Pearce arched a brow at me, looking far too delectable when he did so. “That right? What possible threats could you bring to the table?”
My stomach somersaulted thinking about all the possibilities and the direction of this conversation. More than that, the tone of the damn thing. There was no doubt this teasing ventured into flirting territory, and hell if it didn’t feel good.
“You do remember I’m staying at your house for the foreseeable future, right?” I quirked my brow and didn’t know how far to push this. Between my worry for Lottie, my frustration at Wayne—and certainty in ending it—and how good spending time with Pearce made me feel, I needed something positive, something potentially amazing to cling to. Ignoring all previous concerns I had, I leaned forward a fraction, rightness settling in my chest when I settled on, “By the time I get back to your place, I’m going to be single.” Despite the widening of Pearce’s eyes, I pushed on. “So if you don’t want to see how exactly that works out, by all means, have at it.”
I swept on by him, skin flushed, ears ringing. I quickly checked on Lottie before hightailing it out of the hospital. That I’d left Pearce looking stunned and red-faced didn’t escape my notice. That I’d flirted so outrageously, despite my hesitancy in trying to pursue anything with the man, filled me with… Fuck, there was no dread, simply excitement. Pure, stomach-fizzing excitement. Something I hadn’t felt since I was nineteen.
I didn’t even know if he was interested anymore. Well, not for sure. Was I being a presumptuous asshole?
I stepped out into the early afternoon sun and exhaled heavily.
What if Pearce wasn’t keen for anything beyond friendship? If he wasn’t, I’d truly screwed up the best friendship I’d ever had. I angled my neck from side to side until a satisfying pop filled my ears. It would be fine. I had to believe that. I hadn’t outright propositioned the man, and if things were awkward, I’d apologize and work my ass off at making it right.
Since that’s what had happened when Pearce indicated he’d like to be more than friends and we’d survived that, I figured we’d be able to again if need be.
I sighed and tugged out my phone, knowing I had a call to make. Since my parents had never met Wayne, they’d never need to know I was breaking the gentleman’s code they’d drilled into me. And fuck it. Wayne didn’t deserve my energy or a face-to-face, not when he was such a cockhead.
Wayne answered on the fifth ring. “Yeah?”
I rolled my eyes, pissed that I’d wasted time and energy on this man. “I know you’re getting ready to head out to your friend’s, so I’ll keep this brief.”
“If you could, I’m kinda busy at the moment.” The sound of a deep chuckle filtered down the line. It wasn’t Wayne’s.
“Right. When I get back, we won’t be seeing each other again. It’s time for a clean break.” The words flew from me with ease—smooth and controlled.
“So I was right about Pearce.” He scoffed. “It’ll never work.”
Clenching my jaw, I ground my back molars, trying my hardest to keep this civilized and not call him out on all his shit. “That’s nothing you need to worry about.”
“If there’s nothing else…?”
I hated the curl of disgust settling in my chest. Hated I’d put up with his shit simply to distract me from my growing feelings for my best friend—and wasn’t that a nugget of realization that slammed into me. Fuck, it was enough to take my breath away.
But Pearce had it so right calling him Wankface Wayne. The thought made me chuckle. There was no way I could keep it in. “Nope,” I managed to say, my amusement loud and clear. “That’s i—” He cut me off. The action dragged even more laughter out of me.
Fuck, it felt good to be free. Free from Wayne making me think he was doing me a favor. Free from denying my feelings for Pearce.
Grinning, I opened Pearce’s car door, relieved he’d had the sense to move it yesterday so he wasn’t towed. Once settled, I opened the built-in SatNav, pressing Home. A tug in my chest surprised me when I did so. Creating a home with Pearce, for the three of us, was a future that was exhilarating and terrifying. And… I was getting way ahead of myself.
Just because I’d finally admitted that my affection for Pearce went way beyond that of friendship, it didn’t mean that something would happen. I was a dad with a shit ton of responsibilities. Pearce still had an amazing future laid out before him.
Fuck. Adulting was hard. It meant I had to be stupidly sensible and talk this shit out at some point… if he was interested.
But it wasn’t like I could just say, “Hey, you wanna go steady? Well, yeah, we haven’t even kissed, but how do you really feel about being a stepdad?” There was pressure, then there waspressure.
As I pulled out of the parking lot, I focused on breathing and calming my thoughts. There was little point in being fifteen steps ahead of myself. I needed to take each day as it came. Plus, Lottie was the most important person I had to focus on. It was difficult when my dick spent so much time responding to Pearce. There was only so much my body and brain could handle.
But still, focus was necessary.
I had a feeling that was going to be difficult until Pearce and I talked this thing out.
CHAPTER8
PEARCE
Hoveringin the doorway with a hard-on was all levels of wrong. It was all Eddie’s fault. The asshole knew it too. It was the reason why he’d raced out of here after throwing all those words my way. Every word he’d said, the tone he’d used, had hit their mark. Caressing my skin before seeping through and finding a home in my chest.
Hope. The motherfucker had made hope surge to life. Well, that, and my dick.
