Chapter 11
ELEVEN
TEX (TRAVIS)
Iprimped my hair in my bathroom mirror, making sure it lay just right, and then adjusted my blue sweater on my shoulders. I’d have my first proper date with Colton tonight and I wanted to look my best.
“Hey.” Malik leaned against the doorjamb. “Why pretty yourself up to hang out with your tutor at a hockey game if it’s not a date?” He slapped my ass.
“If I want to look nice for a change, I will.” I turned to face him. I still hadn’t told him the truth, even though Malik would keep it secret. I wouldn’t betray Colton’s trust. Brushing past him, I entered the room.
“Where is this game at and what time?” Malik followed me.
“Scottsdale Convention Center and seven.” I grabbed my wallet from our dinette and stuffed it into the pocket of my jeans. The next question was predictable.
“Why are you leaving so early? It’s only four-thirty.” He raised a brow. “Are you taking him to dinner too?”
As I shook my head, I let out a soft chuckle. “It’s not a date, Malik, but yeah, we’re going to grab a bite before the game.” Was he seeing through my lies? He knew me pretty well.
“Okay, if you say so.” He patted my shoulder. “Maybe you could bring him by sometime. I’d love to meet this tutor of yours, who you’re not dating.”
“Yeah, maybe I will. I’ll ask him if he wants to come over for some Madden.
” I strode toward the front door. Had Colton ever played Madden?
I hadn’t seen a video game console at his place.
What college student didn’t play video games?
“See you later. Don’t wait up for me.” With a cackle, I strolled to my truck.
If Colton would let me, I’d stay the night.
I could tell Malik I got drunk and couldn’t drive home.
But with Malik’s questioning, it would be a hard sell.
After parking, I moseyed to Colton’s apartment. I’d do this right and meet him at his door instead of texting him from the parking lot like some hookup. As I bounded up the stairs, the door opened.
“Hey.” He stood on the landing in a form-fitting black sweater with grey jeans, a jacket slung over his arm.
“Hey.” He looked good enough to eat. I’d ravish him later.
Not having him on Thursday had tested my resolve, but it had been the right thing to do.
As I met him on the landing, I pushed him back inside his apartment and against the wall, our chests touching.
“I need a kiss before we go.” I’d have to hold back throughout dinner and the game.
He offered a coy grin. “Yeah?” Gripping the back of my head and standing on his tiptoes, he captured me in a hungry kiss, his tongue sliding against mine and a low growl rumbling from his throat.
Oh, holy fuck, how could I wait to have him until the game ended? I swooned, kissing him back for a beat, my cock stirring, and then stepped back. “You’re amazing, you know that?”
“No, but I’ll take the compliment.” He brushed past me and onto the landing. “Let’s go. We don’t want to be late for dinner.”
“Yes, sir.” I pecked his cheek as I strolled past him.
After parking in a multi-level garage across the street from the restaurant, I met Colton at the stairs and followed him down. “I’m starved and the menu for this place looked fantastic.” After brushing my finger against his hand, I stopped. I couldn’t take his hand, damn it.
“Yeah? You looked it up online?” He strolled toward the corner with me beside him.
This was a nicer area with four-story Tuscan-style buildings in tan stucco, red-tiled roofs and concrete pillars.
Restaurants and shops lined the street with small, spindly trees rising from planters every so often.
I wasn’t sure if the upper floors contained residences or offices, but I knew there were high-end condominiums around here.
I’d never hung out in this area though, as I usually stuck to Tempe and Mill Avenue. “Hey, doesn’t Evan live close by?”
“Yes, his apartment is just down the street.” As the traffic cleared, he pulled on my elbow. “Come on, let’s cross.”
He was watching out for me. Warmth surrounded my heart.
It was always the little things he did that affected me.
Like when he called me Tex instead of Travis.
I strode through the crosswalk with him and approached the restaurant, tucked into the end of the buildings.
Further down, the waterfront walk started, a little park area built around the canal.
The afternoon sun splashed the first hues of orange across the sky.
It was getting dark earlier now that we were into November.
After we strode under the overhang at the restaurant and through the glass doors, I stepped to the hostess stand and gave them my name.
The restaurant was massive, featuring two-story ceilings, towering windows encircling the perimeter, and Moroccan decorative elements clear in its tiling plus lengthy drapes.
A hostess showed us to a window table overlooking the waterfront.
A large patio furnished with tables and chairs spread along the outside with plants in pots between the furniture.
I dropped into my chair with white rattan.
“Maybe I should have requested a table outside?” The weather was still pleasant and not overly cold.
“No, this is fine.” He picked up his menu.
I already knew what I wanted. “Hey, I’m buying dinner tonight. You can pick up whatever we get at the game. Okay?” This was a date after all, and eating here had been my idea. I unrolled my napkin and placed it in my lap.
“No, I can’t let you do that. This isn’t a pizza parlor.” He sipped his water, already poured on the table.
“Yes, you can, and you will.” I brushed my foot against his under the table. “Please.” I was on a scholarship, and my dad gave me a generous allowance. I could afford it.
He set his menu down and smirked. “Fine.”
When the server arrived, we each ordered beers and a shrimp and calamari appetizer.
Glancing through the window, I thought about the past few weeks. “Hey, have you heard from Sara?”
With his brows raised, he said, “No, actually, I haven’t.” He fingered his plate. “That’s odd, because she’d said she wanted to stay friends and still needed some tutoring.”
“Maybe you should check in with her?” Or maybe not. Why did I say that? I shifted in my seat.
“I suppose I should. I could ask her about the tutoring.” He pressed his lips together. “Or maybe I should leave it alone. I never mentioned it, but she asked me if there was anything between you and me. She accused me of being gay again.” A pinkish hue swept across his cheeks.
“She did?” I gaped. Why had he never mentioned this? “And what did you tell her? Does she know you’re bisexual?”
With a slow shake of his head, he said, “No. She asked if I were gay and I simply said no.” He sipped his beer. “She dropped it after that. But she noticed something between us.” His gaze crept to mine and the edge of his lips rose. “Is it that obvious?”
“Maybe to people who know us well.” As my heart bloomed with warmth, I drank some beer, the refreshing bubbles gliding across my tongue.
“I’ve said nothing to my roommates about us.
” I scratched my cheek. “Well, they’ve teased me, but I tell them we’re just friends.
” Would he relax a little and let me tell them the truth?
“Good. They are students at ASU.” He leaned back as the server dropped off our appetizer.
We ordered our main dishes, with me getting a pesto chicken flatbread and him ordering pork and spinach ravioli.
“But Evan knows about us.” I plucked a fried calamari ring from the plate and dunked it in sauce. It would be nice if I could confide in Malik and Grey.
“He’s not a student at ASU.” He ate a piece of calamari and then wiped his hands on his napkin, resting in his lap. “When the semester is over, you can tell them. Okay?”
With a single nod, I said, “Okay.” Thanksgiving was coming up. “Are you going home for the holidays?”
“Not for Thanksgiving. But I don’t know about Christmas yet. It depends on my dad’s schedule and if he’s traveling for work or not.” He washed his food down with beer.
“Your dad wouldn’t have time off for Christmas?” I picked up another ring. I’d planned on having a week in Austin. It would be too soon to invite him, wouldn’t it? But the semester would be over. We could tell people about our relationship.
“I don’t know.” He swiped his bangs off his face and stared through the window. “I’ll talk to him and find out.” His gaze swept to me. “Why, are you going home?”
“I’d planned to, yes.” I ate more food. How odd would it be to leave him here alone for Christmas? No, I couldn’t have that. “You could, uh, if your dad is working, you could come to Austin with me. Sixth Street is a lot of fun.”
His brows snapped up. “You’re inviting me to meet your family at Christmas, when we’ve barely been together?”
“Maybe…yes.” I squirmed in my chair, my heart flickering. “You shouldn’t be alone at Christmas.” Plus, I really fucking liked him. Was I falling for him? Yes. I didn’t see this ending anytime soon, especially if we could be together in the open after the holidays.
“Let me check in with my dad.” He drank more beer as a grin teased his lips. “This is crazy. We met like, what, a month ago and it feels—”
“Like we’re more than friends with benefits?” He hadn’t said no. Warmth spread inside me. I might bring a boyfriend home for Christmas if I played my cards right.
“Yeah.” He ate the last of the calamari, and his breath caught. “Isn’t your ex coming to town soon?”
“He is.” I drank some water. “I worked it out with Malik and Grey, so he can have Malik’s room while he’s here.
He arrives Friday afternoon and leaves on Sunday.
” I’d been so focused on Colton, I’d thought little about Dante.
“Coach is letting me skip the team dinner so I can hang out with him Friday night.”
Wrinkling his nose, he said, “What do you have planned with him?”