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Drake loved his friends dearly, would do anything for them, but honestly, Elijah wasn’t that great looking. He had russet-brown hair and green eyes—though Drake’s green eyes were darker—but his nose was too pert, his lips a bit thin, and his eyes, in Drake’s opinion, were a bit too close.
But Mason seemed to love the hell out of Elijah, and Drake was happy for his friend.
Gage was a different story. The guy was simply gorgeous. He’d had long green hair at one point, though he’d dyed it purple a few months back, and pale blue eyes. He was short and slender with plump lips and an amazing laugh. The kind of laugh you were positive belonged to angels or woodland imps.
Life was so unfair.
Drake was a realist. He was okay looking, with chestnut-brown hair that hardly ever did what Drake wanted it to do. His face was a bit full from the weight, and his teeth were just a tad crooked, not much, but enough for Drake to feel self-conscious when smiling around strangers.
He pulled into Elijah’s driveway, picked up his friend, and they were off.
“Why do you look so fancy today?” Elijah asked with a frown. Then he sniffed the air. “Are you wearing cologne?”
“Body spray, and what’s wrong with wanting to look like I didn’t just roll out of bed?” Drake asked.
“Touchy.” Elijah kept glancing at him. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were hot for a guy.” He turned partially in his seat. “Since I know you too well, who is it?”
Drake held out for all of two seconds. “Okay, so maybe last night after I kicked Brody out, I went to Bluebird Café and met a gorgeous barista. I think he was flirting with me, so you’re coming with me today to let me know if he is or if I’m delusional.”
“Wait.” Elijah held up a hand. “You totally buried the lead. You kicked Brody out? Good for you. Let him mooch off of someone else.”
“He’s technically still there.”
“What did you do, technically tell him to leave?” Elijah asked. “Drake, you’ve got to put your foot down. If you don’t demand he leave today, he’s only going to keep stalling. Say the word and I’ll have Mason toss him out on his jobless ass.”
“How do you know he doesn’t have a job?” Drake watched the road but glanced at Elijah.
“When does he ever have one?” Elijah asked. “Hon, he’s using you, and it pisses me off to see you go through that.”
“I just feel so awful,” Drake confessed. “Brody doesn’t have anywhere to go.”
“Do you think he feels awful when he quits a job?” Elijah asked with a brow raised. “Do you think he gives a damn that you’re the one paying all the bills and buying groceries, not to mention loaning him money?”
“No,” Drake said as if he were a child being scolded.
“I know he’s family, Drake, but you can’t let Brody keep using you like that.” He waved a hand. “Enough about him. So who was this mysterious barista?”
“His name is Ajax.”
Elijah blinked. “Ajax owns the place, Drake.” He grinned. “You’re right. He’s hot, though he seems a bit intense.”
“Intense how?” Drake had thought Ajax was intense, only because the guy might have been flirting with him. Had Ajax flirted with Elijah, too? That would piss off Drake if that were the case.
“Don’t get me wrong. Ajax is really nice. He just seems like he’d jump over the counter and beat the brakes off of you if you insulted him.”
That wasn’t the kind of vibe Drake had gotten. Maybe because he’d been too busy lusting over the guy. “I might have run from him last night.”
Elijah looked at him and then burst out laughing.
“Thanks for easing my embarrassment, jerk. You’re such a supportive friend.”
“I would have paid to see that,” Elijah said between fits of laughter. “What did he do, say hi?”
Drake slapped Elijah’s arm. “Knock it off or I’m driving you to the outskirts of town and making you walk back.”
“I would just call Mason to come get me.”
“Not if I took your phone.” Drake pulled in front of the café, his heart beat tripling. Through the window he saw Ajax behind the counter, giving someone a cup of coffee, though Drake couldn’t see who the customer was. Did it matter? All Drake could focus on was the man-candy behind the counter.
