around the gym a bit. Are we good?" He gave me a worried look, like he thought I might be offended by his reaction.
"We're good, Kodiak," I replied, trying really hard not to laugh. "Go kick his ass."
He gave me a relieved nod, then took off to drag Archer into the gym, probably under the guise of "training" for his upcoming fight.
"What was that all about?" Steele asked, sitting down in Kody's vacant spot and dropping the pizzas onto the table.
I grabbed the box labeled “supreme” and took a slice before replying. "Just Kody coming to grips with the whole Archer situation." I took a big bite and met Steele's curious stare.
"How so?" he asked, suspicious.
I shrugged, not really wanting to tell him how my ass was currently wearing the imprint of Archer’s hand like it was tattooed on. If this dynamic was really going to work, he'd find out for himself soon enough,.
"How is this going to work?" I asked aloud, wiping pizza grease from the corner of my mouth. "You three all kinda have that alpha-male, big dick energy going on. It's not super conducive to sharing one girl, is it?"
Steele just arched a brow at me as he finished his own mouthful of pizza—some spicy, Mexican-style one. "Isn't it?"
"Uh, I wouldn't have thought so." But then, what the hell would I know?
He shot me a lopsided smirk. "Anything is possible for the right girl, Hellcat. And trust me when I say this... you're the right girl. For all of us, as much as I wish that weren't true. Can I ask you a favor?"
I hadn't been expecting that, so I jerked a nod, seeing as my mouth was full.
"Leave the posturing, jealous, possessive bullshit to us to deal with. We've been friends a long time; we've got our own ways to work shit out. It doesn't need to stress you out." His tone was gentle, not at all dismissive. Just... reassuring.
I rolled my eyes, tilting my head in the direction of the gym. "Like beating the crap out of each other and calling it a workout?"
Steele grinned. "Exactly."
I supposed when he put it like that, it was kinda hot.
"Now, come on. Kody left me high and dry here, so you've got to race me." He wiped his greasy fingers on a napkin and handed me Kody's game controller. "Then later, you can tell me where your panties went, 'cause I know you're not wearing any right now." The look he gave me was pure sex, and I squirmed.
Maybe I didn't need a night off after all.
Who was I kidding? I definitely did. But that didn't mean I couldn't play with him a bit.
35
Apparently I needed that night off more than I’d realized because I fell asleep on the couch with a half-eaten slice of pizza in my hand. When I woke up the next morning, I was tucked up in my own bed in a pair of comfy sweatpants and a guy's T-shirt.
I cuddled into the warmth of my blankets for a few minutes, reluctant to get up but also well aware I couldn't miss any more classes if I wanted to actually pass.
Groaning, I clawed my way out of the blankets and staggered through to my bathroom. A quick glance in the mirror clued me in to who had changed me out of my clothes after I passed out. I was wearing Steele's favorite band T-shirt—Vanth Falling—and I could already tell he hadn't bothered giving me any panties.
I hurried through my morning routines, braiding my hair into two long ropes and going a little heavier on the eyeliner than usual. It worked, though, when I put Steele's T-shirt back on and paired it with black skinny jeans and chunky heeled boots. He and Kody had stopped by my apartment over the weekend and packed up all my stuff for me, which was all kinds of considerate of them.
"Fuck me," Kody groaned when I walked into the kitchen. "It should be illegal to look that good in another guy’s clothes." He slid out of his seat at the table and grabbed me around the waist.
Faster than I could even utter a "good morning" he had me pinned against the fridge while he showed me exactly how hot he thought I looked in Steele's shirt.
He only stopped kissing me when Archer whacked him in the back of the head with a rolled-up magazine.
"Ow, what the shit, bro?" Kody protested, scowling at his friend while I caught my breath