5. Kylie
5
KYLIE
They’d caved. I couldn’t believe it. For a while, I thought I was going to have to lure Mason out to the balcony and push him off. But I was in. I got to stay here in this beautiful suite with the fireplace and the balcony and best of all, that incredible mountain view. The sun had almost set, but rays of orange and pink filled the sky behind the snow-capped peaks. It was gorgeous.
Jude got to his feet. “Where’s your stuff?”
“In my car in the south lot.”
“We’ll go get it,” he said.
“You will?” That took me by surprise.
“Yeah. First off, no offense, but you look dead on your feet. Secondly, it might not be a good idea for the guys in the hall to see you moving a bunch of your stuff in. Come on, Mason.”
To my surprise, Mason rose to his feet without complaint.
“Thanks,” I said, still a bit shocked as I gave my keys to Jude and described my car.
“If we have to carry up a bunch of pink shit, you owe me a beer,” Mason said as he and Jude headed out, Parker trailing after them.
“If you find a bunch of pink shit, then you’ve got the wrong car,” I called after him, grinning as they left.
Holy crap. Once the guys were gone, the suite looked even bigger. It was freaking enormous. It was probably as large as my uncle’s entire house. And it was certainly a lot newer and nicer.
All summer long, I’d worked my ass off at the bar. Mixing drinks late into the night. Enduring the flirting and come-ons. Making sure inebriated customers got home safely. But it was all worth it for the chance to go to graduate school. To get my MBA and get a good job. No, not a job. Serving drinks was a job. I wanted a career.
For some reason, this seemed like it was the first step on that path. Surely I’d get more studying done at that great table with the amazing view. And it was a bonus that Parker was studying business, too. Maybe, if I ever got more than a handful of words out of him, he’d have some tips for me.
I wandered around the suite until the guys got back. “Thank you,” I gushed as they set it all down next to the sofa.
“I think we got everything,” Jude said, handing me back my keys.
“I thought you’d have more stuff,” Mason observed as he scanned my assortment of boxes and mismatched bags.
“Because I’m female?”
“Yeah.”
I narrowly avoided rolling my eyes. “Maybe this’ll work better if you don’t fall back on tired stereotypes of women.”
To my surprise, Mason grinned. “Weren’t you the one who implied that men cuss and leave their wet towels on the floor and—what was the other thing?”
“Scratch our balls while we watch TV,” Jude supplied, and I felt my face flush. Had I really said that?
“Right. I’ll have to remember to do that next time.”
“All right, I’ll try not to stereotype you, either.”
“Sounds like a good policy all around.” Jude sat down in one of the armchairs. “Let’s settle a couple more things while we’re being open-minded.” Once we were seated, he looked toward the bathroom across the way. “I think Kylie should have that bathroom. We can share the other one.”
“All three of us?” Mason asked sharply.
“Why not? We shared one last year.”
“The whole point of this place is it’s spacious,” Mason argued. I didn’t point out that the bedroom wasn’t very spacious, with four beds in there, but I didn’t want to antagonize them. Truth be told, it would be nice to not have to share a bathroom and worry about privacy.
Jude seemed to be on the same page. “I really think this is the one instance where it’s best to stick to gender lines. For all our sakes.”
Mason nodded but didn’t look happy.
“Thank you,” I said rapidly. “And if I’m not using it in the morning and one of you needs to shave or something, I certainly don’t mind.” Jude had a well-groomed beard, and the other two had a couple days’ worth of stubble. I wondered if they’d shave it off when classes started? I hoped not. It looked good on them. On Mason, it gave him a bit of a bad boy air, and on Parker, it made his cute but young-looking face appear a bit older.
Jude continued on. I wondered if he was the unofficial leader of this trio or just the peace maker. It kind of felt like the latter. “We’ve got all four dressers in the bedroom, but there are only two closets there and two out here.” He gestured to the closet doors on the wall behind me. “I can take one of the ones out here so that you can have one in the bedroom, Kylie.”
“I thought we weren’t supposed to treat her differently because she’s female,” Mason said before I could say anything.
“I’m not. I was going to make that offer to Kyle, too.”
“Thanks,” I said to Jude. “But if I’m using the bathroom out here it probably makes sense to hang my clothes out here, too.”
“Good point. By the way, yours is the dresser on the far right in there. There’s not a ton of room back in the corner since the bunk beds are so big, so it’s lucky you’re small. And by the way, we’ll be bunk mates. I’m on top.” Jude delivered that last line with a sly grin that I didn’t mind a bit. It was far more charming than the sloppy innuendo the men at my uncle’s bar attempted.
“Good to know. Who’s on top on the other side?”
“Me,” Mason said. That wasn’t much of a surprise. “Anything else?”
Jude shrugged. “Not that I can think of. I’m sure there will be some issues as we go along, but if we talk about them and keep our heads—and our tempers—we’ll figure it out.”
I couldn’t help beaming at him. He’d had my back from the moment I got here. “Thank you again. I can’t believe I get to live in such an amazing suite.”
“Unless we all get thrown out on our asses, you’re welcome,” Mason said as he got to his feet.
After that, the guys left me alone to unpack. Jude worked on his laptop at the big table. Mason and Parker were out on the balcony. I hoped to go out there once I found a place for all my stuff. I bet the night air would feel good. But first, I took advantage of the other two men’s absence to get some info from Jude. When he took his eyes off his computer screen, I pounced.
“About Mason—” I began, but he cut me off.
“He’s actually not an asshole, I promise.”
I wasn’t sure that was entirely true, but I nodded. “And Parker?”
“His girlfriend dumped him two weeks ago.”
I winced. Poor guy. “How long were they together?”
“Five years, I think. They met during their sophomore year of college.”
“Ouch.” I took a deep breath. “Thank you for your support back there.”
“You’re welcome. Did you get everything unpacked?”
“Mostly.” Organization skills weren’t my strong point. “Do you know if the cafeteria is still open?”
Jude looked at his watch and frowned. “I doubt it. The front desk has some snacks you can buy.”
“Good to know, thanks.” I was starving. But then I hesitated. “So, when I come and go, should I just… I don’t know, try to sneak in?”
Jude leaned back in his chair, considering my question. “I don’t think so. You’ll see women leaving some of the other guys’ rooms, I’m sure. If you notice anyone staring or looking suspicious, just act girlfriendly.”
My mouth twitched at that rather vague instruction. “I’ll do my best.”
Act girlfriendly.
That phrase echoed through my mind as I climbed into my lower bunk later that night. It was a lot more comfortable with sheets and an actual pillow. It wasn’t that late, but I’d thought it might be less awkward if I got into bed first. I’d put on a tank top and shorts, so it wasn’t like I was indecent, but it still felt a bit strange. I’d probably get used to it pretty quickly, however.
Not sure I’d get used to acting girlfriendly, though. It had been quite a while since I’d been one. I’d had a short-term relationship my sophomore year, and dated a bit after that, but then things got too busy. Determined to make the most of my opportunity, I’d earned two minors in addition to my major. There hadn’t been a lot of time for men.
And now I was surrounded by them.
They seemed like good guys, though. Sure, Mason had been against my staying at first, but it was rather out of the ordinary. I doubted it would’ve even occurred to me without that amazing view. But when I saw the majestic mountains, I just knew that this was the room for me. It was like knowledge that was set in stone.
And now I had to figure out how to act like a visiting girlfriend when I wasn’t. While I mulled over that, my thoughts grew hazy. I was exhausted, from the drive, from the late night yesterday, and from the events this evening. My mind drifted and I was almost asleep when the bedroom door opened and light from the hallway poured in. That was probably why this lower bunk hadn’t been claimed… the light shone right into my eyes.
“Sorry,” a low voice said. It was Jude. Before the door shut, I noticed that he was wearing boxers and an undershirt. I also noticed that he had leanly muscled legs and a cute butt. Hmm, maybe that wasn’t the kind of thought I should be having about my new roommates, but then again, it might be the kind of thing a girlfriend would think.
Ignoring his looks became impossible when he stood directly in front of my bunk. His dark boxers were inches from my face. Then he placed one foot on the bottom rung of the ladder and swung himself up to the top bunk. It made the whole structure wobble a bit, but it wasn’t too bad. If I’d been asleep, I wouldn’t have even noticed.
Then again, I would’ve missed seeing him in his underwear.
I fell asleep before the others came to bed, but when I woke up in the middle of the night, I could see Mason on the top of the other bunk bed. I could also hear Jude’s gentle snoring—it didn’t sound like a freight train at all. I’d suspected they were messing with me before when they said all those things about each other.
Just as I was about to roll over and go back to sleep, I noticed that the bunk across from me was empty. Was Parker out in the living room? Or still on the balcony? That poor guy was sure nursing a broken heart. I vowed that tomorrow, I’d try to talk to him, to see if I could draw him out of his shell.
But for now, what I really needed was sleep.