” Jake argued. “And we’re done with that pressuring.”
“He’s not pressuring me,” I scolded Jake. This time when I tried to sit up, neither of them stopped me. Leaning back against the headboard, I stared at my room. “I don’t know what I feel about Ian. It’s…a lot harder to just be his friend than I thought it would be.”
