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He nods as though I’ve said something wise. “I’m glad we agree. So we’re friends who exclusively sleep together and have very warm feelings for each other and want to spend time together away from other friends.”
I like being alone with him, so I don’t see a problem with that. “Yes.”
I can see he’s amused with me. “All right then. That’s what we’re calling it.”
I know what he wants me to say, but that feels like too much right now. I can’t be his girlfriend. I’m not sure I can be anyone’s girlfriend ever again. It would be so easy to fall into a relationship with Heath. It would be warm and comforting, and I have to remember that if we don’t get funding for this project, it will likely all fall apart. The work is the base for the relationship, and I know all too well how quickly that can change.
“I think so. Do we have to call it anything at all?” I ask.
His expression goes serious, and he reaches over to grab my hand, lacing our fingers together. “We don’t have to call us anything at all beyond friends and business partners. The rest of it is our business. Though I’m going to warn you my grandmother will know.”
The thought of Lydia knowing we’ve had sex kind of freaks me out. I hadn’t thought about that. “She won’t. We’ll be very careful around her. We’ll maintain a professional demeanor at work.”
“She’ll know, and we haven’t kept much of a professional demeanor up to this point.” He leans over and brings my hand up, kissing it. “She’s got a sex radar you won’t believe. I lost my virginity to Veronica Garcia my senior year of high school at band camp. My grandmother took one look at me when I got back and asked if I’d at least been smart enough to wear a condom.”
I snort at the thought. “She was playing the odds there. Was Veronica your girlfriend?”
He shrugs. “Yeah, but she had been for over a year at that time. How did Nonna know we’d done the deed?”
He was giving her too much mystical power. “Because you were dumb teens, and that’s what dumbass teens do at band camp. Although mine was a robotics competition in Chicago. He was on the opposing team, so it was an enemies-to-lovers tale. We were running high on the adrenaline of creating robots that did very limited tasks, and then suddenly I was a woman.”
He’s back to smiling. “Was that your first long-distance relationship?”
“Oh, no. See, I’d actually been thinking about sex for a long time, and like everything I do I read up and studied and I had a few notes for him,” I admit.
He chuckles. “Oh, baby, did you ruin him for life?”
It had not been my finest moment, but I think a little critical input is important to every successful endeavor, and that one was not so much on the successful side. “Probably not. Maybe. Although I did hear a couple of years later that he spends a lot of time on 4chan.”
Heath’s head drops back as he laughs and tugs me close. “You got any notes for me?”
Not a single one. I cuddle close. I like the sound of his heartbeat. “You get an A plus from me. I think you’re ready to move to beta testing. We should really practice so we get it just right.”
“You’ll have to stay if you want to practice,” he whispers.
I’m too tired to pretend that doesn’t sound like the best idea ever. “Okay.”
There’s a knock on the door and then Darnell is talking. “Heath, your drama has yet another player. I do not know what is happening, but you have to start charging for crying white chicks.”
Heath frowns and eases out of bed. He goes to the door, opening it slightly. “Who would come by… Hey, Harper. Anika.”
Now I’m the one sitting up, and I realize it’s been hours since I checked my phone. I scramble across the bed. I’d turned it off earlier because I didn’t want to think about calling either one of them. Now I turn it back on and sure enough, there’s twenty messages between the two of them. Crap. I’d thought they would go to the party and we’d likely talk about the fight sometime in the future, if ever.
“Heath, I know this is a long shot, but have you seen Ivy?” Harper asks. “We had a fight earlier, and she’s not at home. I’m worried about her.”
It’s nice that she’s worried about me because earlier she’d seemed like she didn’t care at all. But I’m not sure catching me in Heath’s bedroom is going to fix our situation.
“Ivy?” Heath is blocking her view from the door. “Have I seen Ivy?”
Darnell snorts. “Yes. That is the question she asked. If I had known this was going to happen, I wouldn’t have let the group leave so soon. This is some reality TV shit right here. Anyone want a beer?”
