He turned to Dare. “He aced almost every class in college and had one of the highest GPAs in high school.”
Of course, that led to trading stories about school and questions from Dare about my work. Ryan liked to pretend I was the smart one, but he’d done a great job in school as well. Dare entertained us with stories about his friends and family, keeping us laughing.
Sometimes as he spoke, he gestured wildly with his hands. Instead of moving mine back to my lap or just back to Dare’s legs, I kept my fingers laced with Ryan’s. At first, I was worried that I’d make a big deal about it or that he’d think I was pulling away from him so I needed to stay close, but after a while I was just enjoying holding him.
As the evening passed, it got easier to talk to Dare, and before we knew it, his friends were calling him from across the bar. Evidently, he was the designated driver for the night and they were ready to head home.
The idea of him leaving had my stomach sinking. He’d talked about wanting to get to know us but sometimes in the daylight, ideas faded. Dare didn’t seem to have the same fears, though. “Okay, hand over the phones, you two. I’m not letting you escape that easily.”
Ryan laughed as he grabbed his off the table and handed it over, but I could hear the relief in it. After Dare added in his number and then texted himself, he gave Ryan a slow, heated kiss. As he pulled back, he smiled. “I’m going to text you later.”
For some reason it sent a shiver through both of us.
Dare laughed and reached his hand out, expecting me to hand mine over. I was glad to do it. I wasn’t sure what the hell we were doing, but it wasn’t something I was ready to walk away from. I’d been walking away for too long already, and it was time for it to stop.
I just hoped it wouldn’t explode in my face.
When Dare’s number was in my phone and he’d checked to make sure the text he’d sent his phone had gone through, I got the same slow, tender kiss. As he sat back, he gave me a knowing grin. “I bet it’s easier for you to confess things over texts, isn’t it?”
I wasn’t sure I liked the word confess…but it was probably accurate.
I finally nodded but gave a half-shrug as well. “Yes. I think so.”
There hadn’t exactly been a lot of opportunities for me to confess anything. Not since Ian, at least.
Dare sighed as he started to climb off Ryan’s lap. “Part of me wants to invite you over, but I think you need time to see how you feel. I’m expecting texts tomorrow at the very least. Got it? Even if you’re nervous and you don’t talk to each other about it, you’re going to talk to me. No running.”
I nodded as he stood. “Deal.”
“Got it.” Ryan seemed reluctant to let Dare go, but Dare didn’t seem to mind. He just leaned in and gave Ryan a quick peck.
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Then he stretched across the table and gave me a kiss as well.
As he walked away, I couldn’t help but think of the way he’d felt under my hands and the way he’d looked at me…like he knew exactly what was going through my mind, and it just made him want me more.
I just hoped Ryan would feel the same way when everything came out.
