AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m kidding! It was a joke.” I waited for him to relax before I went on. “The four-person proposition you guys made to me is unusual.”
“Understatement of the century.”
“What I mean is that you never see relationships laid out ahead of time: you and I are going to be platonic friends, Ryan and I are going to have a physical relationship, Andy and I are going to be serious. Most relationships aren’t defined up front like that. Two people start dating or hanging out, and they see where it goes. Why don’t we do that?”
“See where it goes?”
“Sure. No expectations, just you and me and whatever we want to do. Especially the friendship part—because I love having you as a friend. I don’t want to lose that.”
“Me neither.” He smiled and stuck out his hand. “Deal?”
I shook it. “Deal.”
Dorian pulled me into a long kiss. Not the kind of kiss that was meant to initiate anything deeper, but one that was great all on its own. I sighed into his mouth and wished it could go on forever.
But of course it couldn’t. Eventually Dorian pulled away and brought me back to reality.
“That’s one relationship resolved,” he said. “Now what about Braden?”
I groaned. “Don’t remind me. I have no idea what’s going on there.”
“He’ll come around,” Dorian replied. “He probably just needs time. He’s close with his mom, so last night’s fireworks probably require a lot of mending.”
“I suppose.”
“Look on the bright side. His parents probably believe he’s straight now! So he doesn’t have that problem to worry about anymore.”
“Right,” I said dryly. “He’s moved from one problem to the next. Maybe we can keep shuffling his issues around each day, like someone moving debt from one credit card to the next.”
Dorian was quiet for a few moments. “You like him, don’t you?”
I let out a bitter chuckle. “I already told you we were together in the subway.”
“That’s not what I asked,” he said carefully. “You like him, like him. Don’t you?”
I was sick of keeping my emotions and concerns and anxieties to myself, so I answered truthfully and without hesitation. “I’ve had a big crush on Braden ever since I moved in. It’s been tough because I have no idea how he feels about me, and whether the sex we had was purely physical or indicative of something deeper.”
“Have you talked to him?”
“I confronted him about it the other day,” I replied, “and he told me he wasn’t sure how he felt. And then he said we would see how dinner with his parents went, and go from there.”
Dorian winced. “Yikes.”
“In other words, I totally fucking blew it.”
“And you’re filling the Braden-shaped hole in your heart with the next best thing: your dashing roommate Dorian.”
I slapped him on the arm. “That’s not what I’m doing. You and I kissed before I blew things with him.” I glanced up at him. “In all seriousness, how do you feel about all of this? The fact that I’m in some sort of relationship with all four of you?”
“I won’t say it’s the most conventional relationship I’ve ever been in, but I’m not weirded out by it,” he said quietly. “If anything, I’m the one stealing a slice of their pie—pun intended—since I was only supposed to be friends with you. I feel like I’m playing with house money.”
I put my hand on his chest. “That’s good to hear. One less thing for me to worry about.”
He stroked my hair. “Braden will come around. He just needs some time.”
“I hope so.”
“And hey,” he added. “Braden has an easy way out. All he has to do is tell his parents he broke up with you over how you treated his mom. They’ll be convinced that he’s straight, and you won’t have to pretend to be his girlfriend anymore.”
