She crosses her arms and tilts her head at me, like she’s silently calling “bullshit.”
“It’s late and I’m tired. Sorry,” I finally say.
That unimpressed expression doesn’t budge. “It’s pretty clear that you don’t like Xander, Theo.”
I shrug. “He’s fine. I just have to be in a certain mood to hang out with him.”
She rolls her eyes. “Look, whatever your deal is with him, can you put it aside for a minute so we can talk?”
I roll my shoulders despite how tight they are. “Fine.”
“I just don’t want it to be weird if I go out with him.”
“Ifyou go out with him?” It’s not till I finish speaking that I pick up on the hitch in my voice.
She leans back slightly. “That sounded weirdly aggressive.”
“I didn’t mean to come off like that.” I rub the back of my neck in a piss-poor attempt to expend this sudden surge of energy I feel. “You’re gonna go out with him then?”
She nods.
“Okay,” I mutter.
She frowns. “Okay, what?”
“I just mean that I’m not sure he’s your type.”
“And how would you know what my type is?” she asks, her tone pointed. Fuck. I’m screwing this up.
“Okay, maybe that was a bad way to phrase it, but Maya, he’s not the kind of guy you should date.”
She scoffs and crosses her arms. “And what gives you the right to dictate the kind of guy I should date?”
Frustration rockets through me. I shake my head. “Nothing. You date who you want to date, okay? I’m just saying that Xander is the kind of guy who fucks anything that moves. So if that’s what you’re into, go right ahead. I was just trying to look out for you.”
“Wow,” she mutters. “That’s a pretty judgmental thing for someone like you to say.”
“Someone like me?” I lean forward.
She steps toward me, closing the space between us. Now we’re barely a foot apart. “Yeah. You. Because last I heard you were quite the ladies’ man yourself. Pretty hypocritical of you to bash your teammate for the very behavior you engage in,” she bites.
“Not anymore,” I bite back. “That’s why I’m here in this cabin, agreeing to be babysat by you, remember? I’m done acting like that. And I’m just trying to do you a favor. Xander is a good guy overall, but no way in hell would I ever let any woman in my life within fifty feet of him.”
She leans back and lets out a frustrated laughing noise that sounds more like a growl.
“Oh my god, you sound like one of my brothers.”
“Maybe they have a point. They’re just trying to look out for you. Like I’m trying to look out for you. Because I’m your friend and because…”
I trail off when her gaze on me turns focused. And something else. Something I can’t put my finger on.
“And because what?” she says, her tone less sharp but just as firm.
“Because…”
The words I’m aching to say burn the tip of my tongue. The words I actually want to say, but I’m not brave enough to. Not when she’s standing there, looking like she wants to dump that bottle of water in my face because I’m acting like a possessive asshole.
Because I like you, Maya. I really, really like you. And the thought of you going on a date with another guy makes me want to rip apart this marble countertop with my bare hands. That’s how much it pisses me off to think about you with another man. That’s how much I want you.
