14. Zander
14
ZANDER
“You missed a spot.”
I turned, my paintbrush in hand, to find Ivy standing behind me, a shit-eating grin on her face.
“Where?” I motioned to the dresser Mark and I were working on.
Ivy loved to repurpose things, especially furniture, and their garage was full of half-finished and not-yet-started projects. She’d bought the dresser at an estate sale a few years ago and finally decided what she wanted to do with it last week.
Mark and I had spent the last few hours sanding and refinishing the dresser. Usually Ivy was right there doing the dirty work with us, but she’d spent the time rearranging the guest room, leaving us in the garage to finish up.
“There.” She pointed at the dresser.
“Where?” I looked between her and the dresser, trying to find the spot I’d apparently missed.
“Under there.”
“Under where?”
She dissolved into giggles. I sighed theatrically, and Mark rolled his eyes affectionately at her.
This joke wasn’t new for us, and Ivy never got tired of tricking me into saying underwear like we were still ten.
“You’re a brat.” I balanced the paintbrush on the side of the paint can.
“Yes, she is.” Mark wiped his hands off on his jeans. “What do you think, hun?”
She stepped closer and peered at the dresser, scrutinizing it. “I’m not loving the color.” She pursed her lips. “It’s too ashy.”
“We could put another layer of stain on it once it dries,” Mark suggested. “We still have some of that mahogany one we used on the bookshelves in the office.”
“Yeah. I think that will do it.” She smiled at him. “Perfect timing too. I made coffee and cookies.”
“Cookies?” I perked up.
Ivy hated cooking, but she was an incredible baker, and her cookie recipes were some of my favorites.
“I’ll clean the brushes and get everything put away if you want to head in,” Mark said to me. “It’ll be a few hours before we can put the darker coat on.”
He was very particular about his garage workshop, and I’d learned long ago that it was best to not move anything or try to help him clean up.
I followed Ivy into the house and washed my hands in the main floor powder room, then met her in the kitchen.
“Are you staying for dinner?” she asked, handing me a cup of coffee and a chocolate chip cookie.
I took a bite of the cookie and shook my head. It was still warm and soft, exactly the way I liked them.
“Are you sure? I promise I won’t put you to work again.” She popped a piece of cookie into her mouth.
“I have plans,” I said after I swallowed.
“Really?” Her eyebrows flew up in surprise. “Your mom need you to do something?”
“No, I’m…hanging out with a friend.”
“A friend?” she asked incredulously. “Since when do you have those?”
“Ouch.”
“You know I didn’t mean it that way.” She shot me an apologetic look.
“I know,” I said, cutting her some slack. She wasn’t wrong to be surprised.
“Are you meeting up with the guys from work?”
I started to nod but hesitated.
Ivy wasn’t just my best friend; she was family, and I didn’t feel right lying to her about Luka.
“What?” she asked suspiciously. “I know that face. You’re trying to decide if you’re going to tell me something.”
I took another bite of my cookie so I wouldn’t have to answer her right away. How much should I tell her?
She put her coffee down and crossed her arms. “You can’t chew that bite forever. Eventually you’re going to have to tell me.”
I swallowed and tried to look breezy and relaxed. “I’m hanging out with Luka.”
“Luka? From work?”
“Yeah.”
“Just you two?”
I nodded.
She started to say something, but I cut her off.
“If I tell you something, do you promise to not freak out and make a big deal about it?” I asked.
“Yeah, of course.”
“Luka and I… We’re kind of seeing each other.”
“Oh my freaking god!” she shrieked, clapping excitedly. “Shut the front door!”
“Good job not freaking out or making a big deal out of it,” I deadpanned.
“Yeah, I’m not even sorry.” She snatched my cookie out of my hand and put it on a napkin. “Tell. Me. Everything.”
I toyed with one of the silver rings I wore when I wasn’t at work, spinning it around my finger. “Everything?”
“ Everything .”
“So, this is a really crazy story, but you know that app I use?”
“The kinky one? Yeah.” Her brow furrowed. “What does that have to do with Luka?”
“I’ll tell you if you let me get to that part.”
She pretended to zip her lips shut.
I chuckled at her antics. “I’ve been talking to someone on there. It was supposed to be a one-off thing, but that turned into another session, then we started messaging each other and talking about other stuff. Personal stuff.”
Her expression said she was confused as hell, but she didn’t interrupt me.
“And Luka and I have been getting closer over the past few months. We’ve become friends, good friends.”
Her confusion melted into a happy smile.
“And here’s the part that will melt your brain.” I leaned my hip against the edge of the counter. “Luka showed up on my doorstep last night in a panic. It turns out that he’s the guy I’ve been messaging with.”
Her jaw dropped like it had been unhinged.
“Pretty much my reaction when he told me.”
“How is that even possible?” She asked. “How were you unknowingly sexting with your coworker on a kink app?”
“Um…”
We both swung our gazes to the kitchen doorway, where Mark stood with one foot in the room and one out, frozen in place.
“Do you want me to pretend I didn’t hear that and go back to cleaning the garage?” he asked.
“It’s fine.” I waved him into the room. “You might as well hear it now.” I shot Ivy a pointed look. “That way someone doesn’t spend the next few days driving you crazy talking about it while not actually talking about it.”
Mark huffed out a laugh and came to stand with us. “She’s bad for that.”
“The worst,” I agreed.
“Definitely the worst.”
“I’m right here.” She waved a hand between us. “I can hear you, you know that, right?”
“Did you hear something?” Mark asked, cocking his head to the side like he was listening for a sound off in the distance.
I pretended to listen for something too. “No, I don’t think so.”
“Ugh.” She rolled her eyes. “Sometimes I wish you two didn’t get along so well.”
We both flashed her big, beaming smiles.
Mark was awesome, and he was one of my closest friends. Not all men would be okay with their wife staying best friends with her ex-husband, not even if that ex was gay and there wasn’t any sort of tension between them.
He understood that we’d never been more than friends, even when we were married. He made an effort to befriend me when they got serious, and he never hesitated to give us space or privacy if we needed it.
And there were times when I talked to him about stuff and not Ivy. I loved her like a sister, but sometimes I needed another man’s perspective or to talk to someone who hadn’t known me since I was a kid.
I was lucky to have both of them, and honestly, I was jealous of their relationship. They were one of those couples who still acted like newlyweds, even though they’d been together for over five years now. They had fun together, and they supported each other no matter what.
I wanted that, even if I’d never admit it.
Ivy narrowed her eyes and gave me a pointed look. “You can’t just drop that you’ve been getting your bossy on with your coworker and cliffhanger me. I need details. Now.”
Distractedly, I tugged the hair tie free from my low ponytail and tucked the long strands behind my ears. “He figured it out yesterday,” I said, then paused, not sure how many details to give.
“How?” Ivy asked when I didn’t continue.
“He sent my handle a message on the app while we were closing the shop last night. He heard the notification, saw me answer, and put two and two together.”
“Jesus.” Mark’s eyes were as round as saucers. “Now that’s an awkward conversation to have at work.”
I spun the ring around my finger absently. “I had my back to him, so I had no clue he’d sent the message until he showed up at my house a few hours later panicking. He told me, and we…”
Ivy and Mark exchanged a knowing look.
“So, yeah. That’s how I found out,” I finished lamely.
“So you’re together now?” Mark asked.
“Yeah, sort of. We’re seeing each other.”
“Eep!” Ivy threw herself into my arms and hugged me tight. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Don’t get too excited.” I hugged her back. “It’s only been a day, not even.”
“Shut up and let me be happy for you.” She squeezed me tight, then let me go. “And let yourself be happy too.”
I nodded, my throat tightening a bit.
She was right. I’d spent last night and most of today worried that Luka would change his mind about us. That it had been the shock of finding out and the good feels from getting off that made him want more. And now that he’d had time to think about it, he’d realize that he just wanted to be friends.
It didn’t help that he hadn’t texted yet. We still had hours until we were supposed to meet up, and my brain had decided that was a sign that he wasn’t into me and this was over before it even started.
Sensing that I needed a second, Ivy silently handed Mark a cup of coffee.
I nibbled on my half-eaten cookie, my mind spinning. Luka had taken all the risk last night. He’d come to my house on the brink of a panic attack to tell me the truth. He was the one who said he wanted to see where things went between us, and he was the one who suggested we hang out tonight.
He’d done all of that not knowing how I’d react. He risked rejection multiple times, even though he told me how hard it was for him to stand up for himself or tell people what he wanted. And how hard he took rejection. It was time I put myself out there and show him I was willing to be vulnerable too.
Before I could lose my nerve, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and went to my contacts.
I had Luka’s number, but we’d never texted each other. Time to change that.
Zander : hey, how are you doing today?
There. That was neutral enough, and it gave him an opening in case he really had changed his mind.
“Who are you texting?” Ivy asked innocently.
“No one.”
“If you say so.” She sipped her coffee and peered over the rim of the cup at me.
My phone vibrated with a text, then two more came through in rapid succession.
“Better answer that. No one seems to have a lot to say,” she said with an innocent smile.
Ignoring her, I checked my texts.
Luka : hey
Luka : I’m okay. Didn’t sleep great but what else is new
Luka : how are you doing?
Zander : I’m good
Zander : do you still want to hang out tonight?
I held my breath and stared at my phone screen.
Luka : yeah definitely
I blew out my breath. Even without being able to hear his tone or see his expression, that answer made it seem like he was excited, especially with how quickly he’d sent it.
Luka : holy shit
Cold dread filled me. Had he already changed his mind?
Zander : ???
Luka : I just realized you have an 85 camaro in your garage
Luka : like it just clicked that Nice has a camaro, so that means you have one too
My stomach unclenched, and all the fear melted away.
Zander : lol I’ve had a few moments like that too, where it just hits out of nowhere that you’re the same person
Luka : it’s so weird merging your online persona with the real you
Luka : like I should have realized the camaro you always talk to dev about is the same one that’s sitting in your garage
Luka : and it’s such a mind fuck to think that I knew all these things you two had in common, but I never put it together
Zander : yeah, it is. There are so many things that were obvious but I didn’t see them because I wasn’t looking
Luka : makes me wonder how long this would have gone on if I hadn’t sent that meme
Luka : but enough about my existential crisis, or whatever it’s called. We were making plans for tonight
Zander : lol, yes we were
Zander : do you want to come over? maybe hang out for a bit and check out the camaro?
Luka : like I’d ever say no to that
I did some quick mental math to figure out what time I should invite him over. I had to do my weekly meal prep when I got home, but that wouldn’t take more than a few hours.
Zander : do you want to come over around 7? Will that give you enough time?
Luka : yeah. 7 is great
Zander : great
Luka : I’ll see you then
He sent a beaming smile emoji, then a kissy face one.
I flushed hot and sent back a smile emoji and a kissy face one.
“Awwww, he’s blushing.” Ivy’s voice broke into my thoughts.
I quickly exited out of my texts and tucked my phone away. “Shut up.”
“So, how’s No one?” Mark asked innocently.
I shot him a look. “Not you too.”
He smiled serenely back.
“I hate both of you.”
“No, you don’t.” Ivy grinned at me.
Rolling my eyes, I put the last bite of cookie in my mouth and chewed, my stomach roiling with both nerves and excitement at getting to see Luka again.