Page 48 of Date With Skates

Because I feel like I’m being crushed.

Étienne leaves the room and comes back a moment later with a damp towel for me to wash up.

He said his roommates were out, and they knew he was having someone over, because apparently he hasn’t been hiding his hookups well.

I clean up and reach for my pants, but Étienne grabs my wrist.

We lock eyes.

“Stay for a while.”

I blink.

“Okay.”

“I mean, it’s not late,” he says quickly, trying to hide that little bit of emotion that came through. I wish he wouldn’t. It’s easier to be vulnerable with him when he’s vulnerable with me. One of us has to make that first move, but neither of us wants to because we both know where it leads. So, I guess it’s best like this.

“Yeah, it’s still pretty early,” I agree.

He crawls back onto the bed, lying on his back beside me. I grab my phone from my pants and lie down beside him, realizing that I have some texts waiting for me from Jayden, the kid watching Spike.

I open the text to see a bunch of photos of Spike sunbathing under his lamp.

“That thing again,” Étienne says with an eye roll.

I hold out the phone for him to see. “How can you say he’s ugly?”

“He looks like a freaking dinosaur.”

“Exactly. Dinosaurs are cool. And it’s where he got his name from.”

“I don’t recall Spike being a type of dinosaur.”

“No, it’s the name of a cartoon dinosaur.” He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “Oh, no. Don’t tell me you’ve never seen The Land Before Time.”

“You’re speaking another language,” he says.

“Étienne, you—”

He cuts off my words with a kiss. When he pulls back, he’s smiling.

“What was that for?” I ask.

“Just because.” He shrugs.

“Right…”

“Can I not kiss you when I want?”

“You can,” I say carefully, trying not to sound too happy about the idea. “It was just unexpected.”

“Gotta keep you on your feet, Hockey Boy.”

I laugh, then pull up the movie on my phone.

“We’re watching this.”

“Mon Dieu, t’es presque aussi énervant que Nico.”