Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 93957 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93957 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
He shrugged good-naturedly, moving his hand from my knee to the inside of my thigh. “What do I know? I’m old. And…I gotta run.”
I squeezed his hand under the bar as he stood, waving him off when he pulled his wallet from his back pocket. “I’ve got this. Tell Penny I said hi and tell Parker I’ll see him tomorrow at the studio.”
“You got it.” Sean surprised me when he bent to kiss my cheek. And again when he added, “You want to know why I like you?”
“Um, okay…”
“You’re real and you’re honest. You have no idea how refreshing that is.” He slipped his arms into his suit jacket, flashing one last grin my way, then headed for the exit.
I stared after him, but before I could process our exchange, someone nudged my elbow off the bar and whistled in my ear.
“You sly dog, you. How long have you and Sean been doing the nasty?” Bobby J drawled, raising his hand to get the bartender’s attention.
I did a double take and pasted a phony smile on my face. So much for being honest and real.
“What are you doing here?”
Bobby J narrowed his gaze. “I’m waiting for my man. We meet here once a month on our anniversary.”
“At The Zebra Den?” I scoffed. “You can do better than this dump.”
“Cody and I met at this dump. No offense, honey,” he assured the bartender who’d sidled forward to take his order. When we were alone again, he shot an amused glance my way. “In fact, these are our seats. Thank you for warming them up for us.”
I motioned for the bartender to bring my tab. “Any time. I’m on my way out now and—”
“Not so fast.” He yanked my T-shirt meaningfully. “What’s up with you and Sean? Don’t bother telling me it’s no big deal. I saw him kiss your cheek. And that, my friend, was a lover’s kiss.”
“Bobby…”
He furrowed his brows and rubbed his thick beard, fixing me with a fierce stare. “Spill it, Johnny boy. And while you’re at it…does Tegan know?”
“No, but—”
“For fuck’s sake, man. What the hell is the matter with you?” He smacked me gently upside the head, nodding his thanks when his drinks were delivered. He set the cranberry vodka aside and sipped his beer. “I’m waiting. You better hurry. Cody’ll be here in five minutes exactly. Then again, he might be interested in why you’re screwing around with one of your best friend’s exes too. I know I am.”
I sighed heavily, setting my credit card on the receipt, and sliding it toward the till. “Don’t make this into some big drama. Tegan is married. He won’t care—”
“Of course he won’t care, but you should still tell him,” he admonished. “How long has this been going on?”
“A couple of months.”
“Months?”
I gave Bobby J a brief rundown without giving anything important away…like the fact that I was beginning to worry I was in too deep. “It’s not serious. Sean and I are friends and a little more. But we’re never going to be some big love story, so don’t get your boxers in a twist.”
“I’m not wearing boxers,” he countered.
“Yeah, well…”
“Hey, you don’t owe me an explanation. You don’t even owe Tegan one. But it’s common courtesy. Don’t be an a-hole. Ahh…” Bobby J’s no-nonsense, flinty gaze melted a moment later. He stood abruptly and opened his arms wide in greeting when Cody hustled to the bar to join us.
“I’m sorry I’m late. Traffic was terrible on the 10.” Cody snaked his arms around Bobby J’s waist, gazing up at his boyfriend with a wide adoring expression before smiling at me. “Hi, Johnny. Don’t get up. I’ll grab a barstool.”
“No, you don’t. Johnny was just leaving,” Bobby J informed him, raising his hand for a high five.
He chortled merrily when I flipped him off instead. I hugged Cody good-bye, then signed the receipt and slipped my credit card into my wallet as I made my way to the exit.
Bobby J was right. I hadn’t thought this thing with Sean would last. And I certainly didn’t think I’d be here a few months later wondering how I could stretch this into something more. But here I was. A happy-ever-after fairy tale wasn’t in the cards. I didn’t want that anyway. I was on my way to being a rock star. My real life would never mesh with Sean’s. A guy who traveled the country in a tour bus and rocked out on electric guitar in front of thousands didn’t play board games with his boyfriend’s kids in his free time or—
Boyfriend.
Sean wasn’t my boyfriend. He was my fuck-buddy and a friend. If I really were an honest man, I’d admit I wished things were different. I wished I could have more. But I couldn’t have what I wanted, and lies of omission would only jeopardize my friendship with Tegan.