there was no reply, so he headed to the door Rhaven had gone in and knocked. A murmur on the other side sounded enough like "come in" to convince him to try the handle. It turned, so Psyc slipped inside to find her lying in the middle of a massive bed, staring at the ceiling.
"Hey?" he breathed.
"I'm dawdling," she told him, turning to look at him.
Psyc paused halfway to the bed. Damn, but she was beautiful. Her legs were long and lean. Her stomach was flat, her chest small - but just the way he liked it. Like this, he could see the subtle signs that she was still early in her transition, but he also didn't care. Rhaven was gorgeous, and Psyc had no intention of letting her slip away without trying everything he could to prove to her that he was serious.
"So," he said, "seems Braden's cool with me being the side piece again."
"And the catch?" she asked.
He moved to the side of the bed and sat down, just to lean over her. "He says he wants to see you happy. Me? I have my own requirement. I want to see if this will work with us, Rhaven. Me and you. Do you even think of me that way? Or am I just a convenient dick to jump on when you get bored of Braden's? Maybe a little spice in your life? I mean, I'm not judging. I'm just..." He paused, looking for the right word. "I'm bracing, I guess? Because I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since Denver."
"I live with Braden," she told him. "I'm in love with him!"
That hurt, but Psyc nodded. "I get that. I do! I also know that you kissed me back."
She slid out from under him to sit up. Her fingers ended up laced in her lap, and then she twisted her hands, almost like she was trying to distract herself with it. Slowly, Psyc shifted so he was matching her position. Both of their legs were crossed, their knees were almost touching, but still, she said nothing. For as long as he'd known her, he'd never once seen Rhaven like this. She raged. She ranted. She had loud and often over the top freak-outs, but then she knuckled down and made things happen.
This? It was a scared girl who knew what was on her mind, yet was terrified of saying it. Psyc had thought he'd been a dick when he'd accidentally made her out herself to him. He'd apologized for that over and over, but Rhaven swore she didn't care. She wanted everyone to know. She just couldn't figure out how to say it without being too blunt. But this time, he wasn't going to make her say whatever she was avoiding. If she wasn't ready, he could wait.
"Hey," he breathed, reaching over for her hands. "Still friends, right? Kinda all I really care about."
She looked up, her eyes meeting his. "I couldn't stop thinking about you either."
Chapter 35
Braden headed to the door at the end of the hall. The one on his side, since he knew the other end was Jason and Zara's. He could hear noises inside, so he knocked. The sound got louder, then - almost too soon - the door cracked open to reveal a man in a t-shirt that was a little too crisp. It took Braden a second to recognize Bradley. Bradley, however, didn't have that problem.
"The keycards all work for this door," he said, pulling it open wider.
"Wasn't sure if they were still settling in," Braden admitted as he stepped into the room. Something bumped against his leg, making him look down. There, Crysis was wiggling in excitement, just begging for a little attention. "Hey, little man. Why are you in here?"
"We brought up Jason and Zara's computers first," Bradley explained, "then he and Zara went downstairs to check in. They're probably stuck in their room right about now, being all cute, so I'm on puppy duty."
From down the hall, Riley yelled, "War Room's in here!"
"Still waiting for my stuff to be brought up," Braden called back, but he was already walking in that direction. "And am I the only one loving this top-end customer treatment?"
A laugh proved that Void was also in the room. "Riley wouldn't let them touch her rig. Clothes? No problem. The box with her computer was a whole different story."
"So what are we doing for F5? I mean, no way we're working on this crap down