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“Xaiden?”
“I’m sorry for dropping by unannounced, but you said in your text you’d be here for me. I wanted to talk.”
Corbin turned to me, his finger off the button. “I can tell him to come back another time.”
“No.” I shook my head. “Let him in.” He’d obviously come here for a reason. Corbin didn’t have to turn him away for me.
“Our date…”
“Do you really want to tell him to go? I can hear how broken he is. I don’t mind. Honest.” I didn’t. While I was on a date with Corbin, I couldn’t lie and say I hadn’t thought about Xaiden since we left his house last night. I worried about him but wasn’t sure if he’d want me checking on him. I guess Corbin had the same idea.
“Come up,” Corbin said to Xaiden. “I’ll be waiting at the door.”
9
XAIDEN
“I’m sorry for dropping by unannounced, but you said in your text you’d be here for me. I wanted to talk.” I sounded like an idiot. I didn’t want to just talk. I wanted to apologize. I planned on visiting Val next and apologizing to him as well.
Last night was a mess, one I created. Not only did I get weird when they were in my house, I poured my goddamn heart out and they had to bring me back to the present. Where I promptly fled.
When everything was crashing down on me, when the memories were assaulting me, I believed that was the end of the tentative friendship I was forming with them, and I had made a horrible mistake. Clarity came with the light of day. There was no other choice but to apologize for behaving the way I did. I had to hope Corbin would let me in.
“Come up,” Corbin said. “I’ll be waiting at the door.”
I already knew which number his condo was. How? Because my brother was in a relationship with JJ, who had serviced Corbin’s truck. Said service needed a name, phone number, and address on the account and bill. Was it a breach of privacy? Yeah, but I was above caring. JJ knew I wouldn’t do anything to hurt Corbin, or he wouldn’t have given me the information. I needed to talk to him. It wasn’t like I was a stalker. I knew if I asked Corbin for his address, he’d readily give it. In asking him, he could have also told me he didn’t want to talk to me again. While his text said different, my fucked-up mind wasn’t listening to common sense.
Corbin stood in his open doorway, looking more dressed up than he did last night. He had on jeans and a button-down. He smiled when he saw me, though it wasn’t as big as I knew his smile could be, making me wonder if he didn’t want me here or if I was interrupting something.
“Are you on your way out?” I asked.
“No, a night in. Val’s here.”
“Oh.” Them both being here was ideal so I could apologize to them at the same time, but then everything became clear. Corbin was dressed nicer. Val was over on a Sunday night. They were interested in each other, at least from what I gathered last night before I ruined things. Even once I was inside, I had seen them hug when I checked if they’d left. Tonight, they were on a date. I was certain of it. “I didn’t mean to interrupt. I can go.” I took a step back, being careful so I didn’t fall down the stairs from not paying attention.
Corbin reached out to take my hand. The simple way he gripped me had my knees nearly giving out. Why did his touch affect me like it did? Tears built in my eyes. Fuck, I was here for a whole minute and was already falling apart. Once I opened the floodgates last night, they didn’t want to close.
This was the side of me I showed no one. Ever. The tears I had locked down for years. I was a worried person inside a tough shell. When I stepped into my gym, I knew what I was supposed to do. Here, with Corbin in front of me, I was out of my depth.
“Xaiden, stop,” he said. “If we didn’t want you to come up, I wouldn’t have invited you.”
“Are you on a date?”
“Yes.”
I tried to jerk my hand free, but Corbin held on. It was a half-assed effort on my part. If I wanted to, I could easily break his hold. I wanted him to touch and calm me like he did last night. None of it made sense.
“Come inside,” he prompted with a slight tug on my hand. He must have seen the tears in my eyes, the ones I didn’t dare shed for fear of completely losing it. Corbin stepped closer. The rich spice of his cologne flooded my senses, affecting not only the air coming into my lungs but my entire body, stirring something in me I was afraid to decipher. “Xaiden,” he said gently. He was holding my hand now, our fingers laced, his thumb softly rubbing my skin. I was going to crumble.
Val appeared behind him and, fuck, he looked nice too. Without missing a beat, he walked to my side and put his arm around my waist. “Let’s go. You can’t stand out here all night.”
“Your date,” I replied weakly.
“Just get the fuck inside, Xaiden.” There was no heat to Val’s words. He was telling me what to do. I needed that. I needed them both to help me navigate my way through my emotions.
Corbin’s place was nice, neat. There weren’t many personal belongings. Nothing stacked on the end table by the couch or shoes near the door. It was all very plain.
“Do you rent?” I asked. Apparently, I’d lost my filter.
