I was. Totally okay.
I wouldn’t get between Leo and his dating plans, even if the idea made me queasy. That’s just the beer and nachos.
Leo was a relationship guy and probably beyond ready to jump into something with whoever was willing. Not that he didn’t have standards, but he was a catch. Who wouldn’t flock to him?
I forced a deep breath through my nose as I watched Leo knock down seven pins. Things would be fine if Leo started dating again. It didn’t mean we wouldn’t still be friends. Sure, we might hang out less, skip some of our weekly taco Tuesday dinners, monthly Sunday brunches, and payday pizza parties, but we’d found ways to spend time together when we were married. It would be okay. I would be okay. I would support him in whatever he wanted.
Leo managed a spare and aimed finger guns at me. I aimed right back, then we both blew on the tips of our index fingers—a ritual when either of us got a strike or spare.
Before Leo returned to his seat, Ollie stopped him. “Hold up, I want to get a photo.”
Leo flexed his arm and kissed his bicep, which made the hem of the black sleeve strangle the muscle. He was shorter than me, tight and lean, but the man was surprisingly strong.
“I’ll text it to you for your dating profile.” Ollie was already tapping away on his screen.
Leo’s eyes snapped to mine, and there was something unreadable there. My phone buzzed a few seconds later. Ollie had sent the photo to Leo and me. I saved it to my camera roll so I could use it as his new contact photo.
“You’re up,” Ollie said.
Grabbing my ball and lining up for my shot was almost automatic. I tuned out the pins falling in other lanes and the classic rock playing over the old sound system to focus on the weight of the ball in my hand.
Five steps, then throw. It didn’t need to be more complicated than that. I inhaled through my nose, exhaled through my mouth, then took that first step. The ball rolled smoothly down the center of the lane. Come on, come on. It crashed into the middle pin with enough force to cause a domino fall. Strike!
My teammates jumped up and cheered. Leo’s smile was soft as he pulled out his finger guns and made pew-pew sounds. I returned the gesture.
“You guys are too cute,” Ollie said as he mimicked our finger guns.
I didn’t know how to respond. I was used to Ollie’s remarks about how close Leo and I were, but he wasn’t usually so pointed.
Despite the teasing, I would enjoy his attention while I had it because there was no way an incredible guy like Leo would stay single for long once he put himself back on the market.
CHAPTER 3
LEO
“Shh, you’ll wake the neighbors.” I steered a tipsy Hudson upstairs to our apartment as he made an off-tune attempt at “Thong Song.”
“Thong thong thong thong thooonnnng. Have you ever thought about how weird that word is? Thong.” He emphasized a long G. “Did the name for the underwear or flip-flops come first? Do you think their names are related? Oh! The strip between the toes is like the strip between the butt cheeks.” Of course he’d said “butt cheeks” the loudest.
I probably shouldn’t have bought him that last drink at The Lucky Tongue lesbian bar, but he’d deserved it after losing to the smug librarians and dealing with Ollie’s comments.
Hudson continued his thong musings as I unlocked the front door. Hopefully, he was tipsy enough that he wouldn’t remember all of Ollie’s remarks. They’d gotten under my skin and left me unsettled, but Hudson hadn’t seemed fazed. He’d been teasing Ollie right back and had hopefully missed the meaningful looks Ollie kept shooting my way.
As soon as I got the door open, Hudson plowed through the entryway toward the living room, calling for his cat while making grabby hands.
I reached out and hooked my finger in the waistband of his jeans before he got too far. “Whoa there, cowboy. You’ve still got your shoes on.”
Hudson gasped and looked down at his feet, up at me, down again, and then back up as he cupped his cheeks, looking like the Home Alone movie poster.
“I almost wore shoes into the living room,” he whispered loudly as he haphazardly kicked them off.
I bit back a laugh. Adorable. “But you didn’t.”
“Because you saved me. My hero.” He blinked at me. Had I ever noticed how long his eyelashes were before? “You’re a very good friend, Leo, and you deserve to find someone nice. If you wanna date, that’s okay. I won’t freak out if you bring someone home who leaves dirty dishes on the counter or wears her shoes in the living room.” His face pinched like the words had caused him physical pain.
I laughed and shook my head. “Go get ready for bed.” I grabbed his shoulders, turned him toward the hallway, then gently pushed.
Ollie had brought up online dating a weirdly frequent number of times. He’d shared horror stories and given me tips. I’d recently mentioned off-hand that I didn’t know how to do the app thing, but he hadn’t responded to it. It was like he’d been saving it all until Hudson was there. What’s he playing at?
