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I laughed. “I’m used to cooking everything from scratch. Feeding one or two more people is easy. And you guys are better company than the last jerk I regularly cooked for.”
He leaned across the table and kissed me. “You know how to make me happy.”
“Don’t you know that saying about a man’s heart and his stomach?”
He grinned. “Yeah. It’s a lie. Everyone knows the way to a man’s heart is through his pants.”
I pushed him back into his chair. “Degenerate.”
He took his coffee cup to the sink and rinsed it. “No, no. That’s Drew. I’m the gentleman, remember?”
“I do. And I’m happy to have such a wholesome man in my life.”
Grinning, he returned to the table, leaned down, and kissed me, letting his lips drift along my jaw to my neck.
I squirmed. “Tobias? Lunch? Remember?”
“Screw that guy.”
I laughed. “I don’t think he’s the type to jump into bed with his best friend’s girl.”
“You’d be surprised.”
I leaned back and considered him. “What’re you saying?”
“You’re a very attractive woman, Zel. Tobias isn’t blind and you’re very much his type.”
I shook my head and started to question that, but his phone rang.
“Yeah, man,” he answered then mouthed, “Tobias,” to me. “I’m at Zel’s. She invited you over here for lunch.” He listened. “I’ll ask, but I don’t think that’s a problem.” He looked at me. “Okay if Candace comes, too?”
“Sure. I like her.”
“She’s one hundred percent welcome.” He listened more, then asked me, “Can they bring anything?”
“Hamburger buns and cheese. Drinks, if they want alcohol or soda. I have ground beef and the rest of the fixings. I’ll make a salad, and brownies for dessert.”
He relayed that and hung up after giving them my address. “They’ll be here in an hour. Put me to work, beautiful.”
I sent him downstairs to the back patio to fire up the barbecue.
* * *
After lunch, Candace and I loaded the dishwasher while Aithan cleaned the grill and chatted with Tobias.
She handed me a rinsed plate. “Just so you know, there’s never been anything between Tris and me.” I glanced up and she added, “I’m in a committed relationship.”
“Yeah, I know. He told me you have a girlfriend.”
“Oh. Okay. Cool.” She laughed a little nervously. “I was worried you’d think I was behind his pissy behavior.”
“Ha! No, no. I’ve known Tristan too long to blame anyone else for his bullshit.”
“It’s like that with some people.” She passed over a glass. “You just know how they’re wired, right?”
“Definitely. My friend Drew’s that way with me. I swear he sees right into my soul.”
She leaned against the counter and twisted the damp towel around her hands. “I’m disappointed with Tristan. I thought he was better than all this shit.”
